đ Last updated on July 27, 2025
A bold new bill has been introduced in the United States Congress aiming to stop fossil fuel companies from receiving billions of dollars in government support.
Lawmakers Move to End âWelfareâ for Polluters
Two lawmakers have teamed up to bring attention to what they call âwelfare for polluters.â They are working to repeal nearly $200 billion in subsidies and tax breaks given to oil and gas companies.
The bill is called the End Polluter Welfare Act. It is a refreshed version of a proposal first introduced back in 2012. The lawmakers behind it believe the time has come to stop taxpayer money from flowing to companies that are harming the planet.
They are especially upset with a new budget law passed recently. This law adds about $20 billion in new subsidies for fossil fuel companies. These include funds for coal, oil drilling, methane gas, and even pipelines. The supporters of the new bill say that these are not real solutions to climate change but false promises that delay real progress.
The lawmakers say that instead of helping clean energy, this new law cuts support for solar, wind, and other green projects. They argue that this is a big step backward at a time when the world needs to move forward.
What the Budget Law Gives to Fossil Fuel Companies
The new budget law includes many benefits for fossil fuel companies. Some of the most controversial are
- $1.48 billion to support the production of metallurgical coal, a type of coal used in steelmaking.
- Up to $3 billion to help power plant owners move carbon dioxide, which is a major greenhouse gas.
- A $447 million program that allows fossil fuel companies to avoid paying a corporate minimum tax.
- Around $1.5 billion in tax breaks for companies that release methane, a gas far more damaging than carbon dioxide when it comes to trapping heat in the atmosphere.
These huge amounts of money come from taxes paid by the public. The lawmakers say it is wrong for polluting companies to get rich using money that should be spent on helping communities and protecting the environment.
They also pointed out that fossil fuel companies spent $450 million on political campaigns. In return, they received massive support from the government. The lawmakers say this is an unfair deal that hurts the health of our planet and the future of younger generations.
Who Supports the End Polluter Welfare Act?
The bill is getting strong support in Congress. Alongside the two main lawmakers, seven U.S. senators have joined as co-sponsors. More than 20 members of the House of Representatives are backing the bill as well. This shows that there is growing concern in Washington about government handouts to the fossil fuel industry.
Many environmental and public interest groups are also supporting the bill. Well-known organizations like the Sierra Club, Public Citizen, and Friends of the Earth U.S. have all endorsed it. These groups have been fighting for years to end what they see as unfair benefits given to polluters.
The new budget law not only gives new subsidies to fossil fuel companies, but it also removes many of the green energy incentives that were part of the Inflation Reduction Act of 2022. That law had offered help to solar and wind projects, as well as clean energy research. Now, much of that support is gone.
Supporters of the new bill believe that taxpayer money should be used to build a cleaner and safer world, not to help oil and gas companies keep doing business as usual. They are calling for an end to what they describe as âpolluter welfareâ and are pushing to pass the bill as soon as possible.