How should Richmond spend its $550 million Chevron settlement? City leaders want to know

"To get those answers, councilmembers have agreed to set aside up to $300,000 to contract out support that would facilitate community feedback. A central goal of the initiative, approved during a meeting Tuesday, is to develop a "just transition" away from the fossil fuel industry while ensuring community buy-in for how the dollars are spent. "We're in that moment where we actually do have to be as careful and as thoughtful as we can to make decisions for the future," said Vice Mayor Doria Robinson, who drafted the item with Councilmember Claudia Jimenez and Mayor Eduardo Martinez."

"The $550 million Richmond is poised to collect stems from an agreement it negotiated with the Richmond Chevron Refinery. In exchange for the funds, the council agreed to remove a tax measure, dubbed the Make Polluters Pay campaign, from the November 2024 ballot. If approved by voters, the measure would have brought in between $60 million and $90 million annually by charging Chevron for every barrel of raw material that was processed at the plant."

Richmond is set to receive $550 million from Chevron under an agreement that removed a proposed Make Polluters Pay tax measure from the November 2024 ballot. City councilmembers approved up to $300,000 to hire outside support to collect community feedback and design spending priorities. A central objective is to pursue a just transition away from the fossil fuel industry while securing community buy-in. Local groups behind the ballot measure endorsed the council plan and framed the funds as a chance to fund neighborhood improvements and build an economy independent of fossil fuels.

Read at The Mercury News