A new analysis shows big oil companies are much more reluctant to lower gasoline prices when crude prices drop than they are to raise prices when crude costs rise.

In one example documented by the group Accountable.US, when crude prices dropped by just over 1% in April, oil companies raised gas prices by nearly 2%.

Jordan Schreiber, energy and environment director for the group, said Wyoming consumers might expect prices at the pump to go down as the cost of crude oil drops, but gas prices remain stubbornly high.

"We would hope that the American people who have been really having a tough time paying for gasoline over the last few months would see some price drops," Schreiber noted. "But unfortunately, this is just another example of big oil really gouging folks at the pump."

After crude prices dropped by nearly 2% in May, companies raised gas prices by nearly 4%. In June, after crude dropped by more than 7%, it took days for prices to drop by just 2%. Industry groups have deflected criticism linking pricing to record profits, and have called on the Biden administration to open up more public lands for drilling to help ease prices.

Schreiber countered oil and gas companies left parcels of public lands they had specifically requested on the table at a recent drilling auction, and noted the industry already is sitting on thousands of untapped leases.

Schreiber believes the primary cause of high prices can be found in company ledger books. Last year, the top 25 oil and gas companies saw a record $237 billion in profits.

"We're looking at Quarter Two earnings calls this week, and we anticipate those to be record-breaking for 2022 as well," Schreiber pointed out. "The oil and gas companies have little to no incentive to actually bring this down. And so they can point fingers all they want to, but the reality is they're just gouging American consumers."

Schreiber added she hopes the analysis will serve as a wake-up call for Congress to take action, and she called on voters to urge their representatives to pass a windfall tax to hold big oil accountable.

She contended it is not reasonable or sustainable for the American people to continue footing the bill for companies' record profits.

"Rather than turning those profits back around to boost production or invest in clean energy, they're just sending it all back to shareholders and stock buybacks," Schreiber stressed. "Truly record-setting amounts of money going back to shareholder and buybacks this year and last year."

The work of some nonprofit organizations has only increased with the pandemic and the needs that have come from it. An author and expert in the field of trauma speaks at a Montana conference today about many workers' feelings of being overwhelmed.

Laura van Dernoot Lipsky, founder and director of the Trauma Stewardship Institute and author of "The Age of Overwhelm", said there's a cycle for nonprofits in which they become overextended because of structural issues within society, which in turn affects their workers.

"You have individuals who are trying to sustain doing this exceedingly hard work," she said, "but in environments where it's almost impossible to do it or near impossible to do it."

van Dernoot Lipsky said it also can be hard for workers because of their vicarious exposure to trauma over time, or when they work in environments where there's high burnout. About one in nine Montanans works in the nonprofit sector.

The Montana Nonprofit Association's annual GATHER conference is taking place virtually this week and in-person next week in Helena.

Van Dernoot Lipsky said it's important for organizations to reconcile the fact that they won't be able to meet all the needs in their community.

"And when you have these very devoted folks working for you," she said, "we've got to honor and make sure that the work environment is sustainable for them, so that we are not inadvertently causing harm to the very folks who are doing this work in an effort to reduce harm out in society."

Van Dernoot Lipsky said people in the nonprofit industry who are feeling depleted or disheartened should understand that they are not alone.

"One of the messages that I think is very important is for folks to remember that whatever they've got going on, they are in really good company and that they're not alone and it's not just them," she said. "And so, just wanting to make sure that we interrupt that isolation, anywhere we possibly can."

Consumer groups are pressing for legislation to reform the way credit agencies handle errors on credit reports.

The calls to amend the Fair Credit Reporting Act come in the wake of an admission by Equifax last month that a coding problem caused sizable shifts in the credit scores of about 300,000 people. U.S. Rep. Al Lawson, D-Calif., is seeking bipartisan cosponsors for a bill to require credit agencies to respond to inquiries from third-party credit-repair companies or consumer nonprofits.

"Every day," he said, "banks, employees and government entities rely on credit reports to make critical decisions regarding an American's viability for home and car loans, employment and even government benefits, which are so critical today."

Equifax released a statement in August saying it has fixed the coding error but did not immediately respond to a request for comment on the bill. Right now, a loophole allows agencies to disregard correspondence on credit disputes if it doesn't come directly from the consumer.

"If agencies don't have to even touch the mail, that leaves community members that are really trying to change the game for their lives- and their kids - growing up in neighborhoods with a lot of violence," said the Rev. Andre Chapple, chief executive of the African American Empowerment Coalition in Los Angeles, a nonprofit that educates people about credit issues that can keep them from renting an apartment, buying a car or getting a job. "And they want to relocate, but they can't, because their credit score is suffering with a bunch of inaccurate things on there. It's just really unfair."

Michael Claunch, a senior adviser to the American Association of Consumer Credit Professionals, said consumers deserve access to expert help to repair their credit.

"Because the process of improving your credit is confusing, difficult and time-consuming," he said, "then third parties - such as credit repair organizations, as well as nonprofit community organizations - are needed in it."

According to the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, 98% of the time, the big three credit-reporting agencies fail to provide relief to people who complain about errors on their credit reports.

As states like North Dakota debate whether to stay committed to fossil fuels, an online scorecard gives people with retirement accounts a glimpse into what role their investment portfolio plays in keeping the industry funded.

The nonprofit As You Sow is out with its latest Fossil Free Funds ratings.

Andrew Montes, director of digital strategy for As You Sow, said they grade investment firms based on which energy sources their funds are linked to. He added it might not be as obvious to most account holders.

"Just to use one from a major asset manager, from Vanguard, within the Vanguard 500 Index Fund, you're going to find investments in JPMorgan Chase," Montes explained. "JPMorgan Chase is the highest lender to fossil fuels over the last few years."

While some of Vanguard's funds get higher grades, a significant portion received "D" and "F" grades, including its most common plans. In the past year, fossil-fuel company stocks have netted returns, even in a down market. But some believe the gains are short-term.

Montes pointed out his group's view is not only do such investments contribute to the climate crisis, they could also become a more risky strategy as the world shifts to renewable energy.

"What is the world going to look like if you are, today, a 30-year-old working at a company, and you're thinking about 30 years down the road?" Montes posed. "Well, climate change has to be a major factor in what's going to impact your investments over that time."

Energy analysts have noted as costs for renewables like wind and solar go down, they are likely to see stronger investments. And as sources like coal see less demand, portfolios still wrapped up in such ventures could become stranded assets.

On its website, As You Sow has a toolkit with guidance on how to respond to fund managers maintaining significant investments in fossil fuels.