Biden urges investigation into ‘illegal activity’ that may be causing spike in gas prices – By Michael Collins & Rebecca Morin (USA Today) / Aug 11 2021
- Biden calls for probe into possible ‘illegal activity’ that may be causing spike in gas prices.
- Gas prices have risen over past few months even as per-barrel cost of oil has dropped.
- AAA projects gas prices will stay above $3 per gallon for the rest of the summer.
WASHINGTON – President Joe Biden said Wednesday his administration is taking steps to crack down on illegal activity that might be contributing to a rise in gas prices.
Biden announced that the National Economic Council has asked the Federal Trade Commission to use “every available tool” to monitor the U.S. gasoline market and look for any illegal activity that might be causing gas prices to jump while the cost of a barrel of oil is going down.
“That’s not what you’d expect in a competitive market,” Biden said from the White House. “I want to make sure that nothing stands in the way of oil price declines leading to lower prices for consumers.”
The administration’s actions come as gas prices have jumped more than energy prices over the past year. The price of gas has jumped 42%, while energy has risen 24%, according to the Labor Department. The average gas price in January was $2.326, almost a dollar less than what the average gas price was last month.
