2016 Government Affairs Report IPANM Annual Meeting August 1-3, 2016 Santa Fe, New Mexico Presented by Karin Foster
THANK YOU! • Thank you for attending our Annual meeting and for supporting our efforts! • IPANM is an organization focused on being the ’voice of the Independent Oil and Gas Operator’ which means that to represent you, I need your input and your support. • Things are NOT slowing down!
THE FOSSIL FUEL INDUSTRY AND THE FIRST AMENDMENT How the Environmentalists are using every tool in their toolbox and even more to win the war against Industry
THE FIRST AMENDMENT OF OUR CONSTITUTION • Amendment I • Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech , or of the press; or the right of the people peaceably to assemble, and to petition the government for a redress of grievances .
THE LATEST ATTACKS ON FOSSIL FUEL May 2016 NM Attorney General Joins AGs United for Clean Power Coalition “We have been impacted by climate change, and we see its drastic effects in New Mexico — extreme drought, increased risk of severe forest fires, and the ruin of our wildlife and natural habitats,” Balderas said. “Our efforts will ensure that progress is made on climate change and that the public is fully aware of the effects on the health and well- being of New Mexico families.”
EXXON MOBIL AND 40 ADVOCACY GROUPS ARE SUBPOENAED • “An investigation into what extractive energy companies knew about the risks of climate change and if they deliberately misled investors and the public” • Subpoenas filed by Virgin Islands* AG and Massachusetts* AG demanding 40 years of communications regarding Climate change
“you are suspected to have engaged in, or be engaged in, conduct constituting a civil violation under the Criminally Influence and Corrupt Organizations Act by having engaged in or are or engaging in conduct misrepresenting Your knowledge of the likelihood that Your products and activities have contributed and are continuing to contribute to Climate Change in order to defraud the Government of the United States and consumers in the Virgin Islands, in violation of the laws prohibiting obtaining money under false pretenses or committing a conspiracy to obtain money by false pretenses”.
HOW IS A CLIMATE CHANGE COMMUNICATION DEFINED? • ‘Climate change’ as the general subject matter of changes in global or regional climates that persist over time, whether due to natural variability or as a result of human activity. Any documents or communications using any of the terms, ‘climate change,’ ‘climatology’, ‘climate science’, ‘climate model’, ‘climate modeling’, ‘global warming, ‘greenhouse gas’, ‘greenhouse effect’, ‘Co2 greenhouse’, ‘climate skeptics’, ‘global cooing’, ‘solar variation’, ‘carbon tax’, ‘climate legislation’ concern climate change, although documents or communications need not use any of these terms to concern climate change ” • Communication means any conversation, discussion, letter, email, memorandum, meeting, note or other transmittal of information or message, whether transmitted or in writing, orally, electronically or by any other means, and shall include any documents that abstracts, digests, transcribes, records or reflects an issue pertaining to climate change.
AG’S UNITED FOR CLEAN POWER • Who are they? • Intervened in case to defend EPA on Clean Power Plan • Pushing for methane rules to control emissions from the oil and natural gas industry.
GROUNDS FOR INVESTIGATING FOSSIL FUEL COMPANIES • Exxon ‘knew’ as early as 1977 about climate change • refused to acknowledge ‘settled’ climate science theory • actively promoted public misinformation ‘campaigns’ including hiring lobbyists to convince President Clinton not to sign the Kyoto Protocol • The ‘evidence’ – Union of Concerned Scientists “ Climate Deception Dossiers ”
The Actual statement THE QUOTE ALLEGEDLY FROM EXXON IN THE “DOSSIERS” from an ‘industry representative at a trade ‘Victory will be association meeting’ achieved when the average person is uncertain about • “Victory will be achieved climate science.” when ‘average citizens ‘understand’(recognize) uncertainties in climate science”
PRECEDENT FOR THIS TYPE OF INVESTIGATION … • Nov 2015: Peabody Energy, the worlds largest pubicly-traded coal company agreed to revise SEC disclosures to add statements that “concerns about the environmental impacts of coal combustion … could significantly affect demand for our products” • Specifially, Peabody ’s SEC filings regularly denied the company had the ability to predict the impact of potential regulation of climate change issues on the firm’s operations. But there were internal predictions that those regulations would have a 33% impact on sales. • And BIG TOBACCO
