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Show U.S. Oil Reserves Levels Cite Need For Increased Domestic Oil Production WASHINGTON, D.C. - The House Energy and Air Quality Subcommittee has passed a resolution res-olution calling on the federal government to promptly buy more oil to increase the nation's critically-important Strategic Petroleum Reserve. House Resources Chairman James V. Hansen said this call underscores America's urgent need to produce more of her own oil. Hansen again called on the Senate to swiftly pass an energy bill that includes environmentally-sound oil development develop-ment in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge. Chairman Hansen said: "The House passed a comprehensive, practical practi-cal and environmentally-sound energy bill two months ago. Ever since, we've been waiting for the Senate to take action on a companion bill. Only last night, did the Senate Energy & Resources Committee announce a mark-up later this month. "In the wake of the Sept. 11 terrorists attacks, this delay is disappointing. Energy is no longer just a matter of national -commerce, it's a matter of national security. "Right now, our nation's oil reserves are down to 545 million mil-lion barrels. That's half the one-billion-barrel storage capacity we had when we created the Strategic Petroleum Reserve more than 25 years ago. "Our national security and continued national commerce literally depends on a steady supply of oil. With low reserves, we have to go shopping for oil on the world market at a time of serious instability in the Middle East and strained U.S. relations with some of the world's top oil producers. "I can't envision a set of circumstances cir-cumstances that more clearly underscores America's need to produce more of her own oil supply." He urged moving the Senate energy bill out of con mittee and sending it to the Senate floor this month emphasizing empha-sizing that the Senate committee heed the President's call to have a comprehensive energy package pack-age on his desk this fall." |