VOTE 'YES' ON MEASURES A & B
See what Measures A & B do, and why they are on the ballot, in this LETTER to our members.
A “YES” vote means you support the coastal and non-coastal zoning ordinances passed by the Board of Supervisors to make environmental review consistent for ALL NEW oil and gas development.
A “NO” vote means you do NOT support the coastal and non-coastal zoning ordinances passed by the Board of Supervisors and NEW oil and gas development on land covered by OLD pre-1970 permits will remain exempt from environmental review.
The League of Women Voters - a nonpartisan political organization - encourages informed and active participation in government, works to increase understanding of major public policy issues, and influences public policy through education and advocacy.
We never endorse or oppose political parties or candidates, but we are political. We do lobby on issues concerning all levels of government upon which members have studied and reached a consensus position.
Based on our research, we believe that measures A & B are in the best interest of the community and that the ‘No’ arguments are based on false assumptions and focus-tested talking points designed to mislead the voters.
Please vote 'YES' on both Measures A & B.
Links to supporting documentation
League Positions that Support our Action
https://www.lwv.org/impact-issues
Resource Management & Protection – Page 12
Promote resource conservation, stewardship, and long-range planning, with the responsibility for managing natural resources shared by all levels of government. Preserve the physical, chemical, and biological integrity of the ecosystem with maximum protection of public health and the environment.
Promote measures to reduce pollution from mobile and stationary sources.
Support measures to reduce pollution in order to protect surface water, groundwater, and drinking water, and set up a process to evaluate inter-basin water transfers.
Representative Government – Page 10
Promote an open governmental system that is representative, accountable and responsive.
Protect the citizen’s right to know and facilitate informed understanding and public participation in government decision-making.
LWV California Positions can be found at: https://lwvc.org/our-work/positions
“Yes” Arguments - with our impartial analysis
From the County Voter Information Guide. This list may be expanded with additional arguments from the 'Yes' website, 'Yes' ads, etc.
The ‘YES’ campaign is paid for by “Ventura County Save Agriculture and Freshwater for Everybody” (VC-SAFE) which is a grass-roots coalition of local environmental and social justice groups, their highest donor being the local company Patagonia, who contributed $450K.
Their top arguments are:
- Voting YES on Measures A & B will protect our drinking water and community health — keeping in place widely supported protections Ventura County passed in 2020.
- It is true that these measures will uphold zoning ordinance amendments passed by the Board of Supervisors in 2020.
- Whether they protect our drinking water and community health is speculative, but it is reasonable to believe they will. These measures do not affect existing oil and gas wells, but do require environmental review before any new drilling in the County, including in areas previously considered exempt due to ‘vested rights’.
- Big Oil corporations spent nearly one MILLION dollars to end these protections by putting it on the ballot.
- This is true.
- There is also controversy over false statements made during signature gathering that misrepresented the petition to people who signed it.
- Without these health and safety protections in place, oil and gas operators could use old permits from the 1940’s era — to drill or FRACK straight through our drinking water sources, potentially contaminating our drinking water FOREVER.
- It is true that many permits issued before 1970 (when CEQA - The California Environmental Quality Act - was passed) have no limits on number of wells or types of drilling, and no expiration date when requirements can be renegotiated.
- If a permit does not specify type of drilling, this can be interpreted as allowing fracking.
- Most oil drilling is through or near aquifers, and there are existing regulations related to protecting the water. These measures are about requiring an environmental review before drilling starts.
- Opponents of A & B have argued that ‘vested rights’ makes old permits exempt from environmental review. Measures A & B allow for ‘vested rights’ on existing development but claim it does not apply to future drilling.
- ‘FOREVER’ is a very strong word,
- Over 3,000 oil wells in Ventura County use these old permits, which allow them to avoid environmental review. Measures A & B will make ALL oil companies play by the SAME RULES, no matter when they got their permit.
- It is true there are oil wells using these old permits. The number 3,000 is based on well data from CalGEM and permit data from County of Ventura, which shows 3,162 active and idle wells located within antiquated permit parcels. There are also abandonded wells which would make the number even higher.
- Under older permits, oil companies can drill or FRACK oil wells next to schools and homes and expand dangerous drilling with as little review as building a simple storage shed. Living near oil and gas sites leads to higher rates of respiratory disease in children and higher preterm birth risks for babies. Measures A & B will protect our communities from the health impacts of neighborhood oil drilling.
- Existing wells in or near neighborhoods are not affected by A & B, but future wells, or deepening of existing wells, will be affected by new requirements related to setback and types of drilling.
- Numerous academic studies show negative health impacts from living near oil wells. Links to some of these studies can be found under "White Papers, Studies, and Other Reference"
- Vote YES on Measures A & B to ensure oil companies are held to the same environmental standards as all other businesses in Ventura County. No jobs or existing oil wells will be impacted by this measure.
