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Skriven 2006-04-25 23:34:16 av Whitehouse Press (1:3634/12.0)
Ärende: Press Release (0604252) for Tue, 2006 Apr 25
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Fact Sheet: President Bush's Four-Part Plan to Confront High Gasoline
Prices
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For Immediate Release
Office of the Press Secretary
April 25, 2006

Fact Sheet: President Bush's Four-Part Plan to Confront High Gasoline
Prices


ÿÿÿÿÿ In Focus: Energy

Today, President Bush Discussed The Four Parts Of His Practical Plan To
Confront High Gas Prices. The President's plan includes making sure
consumers and taxpayers are treated fairly, promoting greater fuel
efficiency, boosting our oil and gasoline supplies, and investing
aggressively in alternatives to gasoline, so we can eliminate the root
cause of high gas prices by diversifying away from oil in the longer term.

America Is Addicted To Oil, And An Increasing Amount Of The Oil We Need
Comes From Foreign Countries. Some of the nations we rely on for oil have
unstable governments or agendas hostile to the United States. These
countries know we need their oil, and that reduces our influence. We must
not allow America to be put at risk by the unfriendly leaders of foreign
countries.

It Is Important To Understand Why Gas Prices Are High. The market for oil
is global, and America is not the only large consumer. Countries like China
and India are consuming more and more oil, so global demand for oil is
rising faster than global supply. As a result, oil prices are rising around
the world, which leads to higher gas prices in America. America's gasoline
demand is projected to increase this summer, and our refining capacity is
stretched tight, making it difficult for supply to keep pace with demand.
To compound the problem, we are undergoing a rapid change in our fuel mix -
a transition from MTBE to ethanol in certain fuel blends, and that
transition is temporarily pushing up gas prices even more.

The President's Four-Part Plan To Confront High Gasoline Prices Includes:

1.ÿÿEnsuring That American Consumers Are Treated Fairly At The Gas Pump.
  þ 

    Americans Will Not Accept Fraud Or Manipulation Of The Market, And The
    President Will Not Tolerate It. The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) is
    investigating whether the price of gasoline has been unfairly
    manipulated since last year's hurricanes. The President is also
    directing the Department of Justice to work with the FTC and the
    Department of Energy to conduct inquiries into cheating or illegal
    manipulation related to current gasoline prices. The FTC and Attorney
    General are contacting all 50 state attorneys general to offer
    technical assistance and to urge them to aggressively investigate
    illegal price manipulation within their jurisdictions.
      þ 

        The President Calls On Congress To Repeal Certain Tax Breaks That
        Are Unnecessary For Energy Companies. With oil prices at record
        levels, energy companies have large cash flows - and energy
        companies should reinvest their profits into expanding refining
        capacity, researching alternative energy sources, developing new
        technologies, and expanding production. Record oil prices and large
        cash flows also mean that energy companies do not need unnecessary
        tax breaks like the "geological and geophysical expenditure"
        depreciation acceleration provision in the Energy Policy Act of
        2005. This unnecessary tax break allows energy companies to rapidly
        depreciate costs related to oil exploration. The President also
        calls on Congress to repeal the Energy Policy Act provision
        subsidizing energy companies' research into deepwater drilling. The
        President is looking forward to Congress taking about $2 billion of
        these tax breaks out of the budget over a 10-year period of time.

2.ÿÿPromoting Greater Fuel Efficiency.
  þ The President Calls On Congress To Make All Hybrid And Clean Diesel
    Vehicles Sold This Year Eligible For Federal Tax Credits. An immediate
    way for drivers to get more miles out of each gallon is to choose a
    highly efficient hybrid or clean diesel vehicle. Hybrid vehicles run on
    the combination of a traditional engine and an electric battery. These
    twin sources of power allow hybrid cars and trucks to travel about
    twice as far on a gallon of fuel as gasoline-only vehicles. Clean
    diesel vehicles take advantage of advances in diesel technology to run
    on 30 percent less fuel than gasoline vehicles. More than 200,000
    hybrid and clean diesel vehicles were sold in the United States last
    year - the highest sales in history. The Energy Policy Act President
    Bush signed into law expanded the tax credit for purchasers of hybrid
    and clean diesel vehicles to as much as $3,400, but these tax credits
    apply to only a limited number of hybrid and clean diesel vehicles for
    each manufacturer.
  þ 

