JEFFERSON CITY – Rep. Lyle Rowland, R-Cedarcreek, filed HCR 53 Wednesday urging the federal government to seek long-term and short-term solutions to the rising fuel costs.
Rowland said that while states have no authority over the average cost of gasoline, the federal government has many different opportunities to alleviate the increasing burden on Missouri citizens.
“Everyone is affected by high gas prices, even if they don’t drive,” said Rowland. “Prices of goods such as food rise when the cost of transportation increases. Consumers are reminded of our tough economic situation every time the price changes.”
HCR 53 states the three main causes of the increase in gas prices are the cost of crude oil, the transparency of energy markets and the federal regulations. The resolution recognizes the federal government has no authority over the price of crude oil or the transparency in energy markets but the federal government could alter their regulations in order to lower the price of gasoline.
The concurrent resolution maintains long-term strategies include increasing the production capacity of refineries as well as offshore drilling. Demands on the production system, such as the Clean Air Act regulations, have stopped construction of new refineries, causing the gas prices to escalate. Decreasing these regulations would be the first step to decreasing the nation’s dependence on foreign oil.
However, to relieve the burden in the upcoming summer months, the resolution proposes the Environmental Protection Agency temporarily defer clean-fuel requirements and offer only a few fuel choices instead of the several fuel blends, which have raised the cost of refining and distribution.
HCR 53 awaits assignment to a committee.
