[Congressional Record Volume 168, Number 62 (Thursday, April 7, 2022)]
[Senate]
[Pages S2062-S2063]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]



                   Unanimous Consent Request--S. 3609

  Ms. HASSAN. Mr. President, while we all gather to acknowledge this 
historic day and prepare to vote to--in my case, at least--confirm 
Judge Jackson, I rise to bring up another issue. I rise today to urge 
my colleagues to pass into law commonsense legislation to bring down 
oil and gas costs for Americans.
  As many of my colleagues have discussed on this floor, Americans 
across the country, including in my State of New Hampshire, are facing 
higher costs from the grocery store to the gas pump. As we work 
together to build a stronger, more resilient economy that strengthens 
our supply chains and invests in American manufacturing, we must also 
bring relief to American families right now, an issue that has become 
even more urgent in the wake of Russia's invasion of Ukraine, which has 
sent gas prices soaring.
  As we continue to counter Putin's aggression and inflationary 
challenges facing our economy, we have an obligation to work together 
to bring down costs.
  That is why I am working to hold Big Oil accountable for profiting 
off of the pain that Americans are experiencing at the pump. That is 
why I pushed the administration to release oil from the Strategic 
Petroleum Reserve, an action I was glad to see the administration take, 
again, just last week. As we look at all options to bring down costs, 
one clear way to provide immediate relief is by suspending the gas tax 
for the remainder of this year.
  Earlier this year, my colleagues and I introduced a bill to do 
exactly that. The Gas Prices Relief Act will temporarily suspend the 
Federal gas tax through the end of the year, helping bring economic 
relief to families.
  As in legislative session, I ask unanimous consent that the Finance 
Committee be discharged and the Senate proceed to the immediate 
consideration of S. 3609; that the bill be considered read a third time 
and passed and that the motions to reconsider be considered made and 
laid upon the table.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. Is there objection?
  The Senator from Idaho.
  Mr. CRAPO. Reserving my right to object, let me begin by saying my 
friends and colleagues across the aisle are right about one thing: Gas 
prices are incredibly higher right now in this country.
  The effort to blame this on what has happened in Ukraine, however, 
overlooks the real cause of the phenomenal rise in gas prices that we 
have seen for a year before Putin even invaded. Definitely, the 
invasion did increase pressure on gas prices, but the problem is that 
this administration's policies have dramatically reduced the supply in 
the United States and Americans across this country know how supply and 
demand impacts price.
  The gas tax holiday that is now being proposed is not a solution; it 
is a political gimmick that would not stop skyrocketing gas prices or 
inflation. In fact, Larry Summers said in a Wall Street Journal 
podcast:

       I think a gas tax idea is saved only by its triviality from 
     being one of the worst public policy ideas of the decade. It 
     will have little effect over any reasonable horizon on gas 
     prices. It will be counterproductive from an environmental 
     point of view. It is the ultimate policy gimmick.

  Rather than accept responsibility for 14 months of reckless spending 
or the more than 40-percent increase in gas prices that had already 
occurred before the Russian invasion, Democrats want to blame higher 
gas prices on the Russian invasion or corporate greed. They also want 
to ignore the consequences of their relentless attacks on the American 
oil and gas industry, the administration's overly bureaucratic permit 
and regulatory process for domestic energy production, and the 
misguided policy decisions like canceling the Keystone XL Pipeline.
  The solution to rising gas prices is not a tax holiday, which would 
offer little relief but threaten infrastructure investments and worsen 
our national debt situation; nor is the solution a tax on American 
companies who increase their production of oil and gas to try to help 
us become more energy independent; nor is it stimulus checks, which 
have the potential, as the past ones have, to increase gas prices even 
further and push inflation even higher; nor is it to encourage other 
hostile regimes to produce more oil.
  The only lasting solution to our current problems is to bolster 
American oil and gas production to replace not only Russian imports but 
to facilitate exports to support our allies and end their dependence on 
Russia. Indeed, I, along with a number of my Republican colleagues, 
have sponsored proposals to enhance energy independence and undo many 
of President Biden's misguided energy policies.
  Republicans believe we can and should be doing more to unleash 
America's domestic energy potential, reduce reliance on volatile 
foreign actors like Russia, and deliver cost savings to middle-class 
families across the country. Hard-working American families need real 
relief, not political gimmicks, and that is why I oppose this gas tax 
holiday.
  I urge my Democratic colleagues to abandon the reckless spending-and-
tax policies that have already failed but which seem to be contemplated 
in the President's newly reintroduced budget and support proposals that 
will actually lower prices for everyday Americans. For those reasons, I 
object.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. Objection is heard.

[[Page S2063]]

  

  Ms. HASSAN. Before I wrap up, I just want to point out what you just 
heard--what the American people have just heard--is talking points 
straight out of Big Oil's playbook.
  A gas tax holiday is a commonsense solution that would provide 
immediate relief for Granite Staters and Americans all over the 
country. Big Oil holds thousands of unused permits at their fingertips 
that they could use right now to increase supply. Instead, what is 
happening is Big Oil is padding its pockets at the expense of 
Americans.
  Let's be clear. This would not take a dime out of the highway trust 
fund because this bill instructs Treasury to replenish the trust fund, 
something it has done half a dozen times in about the last decade. This 
is something that has bipartisan support across the country--Democratic 
and Republican Governors, Democratic and Republican legislators are 
moving to suspend their gas taxes. This is something we could do right 
now to help American families balance their budgets and make ends meet.
  While I am disappointed to see my colleague block this critical 
legislation, I will keep working to bring down costs for American 
families and get this bill passed.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. The majority leader.