In this season of high gas prices and finger-pointing, the Tax Policy Blog notes that - since 1981 and the passage of the Windfall Profits Tax - government has made more off of oil than…well…oil companies. The cumulative total is: government - $1.65 trillion, oil companies - $1.12 trillion. Here’s a summary (graph at link):
…during most of that 25 year period, government tax collections were nearly twice industry profits in any given year. Indeed, in 2002, before the recent price spikes, the industry earned a collective $20.5 billion in profits. However, government collected more than $50 billion in combined income, property, severance, and excise taxes in the same year.
If Congress really wants to grill those which gain the most from oil profits, it need look no further than its own chambers.
Newsweek’s Robert Samuelson finds another problem with the scenario:
Members of Congress complain loudly about high oil profits ($40.6 billion for ExxonMobil last year) but frustrate those companies from using those profits to explore and produce in the United States.
Instead of demonizing oil companies even while reaping massive monetary benefit from their labor, wouldn’t we be better served encouraging them to re-invest in the things that will keep energy affordable?