Corruption in the American oil and gas industry includes issues like mismanagement of federal resources, which the 

Government Accountability Office (GAO) has flagged as a high-risk area. There are also concerns about the industry’s political influence, with large donations shaping policy, and foreign corruption, where companies have been accused of bribery and manipulating international markets. Tax loopholes can also result in U.S. companies paying more to foreign governments than to the U.S. government. 

Mismanagement and waste 

• Federal lands: The federal oil and gas program has been cited by the GAO for waste, fraud, and mismanagement, with the potential for millions in lost taxpayer revenue.
• Administration policies: Some administrations have been accused of exacerbating these problems through policies that increase waste and risk in the federal oil and gas program. 

Political influence

• Campaign donations: The oil and gas industry has spent millions of dollars on lobbying and political campaigns, which can influence policy and laws.
• “Dark money”: A portion of industry money is funneled through Super PACs and other “dark money” organizations, making it difficult to track its influence. 

Foreign corruption

• Bribery: The industry has been linked to foreign corruption schemes, including using third parties to pay bribes to foreign officials.
• International market manipulation: Cases of oil and gas price manipulation in international markets have been prosecuted.
• Tax policies: U.S. tax loopholes and subsidies can incentivize oil and gas companies to drill overseas, sometimes resulting in them paying more in taxes to foreign “petrostates” than to the U.S. government. 

Other issues

• Environmental liability fraud: Investigations have uncovered fraud in environmental liability estimates, often tied to major environmental damage from oil and gas operations.
• Historical corruption: The U.S. has a history of oil-related corruption, such as the Teapot Dome scandal in the 1920s. 
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  Corruption in the U.S. oil and gas industry encompasses a wide range of issues, including historical and modern instances of 
  bribery, fraud, tax evasion, price manipulation, and allegations of undue political influence. 
  Key areas of concern include:
  
  Political Influence and Policy
  Lobbying and Campaign Donations: The industry is a major political donor, with analyses showing that contributions often correlate with favorable policy outcomes, such as deregulation and tax breaks. Current investigations are looking into whether specific campaign donations influenced policy promises.
  Government Mismanagement: The Government Accountability Office (GAO) has highlighted the federal oil and gas program as “high-risk” for waste, fraud, abuse, and mismanagement for over a decade, citing failures by the Bureau of Land Management to collect the full amount owed by companies on leases.
  Tax Subsidies: U.S. tax policy has been criticized for offering loopholes and subsidies that incentivize companies to drill overseas and pay more in taxes to foreign governments than to the U.S. government, effectively costing American taxpayers. 
  
  Corporate Fraud and White-Collar Crime
  Accounting Scandals: The Enron scandal is a prime example of massive corporate fraud within the energy sector, involving accounting loopholes and the hiding of billions in debt, which led to the company’s collapse and new financial reporting regulations.
  Fraudulent Reporting: Companies have been involved in scandals such as overstating oil reserves (Shell reserves scandal) and fraudulently accounting for the costs of climate change.
  Price Manipulation and Collusion: Recent allegations and investigations suggest potential collusion among oil executives to artificially reduce output and inflate gas prices, costing consumers hundreds of dollars annually.
  Bribery: Individual traders and companies have faced charges and convictions under the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (FCPA) for paying bribes to foreign officials to secure business with state-owned oil companies, though related cases have had mixed outcomes in U.S. courts. 
  
  Historical Context
  The Teapot Dome Scandal: This remains one of the most significant government corruption scandals in American history. In the 1920s, the Secretary of the Interior, Albert B. Fall, leased Navy petroleum reserves to private oil companies without competitive bidding in exchange for bribes. Fall was convicted and became the first U.S. cabinet member to go to prison. 
  These issues highlight ongoing challenges in ensuring transparency and accountability in a highly profitable and influential industry. Resources for learning more about general anti-corruption efforts in the sector can be found on sites like the National Whistleblower Center and the FACT Coalition.