On the recordJune 14, 2018
In my home State of Rhode Island and all across America, people are working harder than ever just to get by. Wages are flat and costs continue to rise. In fact, just last month, gas prices hit a 3-year high. It is obscene. Working people have been getting ripped off at the pump for years. One of the biggest reasons is that countries in OPEC and other foreign oil cartels work together to inflate the cost of gas. Some folks think there is nothing we can do about this. That is why, last month, along with Congressman Steve Chabot, I introduced the No Oil Producing and Exporting Cartels Act, or NOPEC Act. This is a commonsense bill that will help bring down the cost of gas by making members of OPEC and other foreign oil cartels subject to U.S. antitrust laws and preventing them from price gouging. It prohibits those same companies from withholding their supply of oil in order to raise prices. Earlier this week, our bill was approved by the House Judiciary Committee. I look forward to this bill coming to the floor and its swift passage. It is long past time that we deliver some much-needed relief to working people in this country. ____________________
