Lawmakers grill oil execs over profits

WASHINGTON, April 1 (UPI) -- Oil executives, speaking before a U.S. House panel Tuesday, were asked to support a bill that would trim $18 billion in tax cuts in favor of renewable energy.

"Americans shouldn't have to break the bank to fill the tank," Rep. Ed Markey, D-Mass., said in his prepared remarks at the Select Committee on Energy Independence and Global Warming.

Executives from Exxon Mobil, BP America, Chevron, ConocoPhillips and Shell Oil testified before the committee about the skyrocketing prices for gasoline, diesel and heating oil. Lawmakers complained about the billion-dollar profits while U.S. consumers spend an average of $3.287 for a gallon of unleaded gasoline, Marketwatch reported.

Stephen Simon, senior vice president of Exxon Mobil Corp, said raising taxes on oil and gas companies will discourage investment to increase supply.

"We depend on high earnings over the (up cycle) to sustain investment over the long term, including the (down cycles)," Simon said in prepared remarks. "Our worldwide profits have grown, but taxes have grown even more."

Several lawmakers said oil companies need to invest more in renewable energies.

"People are going broke, and they want to know why these people are making such a large profit, and they wonder why can't the money be channeled into renewable fuels and creating green-collar jobs," said Rep. Hilda Solis, D-Calif. "I'm asking you to step up to the plate, help us look for other alternatives."