Exxon stiffs Alaska for the last of Valdez cleanup bill - equal to 1/500 of 2011 profits

[wtmusic]

"ExxonMobil had the largest profits of the Big Five oil companies in 2011, raking in $41.1 billion for the year. This 35 percent jump from last year is driven in large part by record-high oil prices. Today, the oil giant announced its fourth quarter profits of $9.4 billion, a 2 percent increase since 2010. Here are a few other facts about ExxonMobil:

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• The oil giant uses offshore subsidiaries in the Caribbean to avoid paying taxes in the United States.

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• Exxon is drawing out a legal battle for damages on a spill from 22 years ago. Exxon hasn’t paid $92 million in cleanup for the devastating Valdez Alaskan oil spill. In its Sept. 30 court filing, Exxon argued the damages it agreed to pay only covers 'restoration' and not additional 'clean-up.'"

http://thinkprogress.org/romm/2012/01/31/415337/exxonmobil-41-billion-but-pays-tax-rate-lower-than-most-taxpayers-but-not-romney/

Time to put the tax hammer down.