Katie Porter: “Taxpayers should not be a piggy bank for Big Oil to line its pockets. As a taxpayer advocate, I am introducing an…”

“Taxpayers should not be a piggy bank for Big Oil to line its pockets. As a taxpayer advocate, I am introducing an amendment to protect our money from Big Oil's greed. Under current law, oil and gas companies get a tax break when they tap into their reserves as part of doing business. This amounts to about a $2 to $3 billion handout each year. Now, as we look to spend taxpayer dollars to replenish the Strategic Petroleum Reserve, corporations are poised to double dip, to profit off the American people. Without a change in policy, polluters get tax dollars once in the form of a government contract and again in the form of a special tax break. As a champion for capitalism, I strongly oppose this corporate abuse. When the Federal Government negotiates a contract with oil companies to buy their product with tax dollars, they do it at a fair price. That is capitalism. But to turn around and then give them a tax break, that is corruption, bought and paid for by the fossil fuel industry, which spends $100 million each year on lobbying. As a consumer protection attorney, I have never met any American-- Democrat, Republican, Independent--who likes to be cheated. Consumers should get what we pay for. Big Oil should not get to double charge taxpayers for the same oil. Many of my Republican colleagues talk about safeguarding capitalism. They stress the importance of protecting tax dollars. A handout to Big Oil is antithetical to these goals.…”