Suit rips Chevron A top Hawaii executive for Chevron Corp. in 1997 intimidated service station dealers so they would not support a major piece of legislation the company opposed, according to the sworn deposition of a former Chevron manager.
boss’s tactics
Dealers intimidated in
By Rob Perez
legislative battle, according
to court documents
Star-Bulletin
Several legislators were so angered by such alleged behavior that they asked the state Attorney General's Office to investigate whether legislative witnesses were illegally intimidated, documents filed recently in a lawsuit between Chevron and Chevron dealer Frank Young show.
The company, Hawaii's gasoline market leader, aggressively lobbied in 1997 against what later became a landmark law restricting oil companies from opening new stations within certain distances of dealer-run stations.
The documents, including internal memos and deposition transcripts from David Young, Chevron's public affairs manager from 1986 to 1998, provide an unusual behind-the-scenes look at how a large company tried to defeat a major bill at the Legislature.
Chevron so opposed one version of the 1997 bill that it planned to tell Gov. Ben Cayetano that the company would leave Hawaii if it passed, the documents say.
Chevron also intended to use the expiring lease of Frank Young, the bill's chief proponent and a frequent Chevron critic, as leverage to get him to support the company, according to the testimony of David Young, who is not related to Frank Young.
"After I raised that issue (of Frank Young's lobbying), I was told, 'Don't worry, Frank's lease is up soon, and we can use that to remind him that he's got to play ball and be part of the Chevron family,'" David Young said in his deposition.
Chevron spokesman Albert Chee Jr. said the 1997 allegations were unproved and raised by Frank Young to steer attention away from the facts of the lawsuit -- that the dealer repeatedly violated his lease despite numerous warnings from the company.
"All of this is an attempt to distract people from the truth," Chee said.
Although Chee said he was not prepared to comment on specific allegations from the '97 session -- he was not employed by Chevron then -- he did say, "Lobbying is a right of all citizens and corporations doing business."
The oil company sued Frank Young in 1999, seeking court approval to evict him from the Kakaako station his family has operated for nearly 50 years.
Frank Young filed a countersuit, claiming that the company was retaliating against him for publicly criticizing its practices -- a charge Chevron disputes.
The recently filed documents depict the lengths to which Chevron allegedly went to derail the divorcement bill or get it into a more palatable version.
In one December 2000 deposition, David Young said Chevron executive Joe Bob Riley intimidated Chevron dealers from testifying at a 1997 hearing on the bill. The dealers signed up to support the measure, but after Riley spoke to them, they left without testifying, said David Young, whose relationship with Riley at times was rocky.
According to his deposition, David Young said Riley told the dealers "they had better things to do than be here at this hearing and that he wanted them to understand their 'priorities.'"
In one 1997 memo to his mainland boss, David Young said he had asked Riley about an encounter Riley had outside the hearing room with an angry Frank Young and another dealer supporting the divorcement bill. "These guys have to realize that there's a downside to what they're doing here today," Riley told David Young, according to the memo.
Frank Young said Riley did not issue specific threats, but implied ones that silenced many other dealers. "The company is so big, just the threat of it coming down on you scared a lot of people," Frank Young said.
Former Rep. Rosalyn Baker, who played a key role in shaping the divorcement measure that year, recalled that dealers were reluctant to testify. "Chevron was doing everything they could to get the dealers to back off," Baker said.
Added Dick Botti, who lobbied for dealers during the '97 session, "I recall telling Dave Young he had better control his boss better because (Riley) was infringing on the First Amendment rights of dealers."
Riley, who has since retired from Chevron and lives on the mainland, could not be reached for comment. But in an August 2000 deposition, he denied threatening to retaliate against Frank Young.
Riley also said he discussed the divorcement bill with dealers to remind them that it was heavily weighted toward Chevron's competitors.
One of Riley's corporate bosses, however, was concerned enough about Riley's "less than desirable" conduct that in 1997 he recommended Riley be replaced, according to the deposition of Jordan Traeger, who was Chevron's retail general manager that year.
David Young's testimony has become controversial in two cases involving Chevron: this one and the state's $2 billion antitrust lawsuit against the major oil companies in Hawaii. In both cases he was subpoenaed to give sworn depositions. In the state's case, Young admitted that he gave false or misleading legislative testimony on behalf of Chevron while public affairs manager.
Chevron has since described David Young as a disgruntled former worker whose testimony has been unreliable.
David Young declined comment for this story, citing a protective order in the state antitrust case prohibiting him from discussing evidence.
In his deposition, David Young said he believed no action was taken as a result of legislators' request to investigate Riley. In his deposition, Riley said he had not been aware of any investigation.
An spokesman for the Attorney General's Office said he could not comment.
The 1997 divorcement bill has received mixed reviews since its passage. Some dealers are lobbying this year's Legislature to substantially revise or repeal the law, saying it has not worked. Other dealers are pushing for even tighter government intervention.
Chee said the company has consistently opposed divorcement bills as protectionist, anti-competitive and bad for consumers.
Botti said some dealers still are afraid to speak against oil company interests.
Asked how Chevron's lobbying is today, Botti said, "I think they use more diplomacy and finesse now."