IV 
108TH CONGRESS 
2D SESSION 
H. RES. 611
Expressing the sense of the House of Representatives that the President 
should immediately communicate to the members of the Organization 
of Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) cartel and non-OPEC coun-
tries that participate in the cartel of crude oil producing countries the 
position of the United States that urgent action must be taken to 
increase world crude oil supplies so as to achieve stable crude oil prices, 
and for other purposes. 
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 
APRIL 28, 2004
Mr. BISHOP of New York (for himself, Ms. SCHAKOWSKY, and Mr. BROWN 
of Ohio) submitted the following resolution; which was referred to the 
Committee on Energy and Commerce, and in addition to the Committee 
on International Relations, for a period to be subsequently determined by 
the Speaker, in each case for consideration of such provisions as fall with-
in the jurisdiction of the committee concerned 
RESOLUTION 
Expressing the sense of the House of Representatives that 
the President should immediately communicate to the 
members of the Organization of Petroleum Exporting 
Countries (OPEC) cartel and non-OPEC countries that 
participate in the cartel of crude oil producing countries 
the position of the United States that urgent action 
must be taken to increase world crude oil supplies so 
as to achieve stable crude oil prices, and for other pur-
poses.
•HRES 611 IH 
Whereas the United States currently imports the majority of 
its crude oil; 
Whereas ensuring access to and stable prices for imported 
crude oil for the United States and major allies and trad-
ing partners of the United States is a continuing critical 
objective of United States foreign and economic policy for 
the foreseeable future; 
Whereas the 11 countries that make up the Organization of 
Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) produce 40 per-
cent of the world’s crude oil and control three-quarters 
of proven reserves, including much of the spare produc-
tion capacity; 
Whereas in February 2004, OPEC instituted cuts in excess 
crude oil production and lowered its output quotas for a 
combined cut of 2.5 million barrels a day, which has re-
sulted in dramatic increases in crude oil prices; 
Whereas in February 2004, crude oil prices were $28 per 
barrel and have steadily risen since then, exceeding $38 
per barrel in March 2004, the highest prices in 13 years; 
Whereas crude oil prices remain at $37 per barrel, well above 
the $22 to $28 per barrel range that OPEC has identi-
fied as an objective to maintain price stability; 
Whereas the increase in crude oil prices has translated into 
higher prices for gasoline and other refined petroleum 
products; in the case of gasoline, the increases in crude 
oil prices already have resulted in a pass-through of cost 
increases at the pump to an average national price of 
$1.80 per gallon as of the end of April 2004; 
Whereas the Energy Information Administration of the De-
partment of Energy has determined that the President’s 
energy bill will not reduce energy prices or reduce Amer-
•HRES 611 IH 
ica’s dependence on imported oil, finding that ‘‘the im-
pact of the CEB [Conference Energy Bill] provisions 
analyzed in this report on total primary energy consump-
tion is small’’ and that ‘‘On a fuel specific basis, changes 
to production, consumption, imports, and prices are neg-
ligible.’’; 
Whereas the Administration has not acted in a transparent 
manner with regard to energy policy and instead has met 
privately with energy industry lobbyists in crafting Ad-
ministration energy proposals and resisted efforts by 
Congress and the public to obtain information about 
what went on in these closed meetings; 
Whereas the Administration has met with a top Saudi official 
who, according to the report of a prominent journalist, 
indicated the Saudi Government could increase produc-
tion during the period before the election so that the 
prices would decrease significantly; 
Whereas increases in the price of crude oil result in increases 
in prices paid by United States consumers for refined pe-
troleum products, including home heating oil, gasoline, 
and diesel fuel; and 
Whereas increases in the costs of refined petroleum products 
have a negative effect on many Americans, including the 
elderly and individuals of low income (whose home heat-
ing oil costs have doubled in the last year), families who 
must pay higher prices at the gas station, farmers (al-
ready hurt by low commodity prices, trying to factor in-
creased costs into their budgets in preparation for the 
growing season), truckers (who face an almost 13-year 
high in diesel fuel prices), and manufacturers and retail-
ers (who must factor in increased production and trans-
•HRES 611 IH 
portation costs into the final price of their goods): Now, 
therefore, be it
Resolved, That it is the sense of the House of Rep-
resentatives that—
(1) the President and Congress should take 
both a short-term and a long-term approach to re-
ducing and stabilizing crude oil prices as well as re-
ducing dependence on foreign sources of energy; 
(2) to address the problem in the short-term, 
the President should communicate immediately to 
the members of the Organization of Petroleum Ex-
porting Countries (OPEC) cartel and non-OPEC 
countries that participate in the cartel of crude oil 
producing countries that—
(A) the United States seeks to maintain 
strong relations with crude oil producers around 
the world while promoting international efforts 
to remove barriers to energy trade and invest-
ment and increased access for United States 
energy firms around the world; 
(B) the United States believes that re-
stricting supply in a market that is in demand 
for additional crude oil does serious damage to 
the efforts that OPEC members have made to 
demonstrate that they represent a reliable 
source of crude oil supply;
•HRES 611 IH 
(C) the United States believes that stable 
crude oil prices and supplies are essential for 
strong economic growth throughout the world; 
(D) the United States seeks an immediate 
increase in the OPEC crude oil production 
quotas; and 
(E) the United States will temporarily sus-
pend further purchases of crude oil for the 
Strategic Petroleum Reserve, thereby freeing up 
additional supply for the marketplace; 
(3) the actions and policies of the Administra-
tion with respect to energy should be transparent so 
that Congress and the American public may be in-
formed and participate in a meaningful way in the 
formulation of an energy policy that benefits the Na-
tion as a whole; 
(4) in light of the finding of the Energy Infor-
mation Administration that the pending energy bill 
will result in negligible changes in energy supply, de-
mand, and prices, in order to ameliorate the long-
term problem of the United States dependence on 
foreign oil sources, the President should—
(A) further review all administrative poli-
cies, programs, and regulations that put an
•HRES 611 IH 
undue burden on domestic energy producers; 
and 
(B) consider new legislative policies aimed 
at increasing the ability of the domestic energy 
industries of the United States to supply a 
greater percentage of the energy needs of the 
United States and to better exploit emerging 
technologies to increase energy efficiency and 
reduce overall energy consumption; and 
(5) in order to ameliorate the long-term prob-
lem of United States dependence on foreign oil 
sources, the House of Representatives should appro-
priate sufficient funds for the development of domes-
tic energy sources, including measures to increase 
the use of renewable energy resources and emerging 
technologies that could increase energy efficiency 
and reduce overall energy consumption.
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