Maurice Hinchey: “At a time when our country is facing record deficits and the oil industry can't count their money fast enough, oil…”

“At a time when our country is facing record deficits and the oil industry can't count their money fast enough, oil drillers in the Gulf of Mexico are getting away with highway robbery because of mistakes that were made many years ago. Oil and gas companies are extracting resources from public property without paying royalties, regardless of the price of oil and gas. It's time to fix the problem. The GAO has estimated that not doing so will continue to cost American taxpayers up to $53 billion. These hugely profitable companies are tapping oil and gas reserves that belong to the American people, selling it back to us, and then reaping a massive profit on the backs of the middle class. But they are not paying one red cent to the public for the oil and gas they have extracted. They get it for free, and we pay the price. I don't know a single person who would allow an oil or gas company to drill on their private property and not expect to be compensated for the oil extracted from that land. So why should the Federal Government continue to be taken advantage of by the most profitable industry in United States history? Congress has a chance to correct this injustice. Last year, oil companies earned over $70 billion in profits when oil prices were significantly lower than they are today. With the cost of oil once again approaching $100 a barrel and prices at the pump also rising, the idea that this industry is still getting royalty relief is downright criminal.”