FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
May 26, 2016

Contact:
Alex Doukas, alex [at] priceofoil [dot] org
David Turnbull, david [at] priceofoil [dot] org

Oil Change International applauds introduction of the FAIR Energy Policy Act by Senator Schatz
New bill a critical step to stop funding fossils and tackle the climate crisis

Today, Senator Brian Schatz of Hawaii unveiled the FAIR Energy Policy Act, which would end a subset of existing U.S. federal oil subsidies within four years. In response, Alex Doukas, Senior Campaigner at Oil Change International, released the following statement:

“If enacted, the bill introduced by Senator Schatz today would finally start to address the most wasteful government handouts to the fossil fuel industry. These are taxpayer dollars going to some of the most profitable, most polluting companies on the planet, who have stood in the way of real action on climate change for decades.

“As Senator Schatz’s bill moves through the Senate, it will show clearly which senators are in in the oil industry’s pocket, and which senators are actually fighting for the people who elected them. With the climate crisis advancing at an ever-quickening pace, an immediate step toward the solution should be to stop funding fossils. This bill helps to do just that.”

In November of last year, Oil Change International published analysis with the Overseas Development Institute, detailing for the first time a complete picture of subsidies for production of fossil fuels in the U.S. See that analysis here: https://www.odi.org/publications/10086-g20-subsidies-oil-gas-coal-production-united-states

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