John Kerry and Rep. Hinchey Re-Introduce Measure to Repeal More Than $25 Billion in Wasteful Tax Breaks & Subsidies for Oil Companies
January 19th, 2007 @ 6:04 pm
Yesterday, the House Democrats passed their energy package targeting royalty breaks for big oil — the Clean Energy Act of 2007 (H-6) — by a vote of 264 to 163, “with many Republicans joining a bloc of Democrats.”
Passage came despite opposition from the oil industry and the Bush administration, which said the bill singled out the companies for higher taxes and could increase the country’s dependence on foreign oil.
The bill will rescind $7.6 billion in tax breaks for oil drillers that Congress passed in 2004 and 2005 and will add $6.3 billion in royalties from companies that pump oil and gas in publicly owned waters of the Gulf of Mexico and off Alaska.
Today, following up on the House victory, Senator John Kerry (D-Mass) and Rep. Maurice Hinchey (D-NY) re-introduced the Energy Fairness for America Act, which would repeal at least $25 billion in tax breaks and subsidies for oil and gas companies. The Energy Fairness for America Act is “part of a broader effort on behalf of Kerry, Hinchey, and other Democrats to undo giveaways to oil giants.”
Kerry and Hinchey said the bill would save taxpayer funds and vowed to work aggressively to get the legislation approved this year.
“With oil companies raking in huge, record-breaking profits, there is no way the U.S. government should be giving away these massive tax breaks at the expense of American families,” Kerry said. “This legislation would go a long way to restoring the public confidence in our government and would help us recoup money that would otherwise go out the window.”
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http://blog.thedemocraticdaily.com/?p=5152
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