White House tap reserves

White House officials announced Tuesday that the administration will release government reserves of oil as Republicans repeatedly slam President Biden for high gas prices ahead of the holiday season.

The administration said the Department of Energy would release 50 million barrels of oil from the Strategic Petroleum Reserve — an emergency pool kept by the U.S. — in conjunction with several other countries.

While energy experts have consistently said a release of U.S. reserves would likely do little to lower gas prices, the White House said the effort would be undertaken “in parallel” with similar efforts by China, India, Japan, the Republic of Korea, and the United Kingdom.

Average U.S. gas prices stood at $3.41 as of Monday, according to AAA, with costs even higher in some parts of the country such as Pennsylvania and Nevada. It is unclear how much the White House effort would immediately affect prices. Oil prices have begun to tick down independent of the administration’s efforts, in part due to fears of new lockdowns in Europe crimping demand.

“American consumers are feeling the impact of elevated gas prices at the pump and in their home heating bills, and American businesses are, too, because oil supply has not kept up with demand as the global economy emerges from the pandemic,” the White House said in a statement. “That’s why President Biden is using every tool available to him to work to lower prices and address the lack of supply.”

A 1975 law gives the president the ability to draw down the reserve in the event of a “severe energy supply interruption.”

The White House has not pushed more aggressive measures to lower prices, such as export caps on oil, that some congressional Democrats have demanded.

Summarised www.sba.tax

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