Corker Signs On To Gas Price Reduction Act

Tennessee Senator Bob Corker has signed onto a bill he hopes will drive down the cost of fuel.

The measure would open up two kinds of domestic oil fields that are currently closed: oil shale deposits in Western states, and deep sea drilling sites.

Democratic leaders have opposed such efforts, citing 68 million acres already under lease that oil companies haven’t developed.

Corker says that figure is misleading. Because leases have to be taken out before any geological surveys are conducted, Corker says companies can find there’s no oil at the sites they’ve acquired.

“When you hear the response as to how people have to go about accessing these areas you can understand why more needs to be made available. And with the way technology is now, in doing this exploration and with the farness, the distance, if you will, from our shore it really doesn’t make any sense that we aren’t utilizing it.”

The bill would also pump 100-million dollars into the development of plug-in electric vehicles and would increase the staff of the Commodity Futures Trading Commission-the watchdog agency that monitors oil contracts.

Corker says the legislation sidesteps several key GOP issues-such as drilling in Alaska-for a reason. He says it’s an attempt to craft a measure that Senate Democrats can support.

So far, the bill has 44 sponsors, all of whom are Republican.