Energy Net
House Republicans yesterday scuttled a bill that Democrats had hoped would help lower gasoline prices by forcing the Energy Department to release 70 million barrels of oil--about a three-day supply--from the national stockpile. Democrats promised that the action would have produced immediate relief at the pump, as was the case with similar releases in '91, 2000 and '05. The Strategic Petroleum Reserve now holds about 700 million barrels. Despite winning a clear 268-157 majority, the measure still lost. Democratic leaders had brought the proposal up for debate under rules requiring two-thirds vote to pass. But passing the bill by just a majority would have meant allowing Republicans to force a vote on new offshore drilling leases.
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