Markey: New Oil Royalty Ruling Could Cost Taxpayers $60 Billio
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Contact: Select Committee, 202-225-4081
Markey: New Oil Royalty Ruling Could Cost Taxpayers $60 Billion
Legislation Needed to Avoid Oil Company Windfall, Says Chairman
WASHINGTON (January 13, 2009) – Rep. Edward J. Markey (D-Mass.), who chairs key energy panels and is a senior member of the House Natural Resources Committee, today assailed a court’s decision to allow oil companies to drill for free on public lands due to faulty lease agreements. The case, originally brought by oil company Kerr-McGee -- now Anadarko -- is a test case for every other oil company holding a deepwater Gulf of Mexico lease issued by the Interior Department in 1996, 1997 and 2000. Should Anadarko prevail in its lawsuit, it could lead to a flurry of lawsuits from other companies seeking to drill for free. The Department of Interior has estimated that, if the oil companies are successful, it could cost taxpayers as much as $60 billion in lost royalties.“While American families are counting pennies to get by, the oil companies are counting on this litigation to reap a multi-billion dollar windfall from American taxpayers,” said Rep. Markey, who chairs the Select Committee on Energy Independence and Global Warming and the Energy and Environment Subcommittee, along with being a senior member of the Natural Resources Committee. “Big Oil is litigating a loophole to avoid paying billions of dollars to which the public is fully entitled.”
The House has repeatedly passed legislative language in previous Congresses introduced by Rep. Markey, which would recover the estimated $10 billion in unpaid royalties from faulty 1998-99 leases in the Gulf of Mexico. If enacted into law, according to the Congressional Research Service, Rep. Markey’s language would also protect taxpayers from losing up to $60 billion that they are rightfully owed from the leases issued in 1996, 1997 and 2000, if the Anadarko ruling were ultimately allowed to stand.
“I will continue the fight to ensure that Big Oil does not rob billions of dollars from the federal treasury,” continued Rep. Markey. “This money is intended to serve the American people, not oil executives.”
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The House Select Committee on Energy Independence and Global Warming was formed by House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-CA) to increase the visibility and priority given to America's oil dependence and global warming challenges. It is chaired by Rep. Edward J. Markey (D-MA) and will actively explore the solutions, science and progress on these pressing issues during the 110th Congress.
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