The challenges facing our country should push the U.S. Congress to work together for a fiscally-responsible future. The country is facing a $1.3 trillion deficit and $15 trillion debt and the national elections are producing lots of heated rhetoric about budget, tax, and spending problems. Despite this, we see more talk than action. So it is at least a little inspiring then, when Congress finds agreement on a responsible spending proposal, as happened recently.
Congresswoman Nan Hayworth, M.D. (NY-19) was among the majority of members of the U.S. House of Representatives that voted to pass an amendment to the fiscal year 2013 Energy and Water Development Appropriations bill to cut wasteful spending. Instead of supporting $25 million in new taxpayer-funded industry subsidies for oil shale, this bipartisan group of members of Congress voted to invest those monies in deficit reduction.
While $25 million doesn’t seem like a lot in the big scheme of things, when you consider how deep a deficit hole we’re in, every dime, every million counts. Sadly, this was the only cut amendment to the bill that passed, and barely passed at that. But at least it is something.
The federal government has provided tax credits, price guarantees, and loan guarantees for the oil shale industry for decades. In addition, our public lands have been given to private companies for oil shale research and development without requiring the payment of rents, bonuses, or royalties for facilities producing at less than commercial scale. You’d think all of these handouts would have paid off by now, but no. All these subsidies support an industry that doesn’t even exist: commercial oil shale development in Colorado, Utah, and Wyoming. After 100 years, energy companies still can’t figure out how to extract oil from the rocks in the Rockies without wasting an enormous amount of money and water. There remains no commercially-viable method for producing oil shale today. Earlier this year for instance, Chevron gave up and walked away from its experimental oil shale leases in Colorado.
We hope this is just beginning and that more wasteful subsidies will be stripped from the federal budget. But at the same time there are those that want to waste tax dollars on new subsidies! Congress will likely see a series of bills over the next few months that will include more proposals for more subsidies–including for big oil companies. In these tight budget times, we cannot afford to throw good money after bad. We’ll be working with Congress, including Rep. Hayworth, to ensure taxpayers
won’t continue to lose big in debates about America’s budget priorities.
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Taxpayers for Common Sense is an independent and non-partisan voice for taxpayers working to increase transparency and expose and eliminate wasteful and corrupt subsidies, earmarks, and corporate welfare. The nonprofit has a 4-star rating from Charity Navigator.
- Ryan Alexander
www.hvinsider.com/articles/op-ed-congress-remembers-the-taxpayer/
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