Senator Pitches Stiff New Tax on Profits of Chevron, Shell, BP

Senator Sheldon Whitehouse is pitching a steep new tax on oil companies, such as Chevron Corp. and Shell Plc, as part of a broader plan to mitigate the impact of inflation on middle-income families.

Whitehouse, a Rhode Island Democrat, said taxing the corporate profits that are the result of high oil prices would be preferable to a suspension of the 18-cent-a-gallon federal levy on gasoline, an idea that some of his Senate colleagues have floated.

“There’s absolutely no guarantee that if we pulled back the gas tax, big oil just wouldn’t jack its prices another 18 cents,” Whitehouse said ...