On President Joe Biden’s first day in office, he, unfortunately, kept his campaign promise and stopped the Keystone XL Pipeline.
In January 2021, our state’s average gas price was $2.20. Today, it is $5.19 a gallon. Now Biden is calling on Congress to suspend the federal gas tax for three months, reducing the price of gasoline by a measly 18 cents.
This last-ditch effort to reduce the cost of gasoline for working families is a disaster and an issue lawmakers have foreseen since this administration took office. Not only will this effort contribute to rising inflation, making gas and other essential products more expensive in the coming months, it puts a Band-Aid on the problem instead of focusing on the real solution: increasing U.S. drilling and oil production.
With Biden’s gas tax “solution,” the federal government will be forced to spend more money to help cover the loss, making life increasingly more difficult and costly for Utah families. Americans should not have to pay the price for this lack of leadership and unsustainable action.
I am a supporter of renewable energy. However, we don’t need to destroy our economy and increase fuel prices while transitioning to renewable energy sources. Automobile companies are manufacturing electric vehicles, and in Utah, we are building the world’s largest clean hydrogen storage facility, proving our commitment to renewable energy sources.
However, it is imperative that we make smart, strategic decisions that do not cripple our economy and put livelihoods at risk.
Even President Barack Obama believed a gas tax holiday was a “gimmick,” a politically popular plan that “will save you pennies a day.” This false relief will not fix the short supply driving prices, which are up more than 135% since January 2021.
We are witnessing a repeating pattern that occurred in the ’70s, ’80s and 2008. Our nation is quickly barreling toward a recession, and it requires swift action to get ahead of it. Utahns and Americans are tired of hearing the administration is doing everything it can to help when they are doing everything except what will actually provide real relief to Americans.
Here are a few decisive actions President Biden should take immediately:
- Restart the Keystone XL Pipeline.
- Eliminate barriers to increasing U.S. domestic oil and gas production.
- Make it clear to American companies that oil is a welcome and needed industry on our nation’s soil.
To reduce the cost of gasoline, we need to increase oil production.
However, instead of turning to other countries to increase production, we need to start producing it ourselves. States, including Utah, have ample natural resources, and we need to be able to utilize the energy readily available. We can responsibly and cleanly produce oil that will actually lower gas prices without federal government subsidies if the Biden administration gets out of the way.
The blame the Biden administration places on the industry for the lack of oil is not only deplorable but outright irresponsible.
This administration has severely limited the oil industry production in our country, making it nearly impossible for companies to finance or build infrastructure to produce the oil necessary to sustain our nation. The back and forth between administrations to appease extreme environmentalists with drastic measures and then restore oil production needs to stop.
Utah is the best-managed state in the nation because lawmakers deliberate and evaluate the short- and long-term impacts of policy decisions. D.C. should take note of Utah’s approach and start following our lead.
We cannot let out-of-control spending and federal government inflation continue to destroy our quality of life. It is time we take responsibility and use the oil in our own backyard to get America out of this self-inflicted crisis.
J. Stuart Adams is president of the Utah Senate.