Congressman Rick Larsen's Online Office

Washington, D.C. — Today, U.S. Representative Rick Larsen (WA-02) called on Tony Hayward, CEO of BP, to forgo the $10 billion tax credit they will receive for their oil clean up work. Larsen joined other Members of Congress in signing a letter to Hayward, urging him to take responsibility for the spill and reconsider accepting this money. Larsen is a member of the House Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure which has jurisdiction over our nation’s oil spill response and prevention laws, such as the Oil Pollution Act of 1990 and the Clean Water Act. Larsen has been a member of this committee since 2001. Larsen recently cosponsored H.R. 5905, legislation that will revise our current laws to prohibit oil companies from deducting oil spill cleanup costs from income for tax purposes.

“It is unacceptable for BP to stick the American people with a $10 billion bill for the cost of this oil spill clean up. BP needs to shoulder the blame for this environmental catastrophe and fully cover the cost of the clean up.

“I urge BP to reconsider accepting this handout from the American taxpayers and pay for the damage to our environment and the families and businesses on the Gulf Coast.

“I am committed to revising our current laws to make it clear that oil companies are fully responsible for any spills or leaks they cause.

The full text of the letter follows:

Dear Mr. Hayward,

The April 22, 2010, explosion of the Deepwater Horizon and the continuing oil spill will have repercussions in the Gulf region for decades for the families and communities along the coast. We greatly appreciate the efforts of your corporation to stop the flow of oil and help mitigate damage, but the recent announcement of your plan to take more than $10 billion from American taxpayers is reprehensible. We strongly urge you to forgo this enormous tax credit and accept responsibility for this disaster.

The Gulf Coast is facing one of the largest economic and environmental disasters in history; the effects of this catastrophe will be felt for generations. With no way of knowing what the future holds, the last thing these communities should face is a tax bill to fund your remediation work. American taxpayers do not want to subsidize your failure with a $10 billion bailout.

In the United States, BP has received subsidies to search for oil, to drill for oil, and to operate and lease the Deepwater Horizon. Further, BP enjoys some of the world’s lowest tax rates on oils sales in the United States. Now, your corporation believes it is owed a credit to cover more than $10 billion in expenses incurred by its failure that might be the ruin of our Gulf coast.

We strongly urge you to reconsider using the U.S. tax code to take a handout from the American people, forcing everyone to pay for your damage to our businesses, our environment, and our communities.

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