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CC Resolution No. 2375RESOLUTION NO. 2375 AN RESOLUTION OF THE CITY COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF BAYTOWN, TEXAS, AUTHORIZING THE FILING OF AN AMICUS CURIAE BRIEF IN ENVIRONMENT TEXAS CITIZENLOBBY, INCORPORATED, ETAL., V. EXXON MOBIL CORPORATION, ET AL.; IN THE UNITED STATES COURT OF APPEALS FOR THE FIFTH CIRCUIT; CAUSE NO. 15- 20030; AND PROVIDING FOR THE EFFECTIVE DATE THEREOF. BE IT RESOLVED BY THE CITY COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF BAYTOWN, TEXAS: Section 1: That the City Council of the City of Baytown, Texas, hereby authorizes the City's filing of an amicus curiae brief in Environment Texas Citizen Lobby, Incorporated, et al., v. Exxon Mobil Corporation, et al.; in the United States Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit; Cause No. 15- 20030. A copy of such brief is attached hereto, marked Exhibit "A," and made a part hereof for all intents and purposes. Section 2: This resolution shall take effect immediately from and after its passage by the City Council of the City of Baytown. INTRODUCED, READ and PASSED by the affirmative vote A e City Council of the City of Baytown this the 10t' day of September, 2015. DONCARLOS, Mayor ATT ETICIA YSCH, City erk APPROVED AS TO FORM: ACIO RAMIREZ, SR., fi Attorney �aQ J1� ue,L.> N "• O'r R.' +.KarenlFiles"City CounciP •Resolutions\2015'September lOWmicusCuriaeBrief.doc Exhibit "A" No. 15 -20030 In the Eniteb 6tateo Court of Z(ppears; ,for the if iftb Circuit ENVIRONMENT TEXAS CITIZEN LOBBY, INCORPORATED; SIERRA CLUB, Plaintiffs — Appellants, V. EXXON MOBIL CORPORATION; EXXONMOBIL CHEMICAL COMPANY; EXXONMOBIL REFINING & SUPPLY COMPANY, Defendants — Appellees. Appeal from the United States District Court for the Southern District of Texas, Houston Division; No. 4:10 -CV -4969 BRIEF OF AMICI CURIAE CITY OF BAYTOWN IN SUPPORT OF APPELLEES EXXON MOBIL CORPORATION; EXXONMOBIL CHEMICAL COMPANY; EXXONMOBIL REFINING & SUPPLY COMPANY IGNACIO RAMIREZ, SR. City Attorney City of Baytown Texas Bar No. 16501900 2401 Market Street Baytown, TX 77520 Telephone: (281) 420 -6505 Facsimile: (281) 420 -6586 Email: ignacio.ramirez @baytown.org COUNSEL FOR AMICI CURIAE City of Baytown TABLE OF CONTENTS TABLEOF CONTENTS .......................................................... ............................... i IDENTITY AND INTEREST OF AMICI CURIAE ............... ............................... 1 ARGUMENT........................................................................... ............................... 2 I. ExxonMobil's Presence in Baytown ...................... ............................... 2 II. ExxonMobil's Operations ...................................... ............................... 3 III. Transparent and Open Communications ................ ............................... 4 IV. ExxonMobil's Responsiveness .............................. ............................... 5 CONCLUSION........................................................................ ............................... 6 CERTIFICATE OF SERVICE ................................................. ............................... 7 CERTIFICATE OF COMPLIANCE ....................................... ............................... 9 IDENTITY AND INTEREST OF AMICI CURIAE The City of Baytown is a home -rule municipal corporation location in Harris and Chambers Counties, Texas, which was originally three separate cities, namely Goose Creek, Pelly, and Baytown, but was consolidated in 1948. The City of Baytown is home to ExxonMobil's Baytown Complex. The City of Baytown has developed an extensive relationship with the ExxonMobil Baytown Complex for nearly 100 years. The City believes ExxonMobil is a good corporate neighbor and works diligently to comply with the Clean Air Act and other regulations applicable to its business. ExxonMobil maintains open communications with respect to its environmental performance, timely notifies the City of potential compliance concerns that may impact the community and is engaged and responsive to the City of Baytown and its neighbors. It is for this reason that the City respectfully submits this brief of amici curiae. Council for all parties have stated that they consent to the filing of this amicus brief. This brief has not been authored, in whole or in part, by legal counsel representing a party to this suit. The author of this brief is a salaried employee