Economics
White House Faces Rising Pressure as Gasoline Shortages Grow
- Jones Act waiver being considered as gas stations run dry
- Colonial Pipeline shutdown has already led to trucking waiver
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The Biden administration moved Tuesday to ease gasoline shortages caused by a ransomware attack on the nation’s largest pipeline network, as concerns grew that spiking fuel prices and supply disruptions could hinder travel while the nation emerges from the coronavirus pandemic.
The Environmental Protection Agency waived gasoline volatility requirements across 12 states and Washington, D.C., to help bring more fuel to areas normally well supplied by the Colonial Pipeline. The Department of Transportation also announced initial steps that could permit foreign tankers to transport gasoline and diesel to East Coast ports, despite 101-year-old Jones Act mandates to use American vessels.