- Not really ‘all other businesses’, but it’s true that all oil companies will be held to the same environmental standards for all new oil and gas development.
- It is true that there is no immediate impact on existing oil wells or jobs.
- It is possible that some potential jobs could be affected in the future if an environmental review fails on a new or expansion project that would previously have been exempt.
- This measure only applies to proposed oil and gas expansion projects or when applying to drill deeper.
- This is true.
“No” Arguments - with our impartial analysis
From the County Voter Information Guide. This list may be expanded with additional arguments from the 'No' website, 'No' ads, etc.
The ‘NO’ campaign is paid for by “Stop Measures A & B – A Coalition of Working Families for Jobs and Energy Independence” which appears to be entirely funded by Aera Energy (owned by Shell & ExxonMobil) and Chevron. $1M was spent on signature gathering to put A & B on the ballot, and now an additional $6.5M is being spent on the ‘NO’ campaign.
In 2020, when the zoning amendments that became measures A & B were first passed by the Board Of Supervisors, the primary ‘No’ argument was about ‘vested rights’ (see paper about vested rights under 'White Papers'). VC Counsel had determined that vested rights do not exempt NEW development from environmental review on land with OLD permits, and the purpose of the amendments was to clarify that.
In 2022 the ‘NO’ campaign’s top arguments are:
- A & B are a political POWER GRAB that will give Politicians, NOT EXPERTS, final say over existing oil and gas production.
- This is false. It is the job of the elected Board of Supervisors to manage zoning and permitting for local mining and oil production. They passed these amendments after many hours of expert testimony and public comment. If there is a ‘power grab’ it is the oil companies using their considerable wealth to try to overturn what elected officials passed in the interest of their constituents.
- It will SHUTDOWN existing oil and gas production in Ventura County
- This is false. The measures explicitly state that they apply only to new drilling or substantial expansion, such as deepening of existing wells. Maintenance is explicitly exempted. And in any case, if proposed drilling passes the environmental review, it can proceed. Wells on land with newer leases already do this.
- It will increase our dependence on costly FOREIGN OIL from countries with poor environmental and human rights standards.
- This is false because these measures will not affect existing oil production. But even if they did, the amount and type of oil produced in Ventura County would have virtually no impact on the need for foreign oil.
- It is true that many oil producing countries have poor environmental and human rights standards, but this is not relevant since A & B will not increase our need for foreign oil. In addition, most of our foreign oil comes from Canada, which is not known for poor environmental and human rights standards.
- It will increase ENERGY PRICES, driving up prices, especially hurting families on fixed incomes.
- This is false. Since measures A & B will not shut down any oil production they cannot affect energy prices or hurt families on fixed incomes. But even if they did shut down oil production in Ventura County, energy prices are set in a global market, so the gain or loss of any production in Ventura County would have virtually no impact on energy prices.
- Local oil and gas producers provide over 2,000 good-paying jobs in Ventura County.
- This may be true, although we could not find out from the campaign what this number is based on, and the Ventura County Civic Alliance 2021 State of the Region Report lists only 910 Mining/Oil Extraction jobs in Ventura County in 2020.
- The Supervisors’ political override of existing permits would threaten the livelihoods of these workers and their families.
- Some jobs might be affected in the future if a planned project fails an environmental review, but measures A & B explicitly do not affect existing wells and therefore this statement is false.
- Local oil and gas production provides $56 million annually in state and local taxes for priorities like schools and public safety.
- This may very well be true. We were not able to find the source for these numbers.
- Measures A & B would wipe out this critical funding, resulting in slower fire response times and increased school class sizes.
- This is false. Since measures A & B will not shut down any oil production they won’t wipe out any tax revenue for schools and public safety.
Campaign Financial Statements
Statements for both campaigns will be updated as more recent versions become available.
VCSAFE is managed under the umbrella of Food and Water Action, the 501c4 arm of Food and Water Watch. 501c4 organizations are authorized to lobby directly for legislation. Members of the coalition include Patagonia, Food and Water Watch, CFROG, Los Padres ForestWatch, Central Coast Alliance for a Sustainable Economy and Ventura Citizens for Hillside Preservation. VCSAFE is also endorsed by local, state and federal elected officials from across Ventura County.
"Working Families for Job and Energy Independence" is a political action committee or PAC formed to pay for signature gathering to block oil and gas zoning amendments adopted by Ventura County Supervisors in November 2020 . All its funding appears to be from AERA Energy (jointly owned by affiliates of Shell and ExxonMobil), Chevron, and the California Independent Petroleum Association (CIPA), an industry trade group that lobbies on behalf of oil operators.
