President Joe Biden announced the release of a million barrels of gasoline from government reserves on Tuesday, stating it would “lower prices at the pump when folks need it the most.”
However, the amount being released is so small that it won’t impact gas prices, and the sell-off was mandated by Congress this March, unrelated to efforts to lower gas prices.
After Hurricane Sandy in 2012, Congress established the Northeast Gasoline Supply Reserve, storing 1 million barrels of gasoline between New York and Maine. This reserve is different from the Strategic Petroleum Reserve, created in 1975 following the 1973 energy crisis, which has a maximum capacity of 714 million barrels but currently holds only 367 million barrels.
This March, Congress passed a spending bill instructing Biden to liquidate the Northeast Gasoline Supply Reserve and end the program. Biden’s current actions are a result of this mandate, not a strategic decision on oil supply management.
Selling off all 1 million barrels of the Northeast Reserve in 100,000 barrel increments from now until July 4 will not affect gas prices. Americans use an average of 9 million barrels of gasoline daily.
While it was wise of Congress to end the Northeast Gasoline Supply Reserve and prudent of Biden to follow the law, it is misleading for Biden to portray this as a strategic decision.
If only Biden would also execute the nation’s immigration laws faithfully, we’d be in better shape.
