Tuesday, May 6, 2008

Price Controls Are Not The Solution To High Gas Prices

Paul Blames High Gas Prices On Congress, Federal Regulations
by John Pape

With gasoline prices at the $3.50 per gallon mark throughout Fort Bend County, an area congressman is putting the blame for soaring prices at the door of Congress itself.

In a statement released Monday, Congressman Ron Paul (R-Lake Jackson) said that those who are proposing federal price controls have forgotten failures of the past. Paul’s district includes portions of Fort Bend County, including the Cinco Ranch area.

“Some politicians claim that the way to reduce gas prices is by expanding the government’s power to regulate prices and control the supply of gasoline. For example, the House of Representatives has even passed legislation subjecting gas station owners to criminal penalties if they charge more than a federal bureaucrat deems appropriate,” Paul said. “Proponents of these measures must have forgotten the 1970s, when government controls on the oil industry resulted in gas lines and shortages. It was only after President Reagan lifted federal price controls that the gas lines disappeared.”

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