Bonus gem

I don't cruise the ExxonMobil 'Perspectives' blog often, mostly because at a fundamental level it's 100% continuous gems and thus overwhelming. But I have to tip my hat to VP of Public and Government Affairs Ken Cohen's post on industry taxes last week--it's an uber-gem. The title alone is worth gem status:

"Correction: American oil and gas companies DO pay higher tax rates than most other corporations"

Here's the sub-title that is missing: If and when they pay.

Cohen goes on to support his thesis with data points including:

• According to the government’s own Energy Information Administration, from 2004 to 2008, 27 American oil and gas companies – which actually make up under half the total oil and gas production in the U.S. – paid almost $150 billion in U.S. income taxes.
• A Compustat North American Database analysis shows that the 2009 income tax rate for U.S. oil and gas companies was about 48 percent, which was 20 points higher than the rest of the S&P Industrials.

$150 billion over 5 years? That's $30 billion per year. Just to place that number in context, in 2007 alone, the American oil industry recorded revenues of approximately $1.9 trillion. Those numbers don't exactly work out, do they. Right.