President Obama’s new plan to impose a $10 fee on every barrel of oil sold is “dead-on-arrival” in Congress, according to House Speaker Paul Ryan.
“The president should be proposing policies to grow our economy instead of sacrificing it to appease progressive climate activists,” Ryan said in a Thursday afternoon statement. “As this lame-duck president knows, it’s dead on arrival in Congress, because House Republicans are committed to affordable American energy and a strong U.S. economy.”
Obama’s White House team proposed a “fee” that would be paid by oil companies, which have seen the price of oil drop below $35 per barrel due to an uptick in oil drilling by Middle Eastern countries such as Saudi Arabia. The money would pay for $300 billion eco-friendly infrastructure spending.
“That is why we are proposing to fund these investments through a new $10 per barrel fee on oil paid by oil companies, which would be gradually phased in over five years,” a White House fact sheet says.
Ryan dismissed that idea out of hand, arguing that the extra cost would instead be paid by consumers. “A $10 tax for every barrel of oil produced would raise energy prices, hurting poor Americans the most,” he said. “The good news is this plan is little more than an election-year distraction.”
