Have you seen this sign in Clovis? Chevron wants it to start a conversation

FRESNO, Calif. (KSEE/KGPE) – Drivers throughout California may have noticed Chevron’s latest graphic design campaign, letting drivers know that “nearly 25% of your gas money goes to state taxes and fees.”

The company wants the signs to start a conversation about carbon emissions and the fossil fuel industry. Vice President of Fuels for the Americas Mike Vomund says Chevron has tried to get the message out, the latest campaign featuring signage visible at local gas stations.

“The intent of it is exactly to drive these sorts of discussions,” Vomund said. “So often our industry is called the price gouger or price manipulator. That’s absolutely untrue.”

Vomund says the discussion surrounding regulations on carbon emissions has not been balanced. He says the California Air Resources Board has been quick to implement policies that go after the fossil fuel industry making it tougher to invest in California.

The California Air Resources Board says their approval of Low Carbon Fuel Standard (LCFS) was meant to increase cleaner fuel and transportation options for consumers and accelerate the deployment of zero-emission infrastructure. Vomund says the implementation of the LCFS, without a conversation with experts in the industry, is unfair to consumers.

“It’s about giving the consumers who pay for these products and these taxes the full information,” Vomund said. “Let them make up their own decision on what they think about various policies and regulations and taxes and fees.”

In Chevron’s campaign, AAA gas price averages are used to illustrate California’s heftier gas prices compared to other states. The campaign goes on to cite the Kleinman Center for Energy Policy at the University of Pennsylvania.

These recent policy changes could increase gas prices by, $0.65 per gallon in the near term, $0.85 per gallon by 2030 [and] nearly $1.50 per gallon by 2035.
Kleinman Center for Energy Policy at the University of Pennsylvania as per the Chevron Advocacy Network

Vomund says the ultimate goal is to get the public involved in the process and give consumers the tools to reach out to legislators with educated pleas and queries.