www.gogreenbay.com By Noelle Straub News-Chronicle

WASHINGTON - Recent surges in the price of gasoline in parts of the Midwest prompted Sens. Herb Kohl, D-Wis., and Mike DeWine, R-Ohio, to send a letter to the chairman of the Federal Trade Commission urging careful monitoring of the situation.

While acknowledging that the causes of the increase are as yet unknown, the senators wrote that "it is critically important to ensure that they are not caused by price-fixing or price gouging by oil companies, gas stations or others within the gasoline supply chain."

The letter cited Milwaukee as an example, where the price of regular unleaded gasoline rose to an average of $1.76 per gallon last week, an increase of more than 25 cents per gallon over the last month.

Gas prices have jumped to more than $2 a gallon in some areas of the country.

Experts say the rising gas prices around the nation are due to the looming threat of war with Iraq, strikes by oil workers in Venezuela and Nigeria, and low stockpiles of crude oil in the United States.

But the Midwest has experienced spikes in gas prices the past two springs.

In May of 2001 nearly the entire Wisconsin congressional delegation sent a letter to the Department of Energy and the Environmental Protection Agency and met with EPA Chief Christine Todd Whitman to discuss the problem.

DeWine and Kohl, the chairman and ranking Democrat on the Senate Judiciary Antitrust Subcommittee, said they hope their letter will prompt the FTC to monitor the issue closely this year.

Republicans unveil session agenda Congress did not meet last week because of the Presidents' Day recess. But just before leaving town, the Senate Republican leadership unveiled their legislative agenda for the rest of the session.

Majority Leader Bill Frist, R-Tenn., announced that a tax cut package, Medicare reform with a prescription drug benefit for seniors and educational reforms topped the list of priorities.

GOP leaders also vowed to bring up legislation to encourage energy development, ban what opponents call partial birth abortions, limit medical malpractice awards, address the global AIDS crisis and enact stricter work requirements for welfare recipients.

Some bills, like funding to combat AIDS, are expected to pass quickly. But Republicans will face fierce resistance from Democrats on some issues, like drilling for oil in the arctic, while divisions remain within the GOP ranks over the exact details of several of the measures.

Senate Democrats announced their top 12 bills on Jan. 7, the first day of the session.

The top three are a homeland security act focused on first responders, rail and port security and chemical security, among other items; a Medicare prescription drug benefit; and a call to fully fund the No Child Left Behind Act.

Democrats' other priorities include pension protection, a global climate bill and a minimum wage increase.

Republicans delayed introducing their priorities until after President Bush gave his State of the Union address on Jan. 28. Frist also needed time to develop his agenda, having taken over the title of majority leader from Sen. Trent Lott, R-Miss., just before Christmas.

The Senate returns to work this week, but before it can move to any of these measures, a fight over one of Bush's judicial nominees must first be resolved.

That issue has tied up the Senate for more than a week, and may be a preview of the contentious battles to come in the remainder of the session.

www.tribune-democrat.com By JEFF McCREADY, TRIBUNE-DEMOCRAT BUSINESS WRITER February 24, 2003

A gasoline barge that exploded Friday is the latest development that could send the price of gasoline even higher. The explosion in New York that killed two and injured one critically occurred on a barge containing about 4 million gallons of unleaded gasoline. The fire sent the future cost of petroleum skyrocketing. In a little more than a month, the nationwide price of a gallon of self-service unleaded gasoline has jumped 13.4 cents a gallon, American Automobile Association said. The average price of a gallon of self-service unleaded at four stations in Cambria, Somerset and Bedford counties surveyed by The Tribune-Democrat on Friday was $1.61. “You just have to grin and bear it,” said Bill Blasko of Johnstown as he pumped gas Saturday at Sheetz, 1757 Goucher St. in Lower Yoder Township. The hike has hit him hard because he travels in his job as a real estate appraiser. Tonya Spada of Southmont said she tries to do more walking as a way of conserving gas. She was interviewed Saturday outside the First National Bank of Pennsylvania office near Minno Drive in Lower Yoder. Experts said no one thing – be it fear of a terrorist attack or uncertainty about a war with Iraq – accounts for the dramatic increase in the price of a gallon of gasoline. While it is difficult to say whether the price will go up, go down or stabilize, the bad news is that the cost of oil is nearing record levels not seen since the 1990s. “It’s just the uncertainty in the markets,” said Dan McMahon, executive vice president of operations for Sheetz Inc., Altoona, a multi-state convenience store chain that sells gasoline. “I don’t think it is as much supply and demand as a fear issue.” He said the price has leveled off a bit during the past two weeks, “but it has stabilized high.” And the harsh winter has not helped the situation, McMahon said. “You just can’t predict what is going to happen,” said Bill Bush, a spokesman for American Petroleum Institute, a Washington trade organization representing oil and gasoline dealers. Keys to controlling fuel bills, AAA said, are to shop around for the best price, look for ways to cut down on fuel consumption and keep vehicles properly maintained so as to increase fuel economy. Gasoline station operators such as Ed Haberkorn said they never know what the price will be until that next load arrives. Haberkorn, owner of Westmont Mobil, 1735 Goucher St., said Friday his price has stayed the same during the past week. “While it is true the continuing loss of oil and gasoline exports from Venezuela and recent cold weather in much of the nation have affected fuel inventories, nothing fully justifies the dramatic increase in gasoline prices experienced across the United States in the last month,” AAA said in a release last week. U.S. oil imports from Venezuela all but disappeared after a nationwide strike began in December, but indications are that things are starting to return to normal. Some analysts predict a decline in crude oil prices if a war brings about no major supply disruptions in the Middle East and Venezuelan oil output continues to rise. March contracts for crude rose to $37.16 a barrel at the middle of last week. Any drop in the price per barrel translates into a drop in the price at the pump. No matter what the price someone will complain, Haberkorn said. “Some people complain, some take it in stride,” he said. Haberkorn said the price he pays has not gone up in the past couple of loads. “People have to understand that we went into the beginning of the year with very low stocks,” Lawrence Goldstein, president of New York-based Petroleum Industry Research Foundation, told The Associated Press last week. He said crude oil prices have jumped 19 percent because of the fear of war, an increase that also has affected the price of heating oil and diesel fuel. A gallon of diesel averages $1.70 or 50 cents higher than a year ago while gasoline averages $1.66 a gallon, up 54 cents from a year ago, the federal Department of Energy said. AAA said the highest recorded nationwide price for regular unleaded was $1.72 a gallon on May 15. In mid-January the nationwide AAA average price was $1.47.

