[Congressional Record Volume 146, Number 45 (Tuesday, April 11, 2000)]
[Senate]
[Pages S2496-S2497]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                             ENERGY POLICY

  Mrs. HUTCHISON. Mr. President, I have been listening to the debate on 
the repeal of the 4.3-cent-a-gallon gasoline tax. I think perhaps there 
is a misunderstanding of what this resolution does. I will reiterate 
it.
  The bill which Senator Lott has introduced, along with Senator 
Murkowski and myself, gives a Federal fuels tax holiday that would 
suspend through the end of this year the 4.3-cent-per-gallon gas tax 
that was put on about 3 or 4 years ago. If the average gasoline price 
in our country reaches $2 a gallon, it would suspend for the rest of 
this year the entire 18.4-cent-per-gallon Federal excise tax on 
gasoline. The bill specifically holds harmless all of the trust funds. 
Social Security, and the highway trust funds would not be affected. So 
we would make up any lost revenue from other sources, not the highway 
trust fund.

  I do not think the highway contractors should be alarmed. The highway 
contracts are going to go out just as they have been. We are now 2 
years ahead in contracting. There will be no suspension of the 
contracting under the highway trust fund. I think our highways are a 
first priority, and I do not think the highway contractors should be 
concerned in any way that that is going to lessen to any degree.
  It is very clear what this does. It says to the traveling public, it 
says to the family trying to take a vacation, it says to the truckers 
who are depending on a gasoline price that is stable, so they know what 
that price is going to be, approximately, when they make their 
contracts to haul goods back and forth in our country, we are going to 
have a suspension of up to 18 cents a gallon until prices come down to 
a level that is reasonable and that could have been anticipated when a 
contract was made. Airline passengers are paying $75 one way on most 
trips across this country because of this gasoline price increase.
  We need to respond to something so basic to so many people, and that 
is the transportation costs--for people to take a family vacation, to 
drive to and from work, or for their very livelihoods, if they are 
truckers. We are going to respond to this crisis.
  I have heard people from foreign countries say: I do not know what 
you Americans are complaining about; we pay $4 a gallon in Europe--in 
Brussels, in London. That is not the price on which our economy is 
based. We travel greater distances. We have an economy that is based on 
gasoline prices in the $1- to $1.40-a-gallon category. That is an 
important part of the cost of doing business in our country.
  Furthermore, we do have the ability to control our own destiny. We do 
have the ability to drill and explore in our country. Many private 
businesses, small businesses, want very much to do that. They want to 
be able to drill a well as small as one producing only 15 barrels a 
day.
  To put that in perspective, a 15-barrel-a-day well is a very small 
well. The average well in Alaska produces 650 barrels a day. In the 
Gulf of Mexico, it could be 10,000 barrels a day. We are talking 15 
barrels a day. Our small businesses can continue to do business and 
make a modest profit on a 15-barrel-a-day well, but they have to know 
the price is going to be somewhat stable. When oil prices went down to 
$9, $10 a barrel, 2 years ago, these little guys could not make it. 
These little producers are small businesses, and they could not break 
even on $9 or $10 a barrel.
  What I would like to propose is that we pass the bill before us today 
to give instant relief to the consumers and business people in our 
country, but that we look at the longer term issue as well, and that 
is, what can we do to encourage our small businesses to be able to stay 
in business, drilling wells that produce 15 barrels a day or less? If 
they will stay in business, they will produce the same amount we import 
from OPEC today. That is the important issue. We will not be at the 
whim of OPEC, to have huge price spikes, if we will encourage our own 
people to explore and drill even the small wells.
  There is another advantage of that, and that is it keeps the jobs in 
America. Today we are going to foreign countries and producing because 
it is cheaper to do it over there in OPEC countries or in Mexico or 
Venezuela. It is cheap to do it there. That does not create American 
jobs; it creates jobs in foreign countries.
  If we pass the bill before us today and say we are going to give 
relief immediately to the people who are driving to work, the people 
who depend on a stable price as they drive their trucks carrying goods 
back and forth across the country, I am saying let's look at the long 
term, too. Let's look at the stable price that is necessary for them to 
enter into contracts that will keep them in business. Let's do it by 
encouraging our small producers to take the risk to go out and drill 
either a dry hole or one that would produce up to 15 barrels a day, by 
giving them a tax credit if the price goes below $17 a barrel, so they 
can stay in business, much as we do for farmers when the prices they 
can get on the open market do not allow them to break even.
  We want the farmers to stay in business so they will be able to 
continue to provide food for our country and for export. Why not do 
that for a small producer? If that well produces 16 or more barrels a 
day, no tax credits, because the margin, then, is much higher and they 
will be able to break even in the low-price times.
  I am saying let's give immediate relief and let's look at the long 
term, let's do something that will be a win-win for our country, 
something that will provide more price stability so we will not have 
the price spikes we are seeing now. We do that by stopping our 56-
percent dependence on foreign imports for the fuel we require every day 
in this country. Let's do it by creating more American jobs for small 
businesses, and let's keep those jobs in America so we will be more 
self-sufficient and more in control of our own destiny.
  I hope my colleagues will pass the bill that is before us today, give 
the instant relief, and say we are going to protect the highway fund 
absolutely, so the contracts can continue to be let and our highways 
will continue to be built and improved and maintained.
  I yield the floor and reserve the remainder of my time.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. Under the previous order, the Chair recognizes 
the Senator from Florida.
  Mr. GRAHAM. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent for up to 10 
minutes for purposes of introduction of legislation.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. Is there an objection?
  There is 20 minutes remaining on the time of the Senator from Texas. 
That will be 10 minutes on your time that will run well into the policy 
luncheon.
  Mrs. HUTCHISON. Mr. President, I do not object to the Senator from 
Florida going forward because the speakers on my side have not arrived. 
If, after he has finished his 10-minute presentation, we do not have 
our speakers, then I will yield the remainder of our time. If we do, I 
will continue to pursue our debate.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. The Presiding Officer is considering objecting 
because of the policy conference during this period.
  Mrs. HUTCHISON. Mr. President, the Senator from Florida has a 
unanimous consent agreement that would allow him to introduce his bill. 
Let's go forward, and if there is someone on our side, I will be happy 
to relieve the Chair.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. Without objection, it is so ordered. The 
Senator from Florida.
  Mr. GRAHAM. In deference to the Presiding Officer, if a situation 
arises in which he feels my remarks should be terminated or restrained, 
if he will so indicate, I will be pleased to defer to his wishes.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. The Senator from Florida has been recognized 
for up to 10 minutes.
  Mr. GRAHAM. I thank the Chair.
  (The remarks of Mr. Graham pertaining to the introduction of S. 2383 
are located in today's Record under ``Statements on Introduced Bills 
and Joint Resolutions.'')
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. The Senator from Texas.
  Mrs. HUTCHISON. Mr. President, at this time the other speakers on our 
side have not arrived. I will yield back

[[Page S2497]]

the time, with this reservation: Before the vote on this cloture 
motion, is there time equally divided for further debate?
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. Under a previous order, there are 10 minutes, 
equally divided, prior to the cloture vote.
  Mrs. HUTCHISON. Thank you, Mr. President.
  I yield the floor.

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