[Congressional Record Volume 158, Number 50 (Tuesday, March 27, 2012)]
[Senate]
[Pages S2039-S2040]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                         OIL AND GAS SUBSIDIES

  Mr. REID. Mr. President, the Senate yesterday took the first step 
toward repealing wasteful taxpayer subsidies to oil and gas companies. 
I was pleased my Republican colleagues joined Senate Democrats to move 
this debate forward.
  The country deserves to hear the truth about double dipping--double 
dipping--by oil companies. They take taxpayer money with one hand and 
raise gas prices with the other hand. There has never been a more 
perfect illustration of this than what has happened recently. The 
country deserves to hear the truth about these oil companies.
  But do not be fooled by last night's bipartisan vote. Senate 
Republicans would never, ever side with American taxpayers against Big 
Oil. It is against their nature. It is against their political 
philosophy, as indicated by the numerous votes they have taken against 
this. They proved it yesterday with rhetoric. They proved exactly what 
I have said. They proved it last year with nearly a party-line vote 
against legislation to hold back handouts to oil companies that were 
making record profits then.
  The records have been broken. There is a handful of those oil 
companies--one handful--that last year made $137 billion.

[[Page S2040]]

  Despite this rhetoric of the Republicans, Americans understand it 
will take more than a bumper-sticker slogan to stop the pain at the 
pump. We have to reduce the Nation's reliance on foreign oil. But we 
cannot drill our way to energy independence. We are doing better. We 
have done so well during the Obama years. Every year he has been 
President, production has gone up and the use of oil has gone down.
  We must continue looking for responsible new domestic oil sources. 
But we must also invest in the clean energy technologies of tomorrow to 
create good jobs for today.
  Repealing almost $24 billion in wasteful subsidies to oil companies 
would pay for these clean energy investments--with money left over to 
do something about the deficit.
  America has less than 2 percent of the oil reserves in the world but 
consumes more than 20 percent of the world's oil supply each year. So 
drilling on American soil alone will not solve our reliance on foreign 
oil.
  Last year America used a lower percentage of foreign oil than at any 
time in almost two decades, thanks to President Obama's policies. 
Domestic oil production, I repeat, has increased every year during the 
Obama administration. Meanwhile, American dependence on foreign oil has 
decreased each year. Yet prices at the pump have continued to rise.
  Here is why. For every penny the price at the pump goes up, the major 
oil companies--there are five of them--make an additional $200 million 
in profits each quarter. So let's say that again. For every penny you 
pay extra at the gas pump, these five oil companies make $200 million.
  Well, it does not take a lot of math to understand that gas prices 
have risen 62 cents this year, so take $200 million times 62 and you 
have a huge amount of billions of dollars. Every time a penny is added 
to your purchase of a gallon of gas, oil companies make $200 million. 
So--62 cents--they have made billions this year.
  Last year they raked in $137 billion in profits, and they are on pace 
for another record-breaking year of astronomical profits. So it is 
beyond ridiculous when Republicans argue oil companies need billions in 
taxpayer subsidies each year.
  Middle-class families are struggling. Oil companies that last year 
raked in $261,000 a minute, 24 hours a day, 365 days of the year, are 
not struggling.
  Mr. President, listen to this again. Oil companies last year raked in 
$261,000 a minute, 24 hours a day, no weekends off, no holidays. They 
did it 365 days of the year. They are not struggling at all and that, 
of course, is a gross understatement. That is why this matter is now 
before the Senate.

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