-
How Obama Can Deal With Rising Gas Prices
Tweet Share on Facebook February 29, 2012 Comment (2)Pete Sepp is executive vice president of the National Taxpayers Union.
Fuel price increases are causing a flurry of activity among federal policymakers, who are scrambling to release statements and criticisms designed to diffuse and deflect voter anger. As Congress and the president go through the motions to appear as if they're "doing something" to address this recurring concern, a more prudent use of time might be to examine the causes of—and remedies for—high U.S. energy prices.
-
The Real Cost of Obama's Regulatory Abuse
Tweet Share on Facebook February 24, 2012 Comment (1)Daniel Kish is the senior vice president for policy at the Institute for Energy Research.
The real story of how regulatory abuse harms entire communities in profound ways can be observed in the story of Craig, Colo. The small western town of Craig is home to a baseload power plant that provides 1,311 megawatts of coal-fired power to an area covering three states. Much of the town of Craig is employed either at the plant or at the surface mine directly adjacent to it.
-
A Rapid Hike in Gas Prices Is Coming to a Pump Near You
Tweet Share on Facebook February 22, 2012 Comment (2)Patrick DeHaan is a senior analyst at gasbuddy.com.
The largest refinery in Washington state caught fire late last week, a stark reminder of the possibilities that can play out as maintenance season approaches, and the shockwaves that such events can have on gasoline prices.
-
How the Dodd-Frank Act Harms the U.S. Energy Industry
Tweet Share on Facebook February 22, 2012 CommentPete Sepp is executive vice president of the National Taxpayers Union.
Though many in Washington would deny it, taxing, spending, and borrowing are not the only ways federal policies can impact taxpayers and our economy. Regulating has become an expensive enterprise on its own. The Competitive Enterprise Institute's latest Ten Thousand Commandments Report has compiled research estimating the total annual cost of federal regulations to taxpayers and the private sector exceeds $1.8 trillion.
-
The Case Against Fracking Is Anecdotal and Overstated
Tweet Share on Facebook February 21, 2012 Comment (5)Michael Lynch is the president and director of global petroleum service at Strategic Energy & Economic Research.
To continue the discussion on risk in the petroleum industry, the rather heated debate over the safety of hydraulic fracturing of shale has seen moratoriums imposed, regulations proposed, and regulators imposed on. Fears that the mix of chemicals used have contaminated ground water and that natural gas (methane) has leaked into families' and communities' water supplies are widespread, with one popular documentary, Gasland, highlighting this in dramatic, cinematic detail.
-
Biofuel Subsidies Are a Waste of Taxpayer Money
Tweet Share on Facebook February 16, 2012 Comment (5)Tom Pyle is the president of the Institute for Energy Research
In the hope of coming to an agreement on a 2012 Farm Bill this spring, the Senate Agriculture Committee held the first of four hearings on Wednesday to discuss the future of our country's agricultural policy. This week's inaugural hearing, titled "Energy and Economic Growth for America," focused specifically on the prospect of continuing the wasteful alternative energy subsidies of the previous Farm Bill.
-
East Coast Refineries Key to Managing Rising Gas Prices
Tweet Share on Facebook February 15, 2012 CommentGregg Laskoski is a senior petroleum analyst for GasBuddy.com.
When a confluence of events appears to be working against us it becomes that much more important to recognize early those we cannot control and those we might be able to successfully manage.
-
Obama Over-Taxes Oil, Gas to Subsidize Failing 'Alternatives'
Tweet Share on Facebook February 14, 2012 Comment (3)Pete Sepp is executive vice president of the National Taxpayers Union.
President Obama released his Fiscal Year 2013 budget proposal Monday, with an opening "bid" (i.e., a pledge on current and future taxpayer dollars) of $3.8 trillion. Of course, the administration covers a lot of departments and agencies in this fiscal pitch to Congress. Yet, his latest blueprint does contain the seeds for big spending during a potential second term on Pennsylvania Avenue. Despite a dip in nonentitlement expenditures between now and 2015, overall the annual federal budget will keep growing, to more than $4.5 trillion when Fiscal Year 2017 would begin during the final months of his presidency.
-
Time to Dial Back Charges of Being 'Anti-Science'
Tweet Share on Facebook February 13, 2012 Comment (10)Michael Lynch is the president and director of global petroleum service at Strategic Energy & Economic Research.
Science seems more in the public debate than ever, and many are accused of being "anti-science," but the term is tossed around far too cavalierly. Certainly, not believing in evolution qualifies one as being obtuse, but that represents only a fraction of those to whom the label is attached.
-
Closing Off Shale Oil Sources Hurts U.S. Energy Security
Tweet Share on Facebook February 9, 2012 Comment (2)Daniel Kish is the senior vice president for policy at the Institute for Energy Research.
In his State of the Union speech two short weeks ago, President Obama assured the American people that he was on the side of domestic energy production—but already those promises are coming unraveled in a big way.
