ExxonMobil profits: A clarion call to end polluter welfare
WASHINGTON, D.C. — This morning, ExxonMobil (NYSE: XOM) reported $4.9 billion in first quarter earnings for 2015. The largest oil and gas company’s profits are increased by its share of billions in taxpayer subsidies for the oil and gas industry.
Last week, Rep. Keith Ellison (D-Minn.) and Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) re-introduced the End Polluter Welfare Act in both the House and the Senate. The bill would end more than $135 billion in taxpayer-funded giveaways to oil, gas and coal companies — including to ExxonMobil — over ten years.
Friends of the Earth Climate and Energy Campaigner Lukas Ross issued the following statement in response:
As ExxonMobil announces billions in profits, the time has come to end Big Oil’s billions in subsidies. Ending corporate welfare for the companies driving the climate crisis is a crucial step towards keeping dirty fuels in the ground.
The End Polluter Welfare Act could save taxpayers billions of dollars each year while protecting the environment. Instead of following the path of Reps. Ellison and Sen. Sanders, the House is going backwards by cutting funding for renewables while boosting the research budget for fossil fuels. Today’s announcement demonstrates again that polluters are enjoying the best government their billions can buy.
###
Expert contact: Lukas Ross, (202) 222-0724, [email protected]
Communications contact: Kate Colwell, (202) 222-0744, [email protected]