[Congressional Record Volume 155, Number 91 (Wednesday, June 17, 2009)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Pages E1464-E1465]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




          THE ENHANCED SUPPLY AND PRICE REDUCTION ACT OF 2009

                                 ______
                                 

                         HON. EDWARD J. MARKEY

                            of massachusetts

                    in the house of representatives

                        Wednesday, June 17, 2009

  Mr. MARKEY of Massachusetts. Madam Speaker, today I am introducing 
legislation with the gentleman from Maryland, Mr. Van Hollen, and the 
gentleman from Vermont, Mr. Welch, in order to provide relief for 
American consumers at the pump in the short term and save taxpayer 
dollars. Last summer, gas prices soared to record highs above $4 per 
gallon. This year, American consumers are beginning to experience a bad 
case of deja vu. Incredibly, today marks the 50th straight day that gas 
prices have risen. As a result, prices at the pump have already 
increased by more than one dollar a gallon since the beginning of the 
year. For American families who are already struggling through a down 
economy, these rising prices are hitting especially hard.
  The Enhanced Supply and Price Reduction Act of 2009, or Enhanced SPR 
Act, directs the Secretary of Energy to sell 70 million barrels of 
light sweet crude--less than 10 percent of the total oil in the 
Strategic Petroleum Reserve (SPR)--and replace it with heavy crude oil 
over a period of five years. Swapping oil from the SPR has a proven 
record of lowering oil prices in the short term. In 1991, when 
President Bush's father deployed oil from the reserve, oil prices fell 
33.4 percent in two days. In 2000, President Clinton conducted a time 
exchange of oil from the SPR and prices again immediately dropped by 
18.7 percent. And in 2005, when President Bush himself released oil 
following Hurricane Katrina, prices fell 9.1 percent. That's an average 
drop in the price of oil of 19.2 percent.
  In addition, this legislation would implement a number of 
recommendations made by the Government Accountability Office (GAO) to 
better use taxpayer funds. First, swapping a small percentage of light 
oil in the reserve for heavier crude has been recommended by the GAO to 
save taxpayers money. Replacing a small percentage of light oil 
currently in the reserve with heavy oil would also better match up with 
the needs of our nation's refineries and protect us against supply 
disruptions from unstable countries such as Venezuela.
  The legislation would also implement GAO's recommendation to purchase 
a constant dollar value rather than constant volume of oil to fill the 
SPR in the future. In testimony before the Select Committee on Energy 
Independence and Global Warming last year, GAO testified that if the 
Department of Energy had taken this approach between 2001 and 2005, it 
would have saved American taxpayers nearly $600 million or roughly 10 
percent cost to fill the SPR during that period. Finally, the bill 
would authorize the Secretary to purchase and store refined petroleum 
product in the SPR in order to further enhance our national security.
  The House has already voted in support of similar legislation in the 
last Congress in an

[[Page E1465]]

overwhelming, bipartisan fashion. The SPR is currently filled to 
roughly 99.5 percent of its capacity--its highest level ever. As we 
work to enact comprehensive energy and climate change legislation, 
Congress should take action to provide relief at the gas pump in the 
short term. The Enhanced SPR Act represents a common sense approach to 
reducing pressure on consumers while saving taxpayers dollars.

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