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With gas prices inching up to $2.50 a gallon, there is a sense of dread when you notice your tank is leaning on the empty side. The statewide average price of a gallon of regular unleaded gasoline has climbed 29 cents in two weeks to $2.42 last week. At the same time, the nationwide average is up 24 cents to $2.52. These sharply increasing prices, although beneficial to an oil producing state like Oklahoma, are taking a toll on individual consumers.
The Energy Policy Act of 2005 (H.R. 6), which was recently signed into law by the President, contains a balanced package of production and conservation measures that will help America reduce its dependence on unstable foreign oil while meeting its energy needs well into the 21st century.
The Energy Policy Act expands domestic supply by increasing oil and gas exploration and development on non-park federal lands. It requires five billion gallons of renewable fuel to be included in all gasoline sold in the United States by 2015. This will reduce crude oil imports by 1.6 billion barrels. The legislation will also streamline the regulatory and approval processes for the restart of idle refineries or the construction of new refineries. The Energy Policy Act also helps reduce our dangerous dependence on foreign oil by allowing new domestic oil and gas exploration and development and by expanding the Strategic Petroleum Reserve’s capacity to 1 billion barrel.
The Energy Policy Act also increases conservation efforts. To scale back demand for oil, the legislation launches a state-of-the-art program to get hydrogen fuel-cell vehicles on the road by 2020. Hydrogen energy can be produced from nearly any energy source, is virtually emission-free and has the potential to be a nearly limitless fuel for America. It also, increases funding for the Department of Transportation to continue its work on improving Corporate Average Fuel Economy (CAFE) standards, which set fuel emission standards for cars and light trucks sold in the United States. Another initiative will increase funding for the Department of Energy’s “Clean Cities” program to provide grants to state and local governments to acquire alternative fueled and fuel cell vehicles, hybrids and ultra low-sulfur diesel vehicles.
The new energy policy will also establish a cap on boutique fuels. State requirements for the production of specialty "boutique fuels" create geographic supply islands which cause price spikes in times of supply disruption or tight supply. The Energy Policy Act gives the EPA administrator, in the event of an extreme and unusual supply emergency, the ability to temporarily waive certain requirements to limit supply disruption, thus avoiding potential supply bottlenecks and price spikes. H.R. 6 alleviates factors contributing to price increases by stating that the EPA’s approval of a new fuel must not cause fuel supply interruptions or a significant adverse impact on the ability to produce a fuel.
Gas prices are as high as they are now in part because we’ve had no comprehensive national energy policy for the past few decades. The Energy Policy Act will not lower prices overnight, but it will put us on a path to produce more oil here at home and foster greater conservation and efficiency – boosting supply and lowering demand. |
