Dear John,
In this week’s video, we take on the Big Tax Breaks that enable Big Oil to make the Big Bucks.
Just how big is Big Oil? Well, the top five oil companies took in over $100 billion in profits in 2024 alone.
With profits this big, why exactly are we taxpayers giving them a penny in subsidies? But we are. Every time we go to the pump, we’re being charged twice: once for the cost of the fuel, and once more for the billions of dollars Big Oil gets through special subsidies and tax breaks.
One of these subsidies allows companies to write off as much as 80 percent of the costs of developing an oil or gas well within the first year of operation.
This one tax break is so important that industry insiders call it the “one subsidy to rule them all.”
But there are dozens more write-offs, such as “bonus depreciation,” which some Big Oil companies have used to wipe out their entire tax bill in some years.
Check out today’s video to get the rundown on all Big Oil’s favorite big subsidies, and how much these huge handouts are costing you and me. Then get the word out about our giveaways to Big Oil by sharing the video on your socials.
What do the oil companies do with their enormous profits?
They spend billions juicing their own stock prices with stock buybacks to further enrich shareholders and executives. And they spend millions more paying off politicians in Congress to do their bidding. Big Oil spent $445 million dollars in the 2024 election cycle alone.
Meanwhile, the climate crisis is accelerating, and our planet is being polluted — with natural disasters costing the U.S. over $180 billion in 2024 alone.
It doesn’t have to be this way.
Big Oil’s agenda is not popular, and it’s also not inevitable. We can fight back. We need to spread the truth about these subsidies; keep fighting to get big money out of politics; and advocate for clean energy investments that will actually reduce our energy bills and protect the environment.
Thanks again for watching our video, and thank you for all your work toward the future we deserve!
Robert Reich
Inequality Media
