Sen. Ed Markey is pressuring the nation’s largest oil companies to slash executive pay and redirect the savings to struggling American consumers as gas prices surge.

In letters sent Tuesday to the CEOs of ExxonMobil, Chevron, ConocoPhillips, Shell, and BP, the Massachusetts Democrat urged companies to curb bonuses and compensation tied to soaring oil prices, which he links to President Donald Trump’s actions in Iran.

“While American consumers struggle with energy costs… many oil and gas executives have received record compensation packages,” Markey wrote, calling on companies to “reduce executive compensation and direct the savings to lower gas prices.”

Markey argued that oil giants are reaping windfall profits while families and small businesses feel squeezed at the pump. “Big Oil companies should not soak up profits while American consumers… are running on fumes,” he said.

The senator is asking companies to detail executive pay over the past three years and explain whether they would consider tying compensation to consumer gas prices. He also floated the idea of a “consumer price relief fund” funded by executive bonuses or excess profits.

Markey set an April 8 deadline for responses, pressing executives on whether they would voluntarily reduce pay packages or commit to lowering retail gasoline prices.

The push comes as energy prices climb amid tensions with Iran, which Markey has repeatedly criticized as an “illegal war.” He has also demanded federal data on the economic impact of the conflict, though the Bureau of Labor Statistics has yet to respond.

Oil companies have long argued that fuel prices are driven by global markets, not executive compensation, and have resisted calls to link profits or pay directly to consumer prices.

Still, Markey framed the issue as a matter of corporate responsibility, saying Americans “deserve an energy sector that works for them, not one that extracts maximum profit while deflecting accountability.”