of the City of Baytown, who has received no fee from any of the parties hereto for the preparation of this brief. ARGUMENT The United States District Court for the Southern District of Texas's ruling in favor of ExxonMobil should be upheld. I. ExxonMobil's Presence in Baytown ExxonMobil has operated in our Baytown community for more than 95 years. The City of Baytown has grown up around the ExxonMobil Complex, and it is an integral part of our community. ExxonMobil is an active community partner and participant. The company truly values the relationship they have with our community and it shows through their actions. Year after year, ExxonMobil has consistently dedicated its time and resources to many important aspects of our community, including our local schools and colleges, the Baytown Nature Center, community organizations and various other entities and activities important to the City of Baytown. Their presence in Baytown has been acknowledged and appreciated by the City. Throughout many years working together, we have continued to strengthen our relationship with ExxonMobil. They are a true community partner with whom we have established a positive, collaborative working relationship. 2 II. ExxonMobil's Operations The City of Baytown believes ExxonMobil operates with high standards of integrity and commitment to ensure that its operations do not negatively impact human health and the environment. While ExxonMobil is not perfect, the City views ExxonMobil as an industry leader in making continuous efforts to improve its environmental performance and enhancing air quality in the Houston area. This belief is based on the financial commitments ExxonMobil has put into environmental improvement projects, environmental progress reports it has prepared and presented to City officials over the years, and the overall satisfaction of community members as reflected by the limited number of concerns raised to the City about ExxonMobil. Over the last ten years, ExxonMobil has consistently shown a downward trend in its emissions and continues to make investments to further reduce emissions, which in turn improves air quality. The Baytown area has sufficient monitoring in place to capture emissions from various sources, including the ExxonMobil Baytown Complex. 3 III. Transparent & Open Communications Our relationship with ExxonMobil is one built on trust that has been developed through direct interactions and open communications with ExxonMobil representatives. ExxonMobil is proactive in its communications with us and interfaces with City officials through various events and functions each year. ExxonMobil Baytown management, including the Public and Government Affairs Department, works hard to communicate and facilitate dialogue in our community. For example, ExxonMobil presents an environmental progress report to City officials on a periodic basis and provides various operational updates during the year, which includes an overview of ongoing environmental projects and turnaround activities. ExxonMobil has also been proactive in working with the City to improve the quality of our community. With the strong industry presence in Baytown, beautification projects remain a top priority for the City. With the current ExxonMobil expansion project, the company worked diligently to plant hundreds of trees in a nearby park and around its facilities. In addition to working with City officials, ExxonMobil values their relationships with our community. Over the years, the company spent considerable time and effort creating a greenbelt between its facilities and our 0 near neighbors to minimize potential impacts. They continue to work closely with their neighbors in an effort to maintain transparency by participating in civic association meetings and neighborhood events, as well as sending informative environmental brochures and letters in advance of planned activities that may impact our community. ExxonMobil also participates in the Baytown Area Community Advisory Panel's (CAP) monthly meetings and provides updates on operations and environmental performance. The CAP is a partnership between industry and community representatives engaging in open, honest dialogue addressing mutual concerns about safety, health, security, emergency response, environment and economic well- being. The CAP exists to respond to community questions, share information, identify and address issues and provide facts and perspectives on areas of