Malliotakis: Biden Decision to Drain Strategic Petroleum Reserve Irresponsible, Jeopardizes National Security

(WASHINGTON, DC) - Congresswoman Nicole Malliotakis (NY-11) today released the following statement regarding President Biden's announcement that the United States will release 180 million barrels of oil from the Strategic Petroleum Reserve (SPR) over the next six months in an attempt to ease rising gas prices:

"The Strategic Petroleum Reserve is a critical oil supply that should only be utilized when all other options to lower costs have been exhausted. The reality is, President Biden created this problem and caused gas prices to rise over one dollar prior to Russia's invasion of Ukraine when he reversed President Trump's energy policies, killed the Keystone XL Pipeline, and banned new oil and gas leases. The decision to drain our SPR is like putting a bandaid on an open wound - an irresponsible, temporary fix that leaves us vulnerable in the future if the SPR is not simultaneously replenished.

"The Administration's decision to pull from our SPR for the third time in six months only jeopardizes our national security and has depleted our stockpile by over 34 percent after he assumed office with a nearly full reserve. The best way for the Biden Administration to ease the financial burden on American families is to unleash our domestic production by immediately restarting the Keystone XL pipeline that would transport more than 800,000 barrels of oil every day from our neighbor and biggest trading partner, Canada, and approving the 4,600 pending permit applications to facilitate new production as soon as possible."