Biden Warns Oil Firms Will Face ‘Higher Tax’

President Biden on Monday warned that oil companies could be slapped with “higher tax” if they don’t help increase production to curb skyrocketing energy costs.

“They have a responsibility to act in the interest of their consumers, their community and their country, to invest in America by increasing production and refining capacity,” Biden said during a speech at the White House. He suggested he would find a way to financially penalize them with taxation if they don’t do their part to expand the U.S. oil supply, which has been constrained since the Biden administration cut  land leases for oil production offshore and on federal land.

“If they don’t, they’re going to pay a higher tax on their excess profits and face other restrictions,” Biden vowed.

After the pandemic, many Americans resumed leisure travel and other recreational activities, driving a surge in demand for gas while supply struggled to catch up. One consequence was higher prices at the pump. Biden has also claimed that “Putin’s price hike” is responsible for much of the inflation in household commodities, including food and gas, since Russia waged its war in Ukraine.