    A Proven Way To Conserve Gasoline Is To Reform Corporate Average Fuel
    Economy (CAFE) Standards. The Administration has reformed the way the
    CAFE program determines standards for light trucks by emphasizing the
    size of the vehicle. CAFE standards for light trucks have been
    increased from 20.7 miles per gallon when the President took office to
    24 miles per gallon in 2011. The President's reforms bring CAFE
    standards for light trucks to the highest level in the history of the
    program - and they are helping American drivers save money at the pump.

3.ÿÿBoosting Our Supplies Of Crude Oil And Gasoline.
  þ The President Supports Halting Deposits To The Strategic Petroleum
    Reserve For A Short Period Of Time. The President has directed the
    Department of Energy to defer filling the Reserve this summer. Our
    Strategic Reserve is sufficiently large to guard against any major
    supply disruption over the next few months. Deferring deposits until
    the fall will leave a little more oil on the market - and when supplies
    are tight, every little bit counts.
  þ 

    The President Is Directing EPA Administrator Steve Johnson To Use All
    His Available Authority To Grant Waivers That Would Relieve Critical
    Fuel Supply Shortages - As He Did After Last Year's Hurricanes. Under
    Federal air quality laws, some areas of the country are required to use
    a fuel blend called reformulated gasoline. This year, we are undergoing
    a rapid transition in the primary ingredient in reformulated gas - from
    MTBE to ethanol. State and local officials in the Northeast and in
    Texas worry that supplies could run low. To ensure that there are not
    needless restrictions to get gasoline to the pump, the EPA should be
    able to meet the request of officials seeking to waive local fuel
    requirements on a temporary basis. If Administrator Johnson finds he
    needs more authority to relieve the problem, the Administration will
    work with Congress to obtain the authority he needs.
  þ 

    The President Is Also Directing Administrator Johnson To Bring Together
    Governors To Form A New Task Force To Confront The Larger Problem Of
    Too Many Localized Fuel Blends (Boutique Fuels). America's
    uncoordinated and overly complex set of fuel mixes raises the risk of
    painful local price increases, even during only minor supply
    disruptions.
  þ 

    The President Calls On Congress To Allow Refiners To Make Minor
    Modifications To Their Refineries Without Having To Endure Years Of
    Delays In The Approval Process, And The President Also Calls On
    Congress To Simplify And Speed Up The Permitting Process For Refinery
    Construction And Expansion. The President asks Congress to cut through
    the red tape and guarantee that refinery construction permits will be
    processed within a single year. To boost America's gasoline supply on a
    large scale, we need to expand our oil refining capacity. There has not
    been a new refinery built in America in 30 years. As a result, America
    now imports about a million barrels of gasoline every day - that means
    that about one of every ten gallons of gas Americans get at the pump is
    refined in a foreign country. Part of the reason for this is that the
    refinery permitting process in the United States is extremely
    complicated.
  þ 

    Congress Needs To Send The President A Bill This Year Authorizing
    Arctic National Wildlife Refuge (ANWR) Exploration. America has the
    ability to explore for oil in environmentally responsible ways, and we
    should make use of the ability. The Administration has taken steps to
    increase access to offshore oil, and Congress should allow
    environmentally sensitive oil exploration in ANWR.

