Report: Fortune 500 companies in Texas among dozens that didn't pay federal income taxes in 2018

Pioneer Natural Resources Headquarters: Irving, Texas Income: $1.3 billion Federal tax: $0 Effective tax rate: 0 percent

>>> See more companies that didn't have to pay federal income taxes less Pioneer Natural Resources Headquarters: Irving, Texas Income: $1.3 billion Federal tax: $0 Effective tax rate: 0 percent

>>> See more companies that didn't have to pay federal income ... more Photo: Eddie Seal For The Texas Tribune Photo: Eddie Seal For The Texas Tribune Image 1 of / 17 Caption Close Report: Fortune 500 companies in Texas among dozens that didn't pay federal income taxes in 2018 1 / 17 Back to Gallery

While millions of Americans forked over federal income taxes in 2018, a handful of Fortune 500 companies in Texas avoided paying federal income taxes altogether, according to a report from the Institute for Taxation & Economic Policy.

The report, highlighted in the Houston Chronicle, includes eight Texas-based companies that either didn't pay income taxes or received a rebate. In total, the report listed 60 Fortune 500 companies that avoided income taxes in 2018 under the new tax code, which President Donald Trump and congressional Republicans passed in 2017.

ON HOUSTONCHRONICLE.COM: Under new tax code, oil companies get rebates, not bills

Houston-based companies Halliburton, Occidental Petroleum, Kinder Morgan and EOG Resources were on the list. Halliburton, which recorded $1.1 billion in revenue, received a $19 million tax rebate, according to the report. Independent oil company EOG resources, which reported 4.1 billion in revenue, received a $304 million rebate, the report said.

Other notable companies like Netflix, Amazon and General Motors were on the list.

According to reporting the Houston Chronicle, Trump touted the new tax law as a way to boost the economy and spur job growth. The administration has cited the law as a driving force in the national unemployment rate of 3.8 percent.

The tax reform in 2017 was supposed to get rid of many of the tax breaks that corporations and wealthy people use to reduce their tax bills. It was intended to simplify the tax code while reducing overall rates, the Chronicle reported.

While some loopholes that benefited large companies were eliminated, others stayed in place, the Chronicle reported.

"The oil industry really showed its muscle in Congress because it got its reduced rate while still retaining a lot of its exemptions," Tyson Slocum, the energy program director at the activist group Public Citizen, told the Chronicle.

>>>Click through the slideshow above to see more notable companies in and around Texas that avoided federal income taxes

Julian Gill is a digital reporter in Houston. Read him on our breaking news site, Chron.com, and on our subscriber site, houstonchronicle.com. | julian.gill@chron.com | NEWS WHEN YOU NEED IT: Text CHRON to 77453 to receive breaking news alerts by text message | Sign up for breaking news alerts delivered to your email here.