From Natural Resources Committee
BIG OIL RELEASES 1040BP FORM ON TAX DAY
Washington (April 18, 2011) – Today is tax day. American individuals and businesses have counted up their credits and deductions and sent in their 1040 forms in the hope of getting a refund from Uncle Sam. Many will need every last dollar of those refunds to help repair their household budgets that are eroding thanks to gasoline prices that are pushing $4 per gallon around the country.
Meanwhile, the most profitable companies in the world may or may not pay a single dime in federal income taxes this year. As ExxonMobil demonstrated in 2009, it is possible for a company to earn $19 billion in profits in a single year and not pay a dime in U.S. income taxes.
While American consumers struggle to stay afloat, Big Oil is set to enjoy another decade of huge taxpayer subsidies and world record profits. Thanks to a Republican party dedicated to protecting the oil and gas industry, companies are set to enjoy more than $96 billion in taxpayer subsidies and royalty-free drilling over the next 15 years. This support helps put the Big 5 oil companies on track to net $2.7 trillion in profit over the next 15 years. And this only assumes 10 percent profit growth going forward, a very modest goal if world oil prices continue to race upward.
A full copy of the Big Oil 1040BP form can be found HERE and is pasted below.
Big Oil sympathizers claim they don’t like high oil prices any more than consumers. As the former president of Shell Oil John Hofmeister said recently, “Nobody is getting rich other than the foreign oil producers.” This is the same logic applied by Republicans in crafting their 2012 budget scheme. While claiming to end “welfare for energy companies”, Republicans actually maintain $96 billion in tax subsidies and royalty-free drilling for the oil and gas industry. At the same time, they dismantle nearly all policy support for clean energy alternatives to oil.
Prepared by the Democratic staff of the Committee on Natural Resources, U.S. House of Representatives
Worksheet for Form 1040BP
Line 1: ExxonMobil, BP, Shell, Chevron, and ConocoPhillips combined to make nearly $1 trillion in profits over the last decade. Based on building 10 percent average profit growth on top of the 2010 profit figure of $77.4 billion, the five companies would generate more than $2.7 trillion in cumulative profits between 2011 and 2025.
Lines 4-9: Office of Management and Budget’s estimated value of subsidies for the oil and gas industry for years 2012 through 2021, if not repealed as proposed by President Obama’s 2012 budget. http://www.whitehouse.gov/sites/default/files/omb/budget/fy2012/assets/tables.pdf
Line 10: Many drilling leases finalized between 1996 and 2000 were done improperly and are allowing companies drilling in the Gulf of Mexico to produce oil without paying any royalties to the American people. The Government Accountability Office estimates this could cost taxpayers $53 billion through 2025. http://www.gao.gov/products/GAO-08-691
Line 11: Based on the amount of fuel consumed by the average vehicle in the United States, the typical driver will spend $40,020 on fuel over the next 15 years if gasoline averages $4 per gallon. http://www.fhwa.dot.gov/policyinformation/statistics/2008/pdf/vm1.pdf
Line 12: Between 2005 and 2009, ExxonMobil, BP, Shell, and Chevron made $485 billion in profits but actually shrunk their U.S. workforce by 10,200 jobs. (Based on data from company’s 10Ks and annual statements. ConocoPhillips data was not available.)
Federal lobbying expenses for the oil and gas industry totaled $147 million in 2010. Assuming no growth in this annual rate, the industry will spend $2.2 billion lobbying the federal government between 2011 and 2025. http://www.opensecrets.org/industries/lobbying.php?cycle=2010&ind=E01
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