Providing for Consideration of H.R. 4348, Surface Transportation Extension Act of 2012, Part II

Floor Speech

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Mr. WELCH. I thank the gentleman.

Unfortunately, this is another example of Congress failing the American people. It's failing our States. It's failing our communities.

First of all, how in the world can we expect transportation projects to be done on a short-term basis--90-day extensions? 4-month extensions? That just isn't possible to get from planning, to execution, to construction. It won't happen. Number two, how can we have a transportation bill where we don't fund mass transit? alternative transportation? That makes no sense whatsoever.

What has happened here is that the need to have a transportation bill for this whole country has been hijacked for political purposes. The Keystone pipeline is an example. Take whatever position you want on Keystone, but will the implementation of Keystone bring down gas prices, as is asserted? Will allowing drilling everywhere that the ``drill, baby, drill'' folks want to drill even lower gas prices?

A study of the Energy Information Administration said if we opened up all of the coastal waters--off Florida, off the east coast, off the west coast--and if we drilled on all of the public lands, that might add over time, which is about 10 years, 1 million barrels a day to the supply. That's in a world demand of 100 million barrels a day.

So the question is: What impact is that going to have on price? The best estimate they came up with was about 3 cents per gallon. That suggests when there is so much effort and so much political rhetoric about something that is so profoundly ineffective in giving relief at the pump to folks who need it, that it has a political agenda. Let's, instead, do things that would make a difference at the pump.

One, let's fully fund the Commodity Futures Trading Commission. Turn that into what it has historically been, which is a safeguard for consumers and a safeguard for businesses that need stable pricing in the commodities market. Instead, we are allowing it to become a casino for Wall Street speculation, which is probably adding about $20 on the price of a $100-barrel of oil, or 50 cents on a gallon of gas when you go to fill up. That doesn't need to be. Squeeze out the Wall Street speculation, and give a break to our consumers and businesses.

Two, allow the President in fighting this speculation to deploy the Strategic Petroleum Reserve, 800 million barrels of oil owned by the taxpayers. When that has been deployed by Presidents--two Republicans, two Democrats--it has been a shot across the bow to the speculators, and it has brought down prices by 8 percent to 33 percent.

The SPEAKER pro tempore. The time of the gentleman has expired.

Mr. POLIS. I yield the gentleman an additional 30 seconds.

Mr. WELCH. Three, let's commit ourselves to using American oil that is produced on American soil to be used in America. So, if there is going to be Keystone oil that is flowing through our States, why do we just want that to go to the export market when it will provide no benefit whatsoever to the American consumer?

Let's do the things we can to bring down the price. Let's tap the SPR. Let's strengthen the Commodity Futures Trading Commission, and let's use American oil on American soil.

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