4.ÿÿInvesting In Alternatives To Oil, So That We Can Dramatically Reduce
Our Demand For Gasoline.
  þ The President Calls On Congress To Support His Advanced Energy
    Initiative (AEI). The AEI is focused on three of the most promising
    ways to reduce gas consumption: increasing our use of ethanol,
    improving hybrid vehicles, and developing hydrogen technology. The AEI
    will strengthen our economy, our energy supply, and our national
    security.
      þ 

        Renewable Fuels Producers Are Using One Of The World's Oldest
        Industries - Agriculture - To Power Some Of The World's Newest
        Technology. While the price of oil continues to go up, advances in
        technology are bringing the price of alternative fuels down. Years
        of investment in fuels like ethanol have put us on the threshold of
        major breakthroughs. With a bold investment in alternative energy
        technologies, we can reduce our dependence on foreign oil.
  þ 

    Increasing Our Use Of Ethanol.
      þ 

        Ethanol Has Tremendous Potential For Growth As An Alternative To
        Gasoline. Any vehicle on the road can run on a fuel blend that
        includes 10 percent ethanol. And with minor modifications, cars and
        trucks can become "flex fuel vehicles" that run on a fuel blend
        called E85 - a mix of 85 percent ethanol and 15 percent gasoline.
        About 40 percent of America's gasoline now includes some amount of
        ethanol - and that number is going to keep growing in the years
        ahead.
      þ 

        Ethanol Is A Versatile Fuel Delivering A Wide Variety Of Benefits.
        Ethanol is good for farmers because it provides a new market for
        their products. Ethanol is good for rural communities because new
        biorefinery construction creates jobs and local tax revenue.
        Ethanol is good for the environment because it burns cleaner than
        gasoline and produces less air pollution and greenhouse gas
        emissions. Ethanol is good for drivers because it replaces gasoline
        consumption. And ethanol is good for our whole Nation because every
        time we use homegrown ethanol, we support American farmers and
        refiners - not foreign oil producers.
      þ 

        The Ethanol Industry Is Booming. Last year, America used a record 4
        billion gallons of ethanol - more than double the level when the
        President took office. There are now 97 ethanol refineries in our
        country. Nine of those are expanding, and 35 more are under
        construction.
      þ 

        President Bush Has Supported Ethanol More Strongly Than Any
        President Before Him. Since the President took office, we have
        extended the 51-cent-per-gallon tax credit for ethanol suppliers;
        created a new 10-cent-per-gallon tax credit to provide extra help
        to small ethanol producers and farmers; provided about $85 million
        in loans or grants for ethanol business ventures; and signed into
        law a Renewable Fuels Standard that will nearly double the amount
        of ethanol in our fuel supply over the next six years.
  þ 

    Promoting Other Alternatives To Regular Gasoline.
      þ 

        Researchers Are Pioneering Ways To Make A New Form Of "Cellulosic
        Ethanol" From Natural Materials Like Wood Chips, Stalks, And Switch
        Grass. The President has proposed $150 million in next year's
        budget for research into advanced forms of ethanol - a 65-percent
        increase over current levels. Our goal is to make cellulosic
        ethanol affordable within six years - and allow millions more
        drivers to put ethanol in the tank.
      þ 

        Biodiesel Fuel Can Substitute For Regular Diesel In Cars, Trucks,
        Buses, And Farm Equipment. Like ethanol, biodiesel is renewable,
        fully domestic, and a good way to support farmers and the rural
        economy. The President signed into law the first-ever Federal tax
        credit for biodiesel producers. Biodiesel refiners now receive 50
        cents for every gallon of biodiesel they blend.
      þ 

        Engineers Are Designing A New Type Of "Plug-In Hybrid" That Can Be
        Recharged Through A Standard Electrical Outlet. These hybrids will
        have fully charged batteries as soon as you start the car, which
        will allow them to travel much farther on electricity alone.
        Plug-in hybrids could make it possible to drive 40 miles on
        electricity alone - and that means millions of Americans could make
        their daily commute without a drop of gasoline. The President's
        budget for next year provides $31 million to speed up research into
        advanced battery technologies - a 27-percent increase over current
        levels.

Since 2003, The Administration Has Made Hydrogen And Fuel Cell Technology A
High Priority. When hydrogen is used in a device called a fuel cell, it can
deliver enough electricity to power a car that emits pure water instead of
exhaust fumes. The Administration has dedicated $1.2 billion over five
years to the research and development needed to get hydrogen cars into the
showroom.

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