"The United States has the ability to limit the effects of dramatic spikes in gas prices, if we properly use and maintain our domestic reserve. In fact, it is our duty to do so, to ease the economic impact that drastically rising gas prices have on Americans who need to fill their tanks in order to do their jobs, buy their groceries, and drive their kids to school," said Senator Collins. "Proper maintenance of the Strategic Petroleum Reserve has the potential to serve as a mitigating influence on domestic prices and to reduce the ability of foreign nations to manipulate our markets."
The SPR is the United States'' emergency oil stockpile. The reserve stores about 570 million barrels of crude oil at four sites along the Gulf of Mexico.
The amendment that Senator Collins is co-sponsoring would require that the US Department of Energy develop procedures for obtaining oil for the SPR in a manner that maximizes supplies, minimizes costs, and is consistent with national security. It would focus increased attention on policies and procedures for filling the SPR, with particular regard to the effect they have on gas prices and oil markets.
Senator Collins has long supported using the SPR as a means of alleviating price spikes and other distortions in the oil and gas markets. Earlier this year Senator Collins sent a letter to President Bush requesting a release from the Northeast Home Heating Oil Reserve, which is a division of the SPR, to help ease rising home heating oil prices.