concern. Through interactions with the CAP, the City believes ExxonMobil maintains a strong relationship with the CAP and addresses the concerns raised by its members. IV. ExxonMobil's Responsiveness When issues arise, ExxonMobil is extremely responsive and makes every effort to notify City personnel of the issue and how they are managing the response. In order to continue to improve emergency response coordination with 5 the City, ExxonMobil engages our Local Emergency Planning Commission, Fire and Police departments to participate in drills several times a year. The number of incidents at ExxonMobil is few and far between; however, when ExxonMobil does have an incident, they work to communicate quickly with the City and their neighbors and have a process in place to manage the incident effectively. ExxonMobil utilizes a hotline to provide information on any issues at their facilities, and community members are able to call in day or night. ExxonMobil has also developed a protocol for addressing community concerns. Residents may call the facility directly and speak to the site superintendent. After a call is received, ExxonMobil works to respond in a timely manner and take appropriate measures to address concerns raised. This system has proven effective as it is rare to receive concerns related to ExxonMobil operations in our City. CONCLUSION ExxonMobil has made continuous improvements in environmental performance over the past decade and remains committed to being an upstanding corporate citizen. As representative of the City and members of our community, it is our belief that ExxonMobil cares about our community and environment and works hard to be protective of its employees and community. The manner in M which ExxonMobil engages with the City and our community is the standard by which many in industry should follow. We have every confidence that ExxonMobil will continue to work diligently to comply with all laws applicable to its business and remain a trusted industry partner in the City of Baytown. Respectfully submitted, Ignacio Ramirez, Sr. City Attorney Bar No. 16501900 City of Baytown P.O. Box 424 Baytown, TX 77522 Ph. No. 281 - 420 -6508 Fax No. 281- 420 -6586 COUNSEL FOR AMICI CURIAE CERTIFICATE OF SERVICE I hereby certify that on the _ day of September, 2015, a copy of the foregoing Brief of Amici Curiae was filed electronically with the Clerk of the Court using the Court's ECF System. Notice of this filing will be sent electronically by operation of the Court's electronic filing system to all counsel of record: 7 Attorneys for Plaintiffs Appellants: Environment Texas Citizen Lobby, Incorporated and Sierra Club Philip H. Hilder Joshua R. Kratka philip @hilderlaw.com josh.kratka @nelconline.org HILDER & ASSOCIATES, P.C. 819 Lovett Boulevard Houston, TX 77006 Charles C. Caldart cccnelc @aol.com NATIONAL ENVIRONMENTAL LAW CENTER 1402 Third Avenue, Suite 715 Seattle, WA 98101 NATIONAL ENVIRONMENTAL LAW CENTER 294 Washington Street, Suite 500 Boston, MA 02108 David A. Nicholas dnicholas @verizon.net 20 Whitney Road Newton, MA 02460 Attorneys for Defendants-Appellees: Exxon Mobil Corporation, ExxonMobil Chemical Company, and ExxonMobil Refining & Supply Company BECK REDDEN LLP Russell S. Post rpost @beckredden.com Eric J.R. Nichols enichols @beckredden.com Fields Alexander flexander@beckredden.com Robert D. Daniel bddaniel @beckredden.com William R. Peterson wpeterson @beckredden.com Bryon A. Rice brice @beckredden.com 1221 McKinney, Suite 4500 Houston, TX 77010 WINSTEAD PC Albert R. Axe aaxe @winstead.com Keith A. Courtney kcourtney @winstead.com 401 Congress Ave., Suite 2100 Austin, TX 78701 IGNACIO RAMIREZ, SR., City Attorney 0 CERTIFICATE OF COMPLIANCE Certificate of Compliance with Rule 32(a) Certificate of Compliance with Type - Volume Limitation, Typeface Requirements, and Type Style Requirements 1. This brief complies with the type- volume limitation of Fed. R. App. P. 32(a)(7)(B) because: this brief contains 1,285 words, excluding the parts of the brief exempted by Fed. R. App. P. 32(a)(7)(B)(iii). 2. This brief complies with the typeface requirements of Fed. R. App. P. 32(a)(5) and the type style requirements of Fed. R. App. P. 32(a)(6) because: this brief has been prepared in a proportionally spaced typeface using Microsoft Word 2007 in Times New Roman 14 pt. font. Dated: September , 2015. R:\ Kared +Files�LegaESuitslExxonMobil Amicus\amicus.docx IGNACIO RAMIREZ, SR., City Attorney E