Energy workforce council comments on President Biden's remarks on gas prices

(WO) — With U.S. gasoline prices remaining high a week before midterm elections, President Joe Biden said he will attempt to levy additional taxes on oil corporations that record "windfall" profits without reinvesting in production, Bloomberg reported.

Biden made a commitment in his succinct statement that will be nearly impossible to keep. Since more than ten years ago, many Democrats have attempted in vain to enact a tax on 'windfall profits'. Unless Biden's party wins surprising gains in next week's elections, no such proposal is likely to pass the current Senate, which is evenly split between Democrats and Republicans. The GOP and centrist Democrats will be able to stop it for the foreseeable future.

But after gasoline prices rose to more than $5 per gallon this summer, progressives in Congress are paying more attention to the idea of taxing the profits of oil firms. Biden has regularly criticized Big Oil for its record profits and high pump prices in the months before the elections.

Energy Workforce CEO Leslie Beyer reacted to the announcement, saying:

“Once again, the Biden Administration is calling for punitive actions against the oil and gas industry for political purposes instead of working with the energy industry to produce real solutions for our nation’s energy security. For almost two years, industry has sought out Administration officials and laid out actions they could take to help alleviate tight supplies. But instead of working with us, they want to work against us. Oil companies do not set gas prices or oil prices, global commodities markets do. When demand increases and supply is tight, prices increase. To alleviate the burden of tight energy markets, the Administration must support pro-growth policies that lead to increased oil and gas investment and production which would benefit the United States as well as our allies. Instead, they have constrained the industry that they now blame. The US energy industry is producing at almost pre-pandemic levels under policies that work against them to meet the ever-increasing global demand all while reducing emissions.”