With taking control of Congress Democratic lawmakers seem to come heavy on oil companies as they are planning to roll back energy tax breaks and place a new royalty payback plans. This move in its all probability will certainly unsettle U.S. oil companies as it would cost them billions of dollars. Democrats since long giving ‘Big Oil’ a top priority citing the argument that oil companies have earned record profits at the expense of U.S. customers paying high prices for fuels. Democrats have already made it clear that it will repeal many energy tax breaks in the law and that includes the law that allows oil companies to speed up writing off a portion of exploration and drilling expenses. They are further planning to incorporate energy reform legislation in their first ten bills introduced. The probable energy reform legislation would also take into account of drilling leases issue din the year 1998-1999 that permitted energy companies to stay away from paying royalties on the oil and gas they find on federal offshore site deep into Gulf of Mexico. On the other hand, the American Petroleum Institute, the main lobbying partner to oil and gas companies has stated that the Congress should refrain from the tax breaks since higher drilling and exploration cost will reduce the encouragement to search new enrgy supplies. They have further argued that raising costs to the industry by no way can help customers. In the meanwhile, U.S. energy secretary Sam Bodman has said that fuel prices are high enough to ensure oil companies make a smart profit even without the tax breaks.