By Kim Minugh
kminugh@sacbee.com
Sacramento County Jan Scully announced today that her office escaped two dozen layoffs as the result of two settlements in civil lawsuits against Chevron Corp., one of which her office filed in 2003.
As a result of that lawsuit, and the settlement of a parallel case filed by the state Attorney General's office, Scully's office will receive $6.5 million in settlement funds from Chevron.
That was enough money to reverse the planned layoffs of 18 attorneys and seven support staff, Scully said.
Scully said the settlement was "fortuitous" for the DA's office, but she also emphasized the environmental significance of the suits.
"These settlements are a major achievement in the enforcement of environmental laws in Sacramento County and our state," Scully said.
The two cases also are producing a windfall for the county's Environmental Management Division: That department will receive $2.25 million for cleanup efforts. Both lawsuits involve violations of practices dictating the safe storage of gasoline in underground tanks.
The DA's office received $3 million in settlement funds from Shell, another defendant in the DA's case, last year. Several other oil companies remain defendants in that case, and a trial date has been set for November.
Scully's office in July notified 25 workers that they faced layoffs because of bleak financial conditions in the county budget. For months, the DA's office had issued warnings about what budget cutbacks would mean.
Final budget hearings are scheduled to begin tomorrow before the Sacramento County Board of Supervisors.
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