The Congressional Record is a unique source of public documentation. It started in 1873, documenting nearly all the major and minor policies being discussed and debated.
“STRATEGIC GASOLINE AND FUEL RESERVE ACT OF 2005” mentioning the U.S. Dept. of Energy was published in the Senate section on pages S10780-S10781 on Sept. 30, 2005.
The publication is reproduced in full below:
STRATEGIC GASOLINE AND FUEL RESERVE ACT OF 2005
Mr. DURBIN. Mr. President, as of yesterday afternoon, nearly a quarter of this country's refinery capacity is offline.
Already feeling the impact of high prices at the gas pump prior to the two hurricanes, Americans are bracing for additional price increases as refinery operations remain shutdown in the gulf coast. Americans are also bracing for record high energy costs this winter.
While the administration has ordered the release of petroleum from the Strategic Petroleum Reserve, without refinery capacity, putting crude oil on the market does little to nothing to alleviate immediate supply constraints and high prices at pump.
What hurricanes Katrina and Rita taught is that we must be ready for a rainy day. That is why it is critical to our national and economic interests to build a gasoline reserve to keep the country moving forward in case of an emergency.
Witnessed by the ill-preparedness of the response in the wake of Hurricane Katrina, we must prepare now for the potential impact of future catastrophes.
Most importantly, as fuel supplies remain tight, we must prepare to alleviate the impact that another natural disaster, refinery fire, or pipeline explosion has on the Nation fuel supply and as a result our national economy.
Yesterday I introduced the Strategic Gasoline and Fuel Reserve Act of 2005.
The reserve would require the Department of Energy to hold and manage 40 million barrels of unleaded gasoline and 7.5 million barrels of jet fuel to be used in times of supply shortages--shortages that adversely impact the U.S. economy.
The Secretary is tasked with identifying at most five strategically significant regional locations for the fuel reserve. For instance, one could be located in the Northeast, one in the Midwest and one in the California.
Finally, the Secretary of Energy must establish procedures to release fuel from the reserve to those typically engaged in the sale of distribution of gasoline or jet fuel.
Hurricane Katrina forced about 1 million barrels of refined product offline. The reserve would provide 40 days' worth of gasoline supply based on the amount shutdown from Katrina--or almost 2 weeks worth of gasoline supply to fill the void of offline capacity caused by both Hurricane Rita and Katrina together.
Furthermore, the reserve would include 7.5 million barrels of jet fuel--enough to keep the fleet in operation for 40 days if faced with a disaster of the magnitude of Katrina.
We have witnessed three airlines enter into bankruptcy--partly because of increasing fuel costs. U.S. airlines pay an additional $190 million in annual fuel costs for every penny increase in the price of a gallon of gas.
It is important to keep a viable stock of jet fuel available to ensure the seamless operation of one of America's important transportation fleets.
But, in total, consumers are the ones hardest hit by rising fuel costs.
A fuel reserve like the one in this legislation could provide a price buffer when pipelines or refinery outages occur, helping to mitigate price spikes that bite consumers in the pocketbook.
Consumer Federation of America has urged Congress to create a national fuel reserve. They recognize that American households who own and drive cars will consume 100 billion gallons of gasoline this year--
costing them over $200 billion at the pump. This represents a cost of nearly $2,000 for each household with a car, and an increase of nearly
$600 a year in the past 4 years alone.
A study commissioned by the State of California concluded that a regional reserve, which is what would be created under this bill, could save consumers $1 billion every time supplies were affected. With a nationwide reserve, that number is even higher.
As Democrats continue to push for a national policy of energy independence, a gasoline and jet fuel reserve is an important component of that debate.
I ask unanimous consent to have printed in the Record material in support of the bill.
There being no objection, the material was ordered to be printed in the Record, as follows:
Support for the Strategic Gasoline and Fuel Reserve Act of 2005--
September 29, 2005
Consumer Federation of America
Mark Cooper, Director of Research, Consumer Federation of America (CFA), said about the Strategic Gasoline and Fuel Reserve Act of 2005, ``Four years ago, at the first signs of trouble in the gasoline market, we called for a regional product reserve that would be used to not only ensure supply, but to dampen the wild roller coaster ride that has been afflicting the driving public. This legislation is a step in the right direction and hopefully marks the start of a broad re-orientation of energy policy toward policies that protect consumers from pricing abuse.''
United Airlines
Mark Anderson, Vice President, Government Affairs, United Airlines, said, ``Senator Durbin understands that escalating fuel prices, driven in part by shortages in supply, have a negative impact on travel and economic stability for individuals and businesses throughout Illinois and the nation. This proposal, which will ensure that emergency supplies of refined products like gasoline and jet fuel are located at strategic locations across the country, will provide economic stability when it is most needed. We applaud Senator Durbin's efforts to address this issue of critical importance.''
American Airlines
According to Will Ris, Senior Vice President for Government Affairs for American Airlines, ``the proposal of Senator Durbin to establish a reserve of refined oil products is a farsighted idea that should be implemented quickly. The hidden story of the current crisis is that the cost of refining crude oil has increased at a much more rapid rate than the price of crude itself. By creating a reserve of refined products, the fluxuation in the markets due to temporary refining shortages can be reduced substantially. We particularly applaud Senator Durbin's proposal to build reserves of jet fuel as well as gasoline. This shows a strong understanding of the importance of commercial aviation to the economy.''
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