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Floor Speech

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Mr. NICKEL. Mr. Chair, I rise in support of amendment No. 77.

Listen, the American people have been hit so hard by inflation and the rising cost of goods. In its current form, the Strategic Production Response Act deprives the Federal Government of one of the most important tools in its toolbox to fight inflation and to lower gas prices.

Mr. Chair, my amendment is simple. It would protect our ability to fight inflation by releasing oil from the Strategic Petroleum Reserve and would create an exception clause to ensure that the Secretary of Energy can draw down the reserve if a delay in drawdown would worsen inflation.

Releasing oil from the Strategic Petroleum Reserve in response to Russia's invasion of Ukraine was a critical strategy that helped lower gas prices for American families. This bill, without my amendment, could hurt working Americans struggling so hard with rising prices.

Mr. Chair, I urge my colleagues to support my amendment to protect American families from rising gas prices and runaway inflation.

Lowering gas prices is not a political tactic; it is a question of survival for many Americans.

Mr. Chair, I yield back the balance of my time.

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Mr. NICKEL. Mr. Chair, I demand a recorded vote.

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