Senate GOP introduces bill ending SPR sales to China and religious liberty violators
Breanne Deppisch
Republicans on the Senate Environment and Natural Resources Committee, led by ranking member John Barrasso (R-WY), introduced legislation Tuesday that would prohibit the sale of oil from the emergency stockpile to China and other “hostile nations,” including those believed to be a threat to religious freedom.
The bill, the Secure Auction for Energy Reserves Act, or the SAFER Act, was introduced Tuesday by Barrasso and Sen. Susan Collins (R-ME). It would ban the sale of oil from the Strategic Petroleum Reserve to China and to state-owned companies known to purchase oil from Russia, Iran, or any other nation sanctioned by the United States.
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“China is profiting from President Biden’s political abuse of the Strategic Petroleum Reserve,” Barrasso said in a statement Tuesday. “Adversaries cannot be allowed to benefit from America’s security reserve.”
It is unclear whether the SAFER Act will be brought to the floor for a full vote Senate vote, though it would be unlikely to clear the Democratic-led chamber if it did.
President Joe Biden has ordered the sale of more than 250 million barrels of oil from the Strategic Petroleum Reserve since November 2021, draining the stockpile to its lowest point in more than 40 years.
The sales have also prompted concern about energy security and the country’s ability to respond to another supply disruption, such as a hurricane or other natural disaster.
The SAFER Act comes on the heels of a similar bill introduced by House Energy and Commerce Committee Chairwoman Cathy McMorris Rodgers (R-WA) earlier this month.
The Protecting America’s Strategic Petroleum Reserve from China Act, which cleared the chamber by a 331-97 vote, seeks to prohibit all direct or indirect sales of SPR oil to China.
“We shouldn’t hand the keys to our energy future over to the Chinese Communist Party,” Rodgers said after the House vote earlier this month.
Republicans have taken umbrage with Biden’s decision to sell 180 million barrels of oil from the stockpile last March, a decision they viewed as a largely politically motivated effort to lower gas prices ahead of the November midterm elections rather than a tool to offset supply disruption caused by Russia’s war in Ukraine.
They have also cited concerns about what they view as a lack of intent from the administration to begin refilling the reserves.
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Energy Secretary Jennifer Granholm said Monday that her agency will be able to refill the emergency oil stockpile without trouble despite a lack of interest in an earlier purchase attempt, which Granholm said did not meet the administration’s requirements for specification or price.
“I have no concerns that we will be able to refill and replenish the SPR and do it at a savings to taxpayers,” Granholm told reporters at a White House press briefing.