On October 11, St. James Parish in Louisiana approved giving Koch Industries an 80% property tax break on a $150-million expansion of its local methanol plant, which will save the company $5.9 million over the next decade.
Environment
DonorsTrust Funneled $134 Million to Right-Wing Groups in 2022
To hide their identities from public scrutiny, megadonors used the Koch political network’s favorite conduit, DonorsTrust, to funnel $134 million to groups promoting the Right’s culture wars and spreading climate misinformation, Trump’s big lie, and hate, as indicated in IRS filings obtained by the Center for Media and Democracy.
New Report Reveals Big Oil’s Playbook to Silence Climate Protests
A new report by Greenpeace USA details the widespread coordination between the public and private sectors to monitor activism, punish protesters both physically and legally, and grease the wheels for proposed anti-protest bills that criminalize civil disobedience.
Koch Industries Forced to Pay $1.2 Million for its Latest Lies
On September 13, 2023, the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) fined Georgia-Pacific, a subsidiary of Koch Industries, $1.2 million for abandoning a natural gas pipeline without notifying federal regulators and lying about work already completed once it did notify them.
After 50 Years, This Right-Wing Law Factory Is Crazier Than Ever
The American Legislative Exchange Council is where corporations and far-right groups go to buy government policy.
Software Giant Oracle Joins American Legislative Exchange Council
Oracle, the fifth largest tech company in the U.S., has voluntarily disclosed that it has joined the American Legislative Exchange Council.
Investment Firm Cofounded by Vivek Ramaswamy Holds Shares in BlackRock
Ramaswamy’s own conflict of interest in attacking BlackRock shows just how difficult it is for public pension managers to avoid ESG investments if they own any ETFs — as do most pension funds — since they represent the most significant stocks bought and sold on the market every day.
Minnesota Judge Rules That Criminalizing Enbridge Line 3 Water Protectors Would Be a Crime
In a remarkable ruling last Thursday, a Minnesota judge summarily dismissed misdemeanor charges against three Anishinaabe water protectors who had protested at a pipeline construction site in an effort to stop the Enbridge Line 3 tar sands oil pipeline. “To criminalize their behavior would be the crime,” she concluded.
Vulnerable House GOP Freshmen Voted to Kill Funding for Clean Energy Projects in Their Own Districts
Six of the most vulnerable first-term congressional Republicans represent districts that are benefitting from new renewable energy facilities made possible by the Inflation Reduction Act (IRA) of 2022, one of President Biden’s most significant legislative achievements to date.
Ocean Restoration Hits the Big Time
Are you ready for some good news? The European Union (EU) has just passed a law that will finally put the world on the right road towards solving the climate crisis. It’s a great start, and in the United States, Congress is almost there, too – just one step behind.