April 9, 2019, Board Of Supervisors Meeting
This is the meeting where Supervisor Bennett noted that there was a report (US Geologic Survey done in Feb 2019) that indicated they had found some gases leaking into a water well, and he tasked the Planning Commission to research those reports and develop some recommendations. To see the relevant part of the meeting click HERE.
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(To see attachments, click on the agenda item)
July 30, 2020, Planning Commission Hearing
This is the meeting where the Planning Commission presented their findings and recommended that ordinances be updated to upgrade “antiquated” permits to follow the same procedures as “modern” permits. To see the relevant part of the meeting click HERE.
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(To see attachments, click on the agenda item)
Proposed Ordinance Amendments including mark-up
November 10, 2020, Board Of Supervisors Meeting
This is the meeting where the amended ordinances were adopted by the Board of Supervisors in a 3-2 vote. To see the relevant part of the meeting click HERE.
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(To see attachments, click on the agenda item)
Ventura County 2040 General Plan
Articles and Letters about Measures A & B
About the Supervisors' Decision
Ventura County Star - Published Nov 13, 2020 - Kathleen Wilson
About Industry Backlash
Ventura County Star - Published Dec 12, 2020 - Kathleen Wilson
Capital & Main - Published January 12, 2021 - Aaron Cantu
Ventura County Star - Published Feb 3, 2021 - Kathleen Wilson
About the Campaign
Measures A, B Campaigns in Full Swing | VCSAFE Coalition Takes On Oil and Gas Industry
VC Reporter - Published Apr 6, 2022 - Kimberly Rivers
Ventura County Star - Published April 30, 2022 - Kathleen Wilson
'YES' Editorials and Letters
There are many editorials and letters about A & B that can be easily found using Google. We are providing a few examples.
Ventura County Star - Published May 2, 2022 - Phil White, of Ojai, is a former County Planning Commissioner and Air Pollution Control District Director who now sits on the County Climate Emergency Council.
Ventura County Star - Published May 15, 2022 - Katie Davis is Chair of the Sierra Club Los Padres Chapter
'NO' Editorials and Letters
There are many editorials and letters about A & B that can be easily found using Google. We are providing a few examples.
Ventura County Star - Published May 6, 2022 - Ben Oakley is Manager of the California Coastal Region at the Western States Petroleum Association, a member of several organizations, and a campaign spokesperson for No on Measures A and B.
Ventura County Star - Published May 15, 2022 - Letter to Editor
White Papers, Studies, and Other Reference
Vested Rights
This legal paper explains how, in an era of pioneering environmental and land use laws, savvy developers are using the “vested rights” doctrine to circumvent and undermine critical public health, safety, and environmental regulations.
Local Experts
Todd Collart is a highly respected expert in Ventura County oil & gas planning, permitting, and oversight
Geological Studies
Geological study that initiated the measures. The USGS found indications that petroleum-related gases are migrating into the drinking water aquifers of the Fox Canyon aquifer system in the vicinity of steam injection and wastewater disposal wells. The study did not conclusively determine the source of the gases.
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Health Studies
Oct 20, 2021 - "For many years, communities have been complaining about how oil drilling in their neighborhoods is harmful. Now we have numbers to back that up."
June 3, 2020 - The study, funded by the California Air Resources Board, is one of the largest of its kind and the first in the state. It analyzed the records of nearly 3 million births to people living within 6.2 miles (10 kilometers) of at least one oil or gas well between 2006 and 2015.
June 9, 2020 - New research shows living near oil and gas development in California is a risk factor for preterm birth, the leading cause of infant death in the United States. About 2.1 million Californians live within one mile of an active oil or gas well.
Other Reference
This presentation has maps showing where antiquated permits are, where wells are, and explains why we have drilling without environmental oversight.
"Winning. In our business that's the only thing that matters."
Provides accurate data and balanced insight across ten domains every two years. Shows 910 jobs in mining/oil extraction in 2020 out of a total of 266,554 jobs in Ventura County in 2020.
Provides an overview of the existing oil and gas facilities in the unincorporated area of Ventura County, and the local regulations that apply to the permitting of proposed oil and gas projects.
Data management system for sites that impact, or have the potential to impact, water quality in California, with emphasis on groundwater. GeoTracker contains records for sites that require cleanup and also records for various unregulated projects as well as permitted facilities including: Irrigated Lands, Oil and Gas production, operating Permitted USTs, and Land Disposal Sites.
California Department of Water Resources SGMA
Interactive map of groundwater basins and GSAs
Groundwater Resources Association of California
Association of California Water Agencies SGMA
Fox Canyon Groundwater management Agency
Watersheds Coalition of Ventura County
Ventura County’s groundwater basins
Ventura County’s water purveyors and their service areas
