Posted on 11/17/2014 5:20:35 AM PST by thackney
The U.S. government has banned oil exports since the energy crisis of the 1970s, but that could change next year as Republicans take control of Congress and are backed by new studies showing that repeal of the ban would actually lower gasoline prices and be a surprising boon to consumers.
Sen. Lisa Murkowski, Alaska Republican and the expected new chairwoman of the Senate Committee on Energy and Natural Resources, has been the leading proponent in Congress for ending the ban, arguing that a sea change in the way oil and gas prices are determined in global markets has turned it into a relic of a past era of fuel scarcity, one that is increasingly harming the outlook for the nation’s booming shale oil industry.
Ms. Murkowski cites studies by the General Accountability Office and private firms that found lifting the ban would do the opposite of what politicians and consumers have always expected. Rather than raising gas prices as more U.S. oil is sent to global markets, it would drive pump prices down thanks to a recent change in the way gas prices are set.
“The price American drivers pay for gasoline at their local station is linked to the price of oil set by the global market,” she noted recently. “Exporting U.S. oil to our friends and allies will not raise gasoline prices here at home and should, in fact, help drive down prices” by lowering the global price for oil.
Ms. Murkowski’s argument is likely to get backing soon from an authoritative source: The Energy Information Administration is due to publish a definitive report on the subject, and is expected to largely agree with private assessments that the prices for gasoline, diesel and jet fuel would go down or be little changed by a...resumption of U.S. crude exports.
(Excerpt) Read more at washingtontimes.com ...
While they are at it, defund the department of energy.
We knew it about Alaskan oil 40 years ago. Sending it only to American ports that were not designed for it(west coast) only on American ships. Would have made more sense shipping it to alaska.
Lets not forget the sugar import tariff.
Wrong! Repealing the oil export ban would almost certainly raise gas prices here.
And we need to restore the general import tariffs and rebuild our industries and put our people back to work.
Wrong! Repealing the oil export ban would almost certainly raise gas prices here.
And we need to restore the general import tariffs and rebuild our industries and put our people back to work.
Would that be a flat percentage applied to all imports of all material/equipment?
There are many many ways you could implement it. A flat percentage would work and would be the easiest to implement it.
But you could also target particular desired industries/technologies with heavier imports. Or lower tariffs on industries, that we don't want. You have to be careful with targeted imports. For example, targeting sugar but not products made of sugar have hurt US candy manufacturers.
Please NO! The federal government should not be picking the winners and losers of economic policy.
For example, targeting sugar but not products made of sugar have hurt US candy manufacturers.
As would oil imports, then you carry out to all the different productions, transportation fuels, chemical feedstocks, etc.
We export some refinery products and import others. We would end up losing jobs in the long run. Causing us to be more expensive than other nations is a really bad idea.
Letting a quarter of our workforce sit idle, when we have the biggest consumer market and huge trade deficits is a far worse idea.
Letting a quarter of our workforce sit idle, when we have the biggest consumer market and huge trade deficits is a far worse idea.
You’re paying double for those cheap imports now. You pay when you buy the import and you pay again when you support the 120 million Americans on food stamps.
Talk about making us more expensive than other nations.
And raising our prices would help?
More taxes is not the solution.
Lower individual and corporate taxes by an amount equal to the revenue raised by the tariffs.
That would leave people more money to spend at home, even as we put people back to work.
A nice benefit of this is that as people go back to work and drop off of government benefits, is that you automatically reduce government.
Nothing promotes big government more than those so-called free traders that would off-shore all our industries and American jobs to nations like China.
Lower individual and corporate taxes by an amount equal to the revenue raised by the tariffs.
That would leave people more money to spend at home, even as we put people back to work.
A nice benefit of this is that as people go back to work and drop off of government benefits, is that you automatically reduce government.
Nothing promotes big government more than those so-called free traders that would off-shore all our industries and American jobs to nations like China.
I've seen how high tarriffs slow domestic growth like in Brazil.
It is a bad idea.
The US can compete if the Federal Government quits putting up regulation and tax roadblocks. We need less involvement in our economic structure by the feds, not more.
Here's what Trading Economics says about Brazil..
"Brazil is the seventh largest economy in the world and the largest in Latin America. In recent years, the country has been one of the fastest-growing economies in the world primarily due to its export potential. The country’s trade is driven by its extensive natural resources and diverse agricultural and manufacturing production. Also, rising domestic demand, increasingly skilled workforce along with scientific and technological development, have attracted foreign direct investment. However, bureaucracy, corruption and weak infrastructure remain the biggest obstacles to economic development. This page provides - Brazil GDP Growth Rate - actual values, historical data, forecast, chart, statistics, economic calendar and news. Content for - Brazil GDP Growth Rate - was last refreshed on Monday, November 17, 2014. "
And yet, which economy today would you call stronger?
Trading Economics says about Brazil..
That's nice. I've been part of trying to get new major refineries built in Brazil. Their import taxation is greatly slowing them down.
China is stronger than they were, and the U.S. is weaker than we were.
The U.S. has lost a lot of manufacturing that we are now dependent on other nations for. That dependency is not a good thing. We have the highest rate of unemployment since the Great Depression. Real wages have been stagnated for decades, ever since we lowered the import tariffs.
PetroChem is one area of manufacturing that is growing in the US. Raising the price of the feedstock is not going to help that area of the economy.
We are likely not going to agree on this. I don’t see raising prices for Americans over the price paid by other nations a way to make us stronger.
We get foreign capital investment in this country. Not just foreign companies but individuals as well that buy US stocks. Making us less competitive will cost us jobs.
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