US analyzing energy plans, against windfall profits tax: Bodman

Washington (Platts)--28Apr2006

The Bush administration is looking at various Congressional proposals to
lower gasoline prices to ensure that they would not have "unintended
consequences" that could actually make the market conditions worse, US Energy
Secretary Samuel Bodman said Friday in an interview with MSNBC.

Senate Republicans Thursday proposed giving taxpayers a $100 rebate and
suspending retail federal gasoline taxes to cushion the blow of rising energy
prices. Bodman said that plan, as well as others proposed on Capitol Hill, had
merit, but that the administration needed to analyze the consequences before
supporting a plan.

Bodman said the White House would not support any effort to tax oil
industry profits, saying that previous windfall profits efforts in the 1980s
resulted in lower US production and higher prices.

"Not only are [windfall profits taxes] not helpful, they are
counterproductive," Bodman said.

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