Washington, D.C. -  In keeping with the position he has advocated for the last several weeks, U.S. Rep. Timothy V. Johnson Tuesday night voted in support of suspending oil shipments to the Strategic Petroleum Reserve.

     The House overwhelmingly passed H.R. 6022, the Strategic Petroleum Reserve Fill Suspension and Consumer Protection Act, as did the Senate. President Bush has signaled that he will not veto the measure.

     “This is hardly the answer to our energy crisis but it’s a start,” Rep. Johnson said. “It is a modest step in the right direction and the overwhelming support for this is a hopeful sign that Congress is finally ready to do something meaningful to address gas prices and our other energy needs.” 

     If signed into law, this bill would require the Interior and Energy departments to discontinue the acquisition of oil and shipments to the Strategic Petroleum Reserve until the end of this year. However, The DOI and DOE could resume shipments if, over the most recent 90-day period, the average price of oil does not exceed $75 a barrel.

     The Strategic Petroleum Reserve is an emergency oil supply located in Texas and Louisiana. It was created after the oil embargo of 1973 and 1974, and is maintained by the Energy Department. It is designed to provide the federal government with an emergency oil supply during a disruption in commercial oil supplies. The reserve is capable of holding 727 million barrels of oil, and currently holds 701 million barrels.

     This bill would halt the 70,000 gallons of oil that are being shipped to the reserve each day. 

      In a letter of a month ago, Rep. Johnson, along with several colleagues, urged House Speaker Nancy Pelosi to take the initiative on suspending shipments to the petroleum reserve, among other recommendations.

     Rep. Johnson and seven other Republican signatories to the letter joined Sen. John McCain, R-AZ, and Sen. Susan Collins, R-ME, in calling for a halt to the petroleum reserve diversions. 

     In addition to Rep. Johnson, other lawmakers joining the letter are Reps. Michael Castle, R-DE, Ray LaHood, R-IL, Roscoe Bartlett, R-MD, Wayne Gilchrest, R-MD, Todd Platts, R-PA, Vernon Ehlers, R-MI, Jim Gerlach, R-PA, and Christopher Shays, R-CT.

     Among other recommendations in the letter are:

• Expansion of refining capacity and streamlining the permitting process to speed the supply of fuel to the market.
  
  
• Diplomatic outreach to countries where oil production is nationalized to achieve more reliable information about available reserves and production capacity.
  
  
• Extension of tax incentives for renewable energy production, alternative energy research and household energy credits.
  
  
• Tax incentives for auto manufacturers to produce more fuel-efficient vehicles, and for consumers to purchase them.

     “I also think we can continue to work for a more robust Renewable Fuels Standard. We have just begun to scratch the surface of the promise of ethanol,” Rep. Johnson said. “The public is anxious, even desperate, to embrace not only this but alternative forms of energy such as solar and wind. As elected representatives, it is our job to create the incentives and programs to make the promise of those technologies a reality.

     “In my mind, these are not hard decisions, but necessary and obvious decisions that can be made for the sake of the American people. I will continue to urge my colleagues to follow suit,” Rep. Johnson said. 

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