WASHINGTON - August 28 -

WHEN: 11 a.m. PST, Monday, Aug. 28

WHO: Jamie Court, president, Foundation for Taxpayer and Consumer Rights (FTCR)

WHERE: FTCR Offices, 1750 Ocean Park Blvd., Suite 200 Santa Monica, Calif.

Consumer advocate Jamie Court will call on state and federal regulators to respond to an investigation by the Kansas City Star that found oil companies' failure to install fuel pumps that adjust for temperature costs Californians at least 3 cents for every gallon in warmer weather. When the temperature of gasoline rises above 60 degrees, the gasoline expands but pumps don't account for the bigger volume and consumers receive less gasoline than they should. The technology to adjust for temperature has already been installed in Canada but domestic oil companies have resisted because they made at least an extra $500 million in profits per year in California due to failure to adjust for gasoline temperature. Hawaii is the only state to adjust its pumps for hotter gas.

FTCR President Jamie Court will call for installation of temperature sensitive pumps nationally and ask Gov. Schwarzenegger to remove a top California official responsible for defending the oil industry's current technology. Court will point to Schwarzenegger's receipt of more than $2 million in oil company contributions as reason for the governor to appoint a new independent regulator and call for new pump technology.

Read the Kansas City Star article "Hot Fuel for You, Cold Cash for Big Oil" at http://www.kansascity.com/mld/kansascity/15370193.htm.

Read the Kansas City Star article "Technology, New Rules Can Fix Hot Fuel Issue" at http://www.kansascity.com/mld/kansascity/15377737.htm.

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