Rep. Calvert Approves of the GAS Act

Rep. Calvert Approves of the GAS Act

WASHINGTON, DC - Today, Rep. Ken Calvert (R-Corona) voted to approve the Gasoline for America's Security (GAS) Act, which now must be considered by the Senate.

"We desperately need to increase our country's gas refinery capacity, which has not kept up with increases in demand," said Rep. Calvert. "One of the contributing factors to the high prices at the pump is our deficiency of refinery capacity."

For the first seven months of 2005, total capacity at operating refineries was 17 million barrels per day, while total United States demand averages nearly 21 million barrels per day. This growing gap is met by an increasing amount of imports of refined products from foreign sources. Refined petroleum product imports are expected to grow from 7.9 percent to 10.7 percent of total refined product by 2025.

"I have serious concerns about the fact that the U.S. is now relying more and more on other countries to supply us with refined gasoline in addition to our dependence to oil," continued Pre. Calvert. "Combined, the increased need to import gas and oil raises serious national security concerns on top of the fact that it is hurting Americans in their pocketbook."

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http://calvert.house.gov/pressreleases.asp?ARTICLE4024=10099