How to save:

• Look for price wars. Prices often vary by 3 cents per gallon at stations just blocks apart. Studies show no real difference in gas mileage among different brands.
• Check the owner's manual to see what grade of fuel is recommended for your car. You may be able to safely buy regular unleaded as opposed to premium grades. With a difference of 9 to 17 cents per gallon, that can equal a few hundred dollars per year.
• Run errands all at once rather than making multiple trips.
• Carpool.
• Slow down. For every 5 mph above 60 you drive, the reduced efficiency is the equivalent of adding 10 cents to your per-gallon cost.
• Check your tire pressure. Without enough air, a tire's increased resistance forces the engine to work harder. That can rob you of up to 2 miles per gallon.

Sources: AAA, Consumer Reports, Elkins Chevrolet in Marlton.

www.thedailyjournal.com Monday, February 24, 2003 By GISELLE SOTELO Staff Writer; gsotelo@thedailyjournal.com

VINELAND --

Penny-wise commuters are employing every trick in the book these days to offset the recent surge in gas prices.

"It's killing me," said Greg Jenkins, a Vineland carpenter who relies on his Dodge Ram for traveling about two hours a day on the job.

The average retail price for a gallon of regular unleaded has risen about 22 cents nationwide since the beginning of the year.

The price is hovering around $1.50 at most local gas stations, up 18 percent from an average of $1.27 earlier this winter.

The looming war with Iraq and a protracted refinery strike in Venezuela -- a major U.S. supplier of petroleum -- are cited as key factors behind the price spike. But some suggest refiners and retailers may be taking advantage of a pending war to unjustifiably boost prices.

"I feel like I'm being cheated," said Jenkins, 42. "Somebody's making a lot of money on the situation in this country."

Mustafa Ozturk, co-owner of the U.S. Petroleum station on Landis Avenue in Vineland, insists he isn't that "somebody."

"We don't have any control over the prices," Ozturk said.

He points to his sales as proof.

When Ozturk sold regular unleaded for $1.09 a gallon a few months back, his station sold 3,300 to 3,400 gallons per day.

Now that prices have climbed to $1.49 a gallon, sales have slowed to about 2,900 gallons a day.

"When the price goes up, business goes down because people stop driving their cars," Ozturk said. "It's like cigarettes. When the price of cigarettes goes up, people stop smoking."

For most, abandoning their primary source of transportation is not an option.

Yet commuters are refusing to idly stand by. They're actively taking measures that would fend off blows to their wallet.

"I try not to use the car too much," said Juan Cruz, 22, of Vineland. "If I have to work, I'll get a ride. If I have to pick up something, I'll go to the nearest store. I'll do anything."

Amy Moats, 57, of Pittsgrove is learning to employ various cost-saving methods, as well.

Moats, a mother of two, drives a minivan. It costs her $30 to fill 'er up, about $10 more than late last fall.

That's why she's tag-teaming with others.

On her way to drop off her children at a skating party, she had already determined that another mother would bring her children back home.

Moats also now runs errands on the way home rather than doing them during her lunch hour like she used to.

"I'll do things on my way home as I pass it," Moats said. "That way I can avoid more trips."

www.kolotv.com by The Associated Press

CAMARILLO, California (AP) -- Gas prices rose $0.07 per gallon over the past two weeks pushing pump prices to near record levels, but the upward pressure on prices may be easing, an industry analyst said Sunday.

The average weighted price for gas nationwide, including all grades and taxes, was approximately $1.70 per gallon Friday, according to the Lundberg Survey of 8,000 stations nationwide. That price is within 7 cents of $1.77, the all-time high recorded by the survey on May 18, 2001.

Gasoline cost about $1.63 a gallon on February 7, the date of the last Lundberg Survey, an increase of 11 cents over the previous two-week survey.  The American Automobile Association says the average price in Nevada as of Friday was $1.79 per gallon.

"The pace of gas prices has already slowed," Trilby Lundberg said. "The other indicators show a possible decrease in prices."

Increased production in Venezuela, the approach of warmer weather, and the reopening of various U.S. refineries that had been idled for annual maintenance should help slow or end the price spiral, Lundberg said.

Crude oil prices are also up due to fears of a war with Iraq, but if the U.S. goes to war, or if the crisis is resolved, that oil bubble could burst. Prices rose 30 cents a gallon in 1990 after Iraq invaded Kuwait, and then dropped 30 cents in 1991 following the Persian Gulf War, Lundberg said.

"The war premium, like a bubble, could burst and crude oil prices will fall," Lundberg said.

The national weighted average price of gasoline, including taxes, at self-serve pumps Friday was about $1.67 per gallon for regular, $1.76 for mid-grade and $1.85 for premium.