[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 157 (2011), Part 5]
[House]
[Page 7036]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




                               GAS PRICES

  (Mr. CICILLINE asked and was given permission to address the House 
for 1 minute.)
  Mr. CICILLINE. Mr. Speaker, for nearly 20 weeks this Chamber has been 
discussing ways to reduce our Nation's deficit, debating the merits of 
cutting one program or another, most times including important 
initiatives like job training funds, education, and health-related 
services.
  The fact of the matter is that we have to cut spending. The issue is 
not whether to reduce the deficit, but how we do it.
  If we really want to get serious about the deficit, we would stop 
handing out billions of dollars in taxpayer subsidies to big oil 
companies which price gouge at the pumps.
  Oil company profits are at a record high, and my colleagues on the 
other side of the aisle are using high gas prices as an excuse to keep 
giving them billions in taxpayer handouts. Taxpayer-funded giveaways 
for big oil add to the deficit. My constituents gain nothing at the 
pumps, nor do Americans all across this country. Instead, we should be 
focusing on measures that would actually bring down the price of gas at 
the pump.
  It is time to bring to the House floor measures which would release 
oil from the Strategic Petroleum Reserve and legislation aimed at 
preventing big oil from engaging in price gouging schemes which drive 
up the price of oil. These measures could provide immediate relief to 
our constituents from the rising price of gasoline that truly threatens 
our economic recovery and the well-being of hardworking middle class 
families.

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