BIG OIL = BIG TOBACCO The turning point for tobacco-related public-health policy came when the industry’s depravity became indisputable. Now, that moment has come for the climate movement. Bill McKibben co-founder of 350.org
IS THIS ABOUT MONEY? • “I believe that full and fair disclosures by Peabody and other fossil fuel companies will lead investors to think long and hard about the damage those companies are doing to our plan ” NY AG E ric Schneiderman
OR IS THIS SOMETHING ELSE? Cycle Donations to Democratic candidates 2016 3,576,089 2014 5,745,792 2012 6,472,041 2010 6,986,483 2008 8,944,659 2004 5,180,187 2000 7,096,352 1996 6,140,819 1992 7,404,501 1990 4,731,110 T otal 83,693,818
OIL AND GAS POLITICAL DONATIONS Cycle Donations to Donations to Rs % to Ds % to Rs Ds 2016 3,576,089 32,332,236 10% 90% 2014 5,745,792 39,290,572 13% 87% 2012 6,472,041 53,196,090 11% 89% 2010 6,986,483 24,651,036 22% 77% 2008 8,944,659 30,879,025 22% 77% 2004 5,180,187 22,223,656 19% 81% 2000 7,096,352 27,437,728 20% 78% 1996 6,140,819 20,592,065 23% 76% 1992 7,404,501 14,316,233 34% 65% 1990 4,731,110 7,612,430 38% 62% total 83,693,818 340,085,666 20% 80% Source: OpenSecrets.org/Oil&Gas longtermtrends
PROBABLY ….
DEFENDANTS FIGHT BACK • The allegations leveled against ExxonMobil again today are politically motivated and based on discredited reporting funded by activist organizations. We are actively assessing all legal options. • Contrary to activists’ claims, our company’s deliberations decades ago yielded no definitive conclusions • The investigations targeting our company threaten to have a chilling effect on private sector research. • Exxon Files suit April 16, 2016 – no jurisdiction, violations of 1 st , 4 th , 5 th and 14 th Amendments • June 29, 2016, Exxon and AG Walker come to an agreement to withdraw his subpoena; the case against AG Healy is still pending. • ExxonMobil recognizes the risks posed by climate change, and we believe that everyone should be engaged in meaningful action to reduce greenhouse gas emissions.
BOTH DIES LINE UP • Call for investigation of • “[ i]t is inappropriate for State fossil fuel companies for Attorneys General to use the full disclosure power of their office to attempt to silence core • 100% electricity from political speech on one of the renewable sources by major policy debates of our 2050 time.” “Even law professors and the media agree that criminal prosecutions are unlikely as Exxon did not appear to have broken the law”
WHERE IS THE ADMINISTRATION? • U. S. Department of Justice has asked the FBI to evaluate whether the company's actions might justify legal action under RICO, the federal Racketeering Influenced and Corrupt Organizations law, which is aimed at illegal conspiracies. • Sens Ted Cruz (Tx), Mike Lee (Ut), Jeff Sessions (Al), David Perdue (Ga) and David Vitter (La) sent a letter to AG Lynch demanding the DOJ end any investigations
“SUE THE BASTARDS” – A SLOGAN FROM THE ENVIRONMENTAL MOVEMENT • Children’s Trust cases move from State Court to suing the federal government asking the court to mandate a national plan to reduce atmospheric concentrations of carbon dioxide to 350 parts per million by 2100 Industry is in court along side the Administration and lost April 2016 in Federal Court in Oregon but have won in DC District Court, NM, PA, OR and in Colorado
STEP ONE IN THE ENVIRO PLAYBOOK – UPDATE LAWS • Update of Clean Air Act (methane rules), NEPA (planning 2.0) and ESA (range wide plans- sage grouse) • Big Splashes in the media (AG’s United for Clean Power Plan); Children’s trust cases • Stealth mode – changing Administrative Process • Quarterly Rotating lease sales; environmental justice; Royalty overhauls
STEP TWO: IF NOT LEGISLATION OR REGULATION THEN LITIGATION Big sexy Racketeering, Fraud and deception cases AND/OR Administrative process cases = better fundraising!!
BUT WHO CARES IF THEY WIN IN COURT OR IN CONGRESS THEY ARE SUCCESSFULLY SWAYING THE PUBLIC PERCEPTION OF OUR INDUSTRY
WHICH IS WHY THIS ELECTION IS SO IMPORTANT DEMOCRATIC PLATFORM REPUBLICAN PLATFORM ON ENERGY ON ENERGY
POLICY DISCUSSIONS: PARIS AGREEMENT 1. What exactly does the Paris Agreement do?
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