Democratic senator Ron Wyden, the chairman of the Finance Committee, wants a new 21 percent surtax on oil companies. Wyden somehow believes a new tax on oil companies will be good for consumers, Bloomberg reports:
The proposal by Senator Ron Wyden, an Oregon Democrat who chairs the tax-writing Finance Committee, would mean oil companies face federal taxes of as much as 42% on profits considered excessive — the 21% US corporate tax rate plus a new 21% surtax, according to two people briefed on the proposal.
Wyden has yet to release his plan publicly, and he’d likely need all 50 in the Senate Democratic caucus to support it in order to overcome united Republican opposition. He’s among several Democratic lawmakers, including Senator Sheldon Whitehouse and Representative Peter DeFazio, who have discussed targeting what they consider excessive oil-company profits.
“The proposal I’m developing would help reverse perverse incentives to price gouge, by doubling the corporate tax rate on companies’ excess profits, eliminating egregious buybacks and reducing accounting tricks,” Wyden said about the proposal he plans to introduce in the coming weeks. “By contrast, companies that provide relief to consumers by either reducing prices or investing in new supply would not be affected.”
A White House official says of Wyden’s proposal: “We’re not ruling that out of consideration.”