Tag Archives: Nanette Barragan

Oil Companies Can Set Their Own Rates for Royalties From Drilling on Public Lands Thanks to Trump: Report

“Oil and gas corporations already pay pennies compared to what they make in profits from plundering public lands—land that belongs to the American people—and now they’ll pay even less.”

By Julia Conley, staff writer for Common Dreams. Published 5-22-2020

A drilling rig in the Uinta Basin in Utah, with the Uinta Mountains shown in the background. (Photo: WildEarth Guardians/Flickr/cc)

In a display of loyalty to what Greenpeace called “the most polluting industry in history,” the Trump administration is allowing dozens of oil and gas companies to set their own rates for royalties they’re required to pay on revenue generated from drilling on public lands.

As High Country News reported Thursday, the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) contacted its state offices the day after global oil prices plunged to below $0 per barrel as the Covid-19 pandemic caused an unprecedented drop in demand. Continue reading

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