In the wake of news that World Bank Group lending for oil projects increased more than 75 percent over the past year, Congressman Maurice Hinchey (D-NY) Tuesday introduced a bill to help end international subsidies to Big Oil.

In order to focus global aid on reducing poverty and establishing renewable energy infrastructure in developing countries, Hinchey's bill, the End Oil Aid Act, would direct the U.S. Treasury Secretary to instruct the U.S. Executive Director of the World Bank to use the United States' voice and vote to prohibit additional spending on international oil development.

"Each year, billions and billions of dollars that should be spent on ending poverty around the world and improving the environment are being used to subsidize oil and gas projects in developing countries that lead to debt traps for those countries and an increase in greenhouse gas production," Hinchey said. "It is unfathomable that the U.S. and other wealthy countries would spend billions of dollars on subsidies for Big Oil when those energy companies are reaping record profits while billions of people around the world are living on less than $2 a day.  There is no justice in that.  Instead of alleviating poverty, most oil and gas projects have exacerbated corruption, worsened economic inequality, increased local conflict, and intensified global climate change."