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The Gas Price Reduction Act of 2008
By sage of monticello | June 27, 2008
Republican Senators have come together to offer a bill, the Gas Price Reduction Act of 2008, to finally start producing more American energy and take away Democrats’ excuses for opposing any proposals to increase domestic supplies of oil.
The New York Times writes today, “In a rather dramatic show of force, 22 Senate Republicans attended a news conference in a grassy park outside the Senate office buildings to trumpet the Gas Price Reduction Act of 2008.”
Democrats can no longer hide behind ANWR or their opposition to clean coal technology. If they are serious about doing anything on gas prices, they should support this bill.
For too long, the situation has been, as Senate Republican Conference Chair Lamar Alexander said yesterday, “When we say, ‘deep shore exploration,’ they say ‘no we can’t.’ When we say ‘oil shale development,’ they say ‘no we can’t.’ When we say ‘more nuclear power to plug in electric cars and trucks,’ they say ‘no we can’t.’” The American people want Congress to say “yes we can” on domestic oil production and it’s time for the Democrats to step up.
THE GAS PRICE REDUCTION ACT OF 2008
TITLE I – DEEP SEA EXPLORATION (OCS)
14 Billion Barrels On Atlantic and Pacific OCS – More Than All US Imports From Persian Gulf Countries Over The Last 15 Years
State Option Nationwide (except Gulf of Mexico)
Governor petitions to allow exploration, with concurrence of state legislature
Exploration must be at least 50 miles from coast
50% of revenues to Federal Treasury, 37.5% to States, 12.5% to Land & Water Conservation Fund
TITLE II: WESTERN STATE OIL SHALE EXPLORATION
More Than 3 Times The Oil Reserves Of Saudi Arabia
800 billion - 2 trillion potentially recoverable barrels in Colorado, Utah, Wyoming
Democrat Congress put moratorium on final regulations for development of this resource
Republican proposal would repeal the moratorium and allow exploration to move forward
TITLE III: PLUG-IN ELECTRIC CARS AND TRUCKS
We need better batteries to maximize electricity range & use less gas
Increased R&D for advanced batteries
Direct Loans for advanced battery manufacturing facilities
Sense of Senate that the Federal Government should increase its purchases of these vehicles
TITLE IV: STRENGTHENING U.S. FUTURES MARKETS
Authorizes increased funding/staff for Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC)
Directs the President’s Working Group on Financial Markets to study the international regulation of commodities markets
Codifies CFTC action on position limits and transparency for foreign boards of trade
Requires the CFTC to gather information on index traders and swap dealers
Topics: Campaign 2008, Republicans, economics, energy policy, democrats, Congress, Republican Senators, Congressional Democrats, environment |
