Our dependence upon oil, especially foreign oil, affects our economy and our national energy security.
Today, over half of the oil we use is imported (58%) and our dependence will increase as we use up domestic resources.
Most of the world's oil reserves are concentrated in the Middle East . About two-thirds are controlled by OPEC members.
Oil price shocks and price manipulation by OPEC have cost our economy dearly—about $1.9 trillion from 2004 to 2008—and each major price shock was followed by a recession.
Congress recently passed legislation to decrease our dependence on oil by increasing corporate average fuel economy (CAFE) standards on new cars and trucks to 35 miles per gallon by model year 2020.
The new standards could decrease light-duty vehicle fuel use by about 25 billion gallons by 2030. |