[Congressional Record Volume 146, Number 82 (Monday, June 26, 2000)]
[House]
[Page H5165]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                            GAS PRICE SPIKES

  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Under a previous order of the House, the 
gentleman from New Jersey (Mr. Pallone) is recognized for 5 minutes.
  Mr. PALLONE. Mr. Speaker, this evening I would like to expose the 
Republicans' attempt to make a campaign issue out of the Nation's gas 
price spike crisis and Democrats' efforts to solve this crisis and 
continue working to protect our long-term energy security.
  Higher gas prices should not be a partisan issue, but the Republicans 
are making it into one. On the other hand, the Democrats are trying to 
come up with bipartisan solutions. For instance, Democrats have called 
on committee chairmen holding hearings on this topic in the coming days 
to invite oil executives to testify so that these hearings are 
balanced. Democrats insist on exploring why the oil companies are 
showing record profits and why, when an investigation was announced, 
prices dropped immediately. Yet, the Republican leadership instead is 
making a sham of these hearings by using them as a forum to attack the 
Clinton-Gore administration. Moreover, the Republicans also do not want 
to invite the oil executives to testify, because they are in the 
pockets of big oil.
  GOP presidential candidate George W. Bush is one of the worst 
offenders. He has raised 15 times more money from oil and gas interests 
than Vice President Al Gore, and at least 25 of his top fund-raisers 
are connected to the oil industry. Last year, one of the first bills he 
signed bailed out the oil industry with a $45 million tax break.
  Let us look at other dilatory tactics by the Republicans. The Senate 
Republican leadership has held up reauthorization of the President's 
authority to draw down the strategic petroleum reserve and the 
Northeast heating oil reserve. These reserves would provide additional 
supplies for the gasoline and heating oil markets and would, in turn, 
bring down prices. The Clinton-Gore administration has supported both 
of these reserves. Yet, the Senate majority leadership has delayed 
action for too long, so even if both of these reserves were authorized 
today, the action is already too little, too late. As a result, 
Americans unfortunately are again to experience heating oil shortages 
in the Northeast this winter, and they have the Republican Congress to 
thank for it.
  While the Clinton-Gore administration is trying to provide tax 
credits for energy efficient vehicles, buildings, homes and equipment, 
the Republican leadership is cutting funding for alternative energy 
sources and energy conservation measures. They have slashed funding for 
these common sense programs since they have been in the majority, which 
has resulted in a $1.3 billion shortfall. As recently as last week, the 
Republican leadership voted again to cut funding substantially below 
current funding levels for renewable energy programs in the Energy and 
Water funding bill. Tomorrow, the Republicans will have a chance to 
restore some of this funding. If they are serious about resolving this 
crisis, they will literally put their money where their mouths are on 
this vote.
  The GOP leadership also wants to repeal gas taxes and jeopardize our 
Nation's transportation infrastructure. In addition, they want to gut 
environmental protections that cost only 2 to 3 cents per gallon.
  Just in case anyone out there thinks a few pennies are too much to 
pay for clean air, the gentleman from Ohio (Mr. Kucinich) and the 
gentleman from Maine (Mr. Baldacci) and I introduced a bill on Friday, 
H.R. 4739, that would enable the patent for blending cleaner, 
reformulated gasoline to be made available to all refiners. This would 
level the playing field for all refiners and, in turn, would bring down 
the price of reformulated gasoline.
  If the Republican leadership is serious about working together in a 
bipartisan fashion to develop true solutions to this crisis, then they 
will work with us to bring legislation such as the bill my colleagues 
and I introduced last week to the floor quickly. They also would find 
common sense programs that promote alternative energy options, ensure 
that oil executives are present at this week's hearings, and work with 
us to resolve this crisis as quickly as possible.

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