Richmond council approves hiring Dalberg to design community process for $550 million Chevron funds

The Richmond City Council on Tuesday authorized the city manager to negotiate and execute a contract with Dalberg Advisors to design a community engagement and financial framework for the city's limited-term revenues from the Chevron settlement.

City staff said the recommended engagement would run seven months and produce two deliverables: a proposed expenditure framework for the limited-term revenues and a strategy for holding and releasing funds to maximize earnings. Finance manager Abinh Nadan told the council the contract is advisory only and would not itself allocate funds.

Why it matters: The council's 2024 decision to withdraw a ballot measure and accept a 10-year, $550 million settlement with Chevron has left residents and officials asking how the money should be prioritized and protected. At staff's briefing, Nadan summarized the expected cash flow: “the first five years there will be $50 million provided per year and then the second five years of the 10-year agreement will be $60 million a year.” He stressed the need to account for present value when planning multi-year expenditures.

What staff proposed: The RFP sought an advice-only firm to facilitate broad, accessible community input and to develop a transparent, equitable expenditure framework and a holding/releasing strategy. Staff reported 11 proposals were received and Dalberg ranked top in both evaluation and interview panels. Dalberg's work plan emphasizes in-person engagements, language access and small-group facilitated conversations targeted to residents most impacted by pollution and disinvestment.

Public reaction and council debate: Community groups including the Asian Pacific Environmental Network urged robust outreach to those most affected by refinery pollution and asked the consultant to include oversight and accountability recommendations. Council members pushed staff and the consultant to present clear options and scenarios so residents could evaluate tradeoffs. Several council members said they wanted the city to avoid rushing to spend principal and to consider an endowment-style approach that could produce annual earnings for the general fund while preserving capital.

The vote and next steps: Council approved the staff recommendation to authorize negotiations with Dalberg on a 5-2 vote, with Council Member Brown and Mayor Martinez voting no. Staff will return with a proposed contract for council action within two months, followed by a series of public engagements over the following seven months culminating in a final report and recommended framework.

The council's budget calendar will overlap the consultant's work, and staff said the May 5 budget presentations will also inform assumptions the consultant should use when modeling options for holding and spending the funds.