Lankford, Barrasso, Colleagues Push Back on Biden Tapping Strategic Petroleum Reserve except for US Energy Emergencies

WASHINGTON, DC – Senator James Lankford (R-OK), who serves on the Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee, joined Senator John Barrasso (R-WY), Ranking Member of the Committee, along with Senators Jim Risch (R-ID), Mike Lee (R-UT), Steve Daines (R-MT), Lisa Murkowski (R-AK), John Hoeven (R-ND), Bill Cassidy (R-LA), Cindy Hyde-Smith (R-MS), Roger Marshall (R-KS), and Kevin Cramer (R-ND) to introduce the Strategic Production Response (SPR) Act to prioritize American energy production. The SPR Act would prohibit the Secretary of the Department of Energy from tapping the SPR for anything other than a severe US energy supply interruption until the Secretary of the Department of Interior issues a plan to increase American oil and gas production on federal lands and waters. 

“It’s ridiculous that Biden would try to ‘cancel’ traditional energy production here at home and then propose using our emergency reserves of oil,” said Lankford. “We should not pull oil out of the public Strategic Petroleum Reserve without also increasing energy production on public lands. We should ensure the federal government can’t just beg OPEC and others for foreign oil while holding back domestic energy production. This is a yet another example of Biden putting his climate-change agenda over American jobs and energy independence. I will continue to stand against it.”

“America is stronger and safer when we are energy independent,” said Barrasso. “The Biden administration agenda is to choke off energy development on federal land. Our legislation will prevent President Biden from raiding the SPR for political purposes without boosting American oil production. It’s time to work together to lower prices for Wyoming families, unleash American energy, and strengthen our national security.” 

Lankford remains a top voice in the Senate for American energy independence. Last year, Lankford joined Senator Ted Cruz (R-TX) to introduce the No Emergency Crude Oil for Foreign Adversaries Act to ensure that reserves sold from the Strategic Petroleum Reserve (SPR) are not exported to adversarial nations like China.

Lankford questioned Energy Secretary Granholm to confront the Administration on their energy policies that raise the price of everything. Lankford introduced the Energy Regulations Certainty Act to help ensure President Biden’s overreaching regulations don’t continue to hinder our already stifled US energy. Lankford sent two letters to President Biden, urging him to restore America’s energy dominance and to end his failing energy policies that are emboldening Putin. Lankford stood up to FERC for its ongoing push to stifle and even stop US energy production because of Biden’s agenda that is lock-step with climate-change extremists.

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