Sen. Ted Budd (R-North Carolina) introduced legislation Tuesday that would block oil releases from the Strategic Petroleum Reserve (SPR) until President Joe Biden authorizes U.S. energy development.
bad introduced The Strategic Gas Price Reduction Act is aimed at lowering gas prices by preventing Biden from taking advantage of the SPR termination, and Republicans have criticized it as an “election year gimmick.”
Budd said his bill would force Biden to return to “American energy independence.”
“Working Americans and small businesses alike are suffering from rising fuel costs,” the North Carolina conservative said in a statement to Breitbart News. Instead of encouraging domestic production, the administration has begged foreign countries to increase energy production, which would put the U.S. on volatile international markets. He has also depleted our nation's emergency oil reserves so much that our nation is no longer equipped to deal with the next crisis. The goal is to pursue an “all of the above” strategy that reverses environmentalist policies and restores America's energy independence. That's what my bill will force President Biden to do. ”
In January, Budd spoke on the Senate floor about the need to return to an “America First” energy plan:
us senate
Mr. Biden used the Strategic Petroleum Reserve, created in 1975 as a safety net in times of emergencies and major shortages, to lower gasoline prices. In November 2021, the Biden administration began using SPR releases to lower rising gasoline prices. By September 2023, the SPR was at its lowest level since June 1983.
The Strategic Gas Price Reduction Act would allow the president to use the SPR only in true emergencies and only if the administration's actions do not adversely affect gas and oil supplies.
Sens. Dan Sullivan (R-Alaska), Eric Schmitt (R-Missouri), and Pete Ricketts (R-Nebraska) also joined Budd in helping push the bill forward.
“Joe Biden's disastrous energy policies and regulatory overreach are causing untold pain to the American people,” Schmidt said in a written statement. Biden's climate change policy has crippled domestic energy production, and the reckless release of hundreds of millions of barrels of oil from the Strategic Petroleum Reserve is not only extremely dangerous, but also made things worse. The Strategic Gas Price Reduction Act would work to protect against future political abuse of the SPR, encourage domestic energy production, and ensure that America becomes energy dominant once again. ”
“The Strategic Petroleum Reserve should be used for real emergencies, not political emergencies caused by policy failures,” Ricketts said in a written statement. “President Biden’s abuse of this oil reserve for purely political purposes has made us less secure and more dependent on our adversaries. This bill corrects this abuse and requires the President to do all of the above. America must return to being an energy independent nation.”
Sean Moran is a policy reporter at Breitbart News. Follow him on Twitter @SeanMoran3.
