Environmentalists, Walnut Creek Residents Rally to End Wasteful Subsidies to Oil

Environment California

Decry that Californians Pay “Twice for Gallon of Gas”

WALNUT CREEK, CA. – As the debate in Congress rages over federal spending, citizens of Contra Costa joined Environment California and other organizations to call on Congress to end $44 billion in subsidies to Big Oil, an industry that doesn’t deserve it and doesn’t need it.
 
At a gas station in Walnut Creek near Congressman John Garamendi’s district office, Environment California, Generation Green, Dirty Energy Money Campaign, Mt. Diablo Peace Center, and other local community groups were joined by local activists to applaud Congressman Garamendi and ask others in Congress to follow his lead in eliminating Big Oil subsidies.
 
Last week, some members of Congress returned to Washington ready to cut funding to popular programs, from Social Security to Medicare. Largely absent from the Congressional dialogue are the billions in wasteful taxpayer giveaways to Big Oil.
 
Congressman Garamandi’s Deputy District Director, Brian Hooker, joined speakers at the rally to emphasize the massive environmental and public health threats posed by our continued dependence on oil, from last year’s BP Gulf oil catastrophe to smog pollution plaguing much of California.
 
“Californians are paying twice for a gallon of gasoline, once at the pump and a second time on tax day,” said Sean Carroll with Environment California. “It’s time for us to get off oil and to stop handing $44 billion in tax breaks to a polluting industry that already costs us dearly in terms of our health and environment.”
 
Congressman Garamendi provided the following statement:  “While Californians struggle with high gas prices, Big Oil has already made over $67 billion in profits in the first half of 2011. Instead of throwing billions of taxpayer dollars at one of most profitable industries on Earth – having virtually no impact on a market where gas prices are largely dictated on the international market anyway – we need to break our addiction to dirty fossil fuels instead.”
 
Royal Dutch Shell recently announced 2011 second quarter earnings, reporting profits of $8 billion, a 77 percent jump from the same period a year ago. Exxon recently reported a whopping $10.7 billion in profits for the quarter, or $21.3 billion in the first half of this year—an increase of 54 percent from 2010.
 
One use these companies have found for new funds is increased lobbying, with Exxon increasing lobbying expenditures by 25 percent this past quarter, bringing its total this year to $3 million.
 
Mary Alice O’Connor, Executive Director of the Mt. Diablo Peace Center, said, “Are we going to continue to subsidize our demise?”
 
“Despite Big Oil’s immense profits, some in Congress are protecting billions of dollars in special tax breaks for the oil industry, while telling Californians that we cannot afford to protect our environment and public health from the impacts of their pollution.” said Carroll. “To add insult to injury, Big Oil has decided to use some of its newfound profits to make sure Congress keeps the status quo.”
 
“Congressman John Garamendi has been a voice of reason for California families,” said Carroll.  “He has admirably led efforts to end the grotesque subsidies Big Oil enjoys so we can put taxpayer dollars to better use.”
 
Ross Hammond is a coordinator for Dirty Money Energy Campaign.  At www.dirtyenergymoney.com, citizens can map campaign contributions from Big Oil going to their members of Congress.  Ross said, “Government handouts to hugely profitable oil companies need to end, and they need to end now.  I commend Rep. Garamendi for his willingness to stand up to Big Oil and its allies in Congress.”
 
Taking a monumental step towards getting America off oil, President Obama recently unveiled an outline of clean cars standards – based on standard pioneered by California – that will require cars and light trucks to reach the equivalent of a 54.5 miles-per-gallon standard by 2025. The president then finalized a similar rule for heavy-duty vehicles, including work trucks and buses, through 2018. These combined standards have the potential to reduce our oil dependence by 1.8 million barrels per day by 2030.
 
Congressman Garamendi’s statement also included:  “I believe it is foolish to find savings as some have proposed – by ending commonsense environmental regulations, by cutting Medicare and Social Security benefits, by laying off teachers, by cutting off funds to needed infrastructure – when we can easily save $44 billion right now by ending wasteful subsidies to Big Oil.”
 
“Instead of throwing billions of taxpayer dollars at the most profitable industry on earth, we need to get off oil,” added Carroll. “President Obama and leaders like Congressman Garamendi are working to create millions of manufacturing jobs building cars that run on little to no oil, taking us closer to ending our costly dependence on Big Oil and their dirty product for good.”