page_title: 1979 oil crisis
section_title: United States
hierarchical_section_title: 1979 oil crisis / Effects / United States
context_page_description: The 1979 oil crisis, or oil shock, was an energy crisis caused by a drop in oil production in the wake of the Iranian Revolution. Although global oil supply only decreased by ~4%, the oil markets reaction raised the price of crude oil drastically over the next 12 months, more than doubling to $39.50 per barrel, causing fuel shortages and long lines at gas stations similar to the 1973 oil crisis.
  In 1980, following the outbreak of the Iran–Iraq War, oil production in Iran nearly stopped. Iraq's oil production dropped significantly, triggering economic recessions were in worldwide. Oil prices did not return to pre-crisis levels until the mid-1980s.
  After 1980, oil prices began a steady decline over the next 20 years, except for a brief uptick during the Gulf War, eventually reaching a 60% fall-off in the 1990s. Major oil exporters such as Mexico, Nigeria, and Venezuela expanded production; the Soviet Union became the highest producing country in the world, and oil from the North Sea and Alaska flooded the market.
context_section_description: The oil crisis had mixed impacts on the United States because some regions of the country are oil-producing regions and other regions are oil-consuming.
  Richard Nixon imposed price controls on domestic oil. Gasoline controls were repealed, but controls on domestic US oil remained.
  The Jimmy Carter administration began a phased deregulation of oil prices on April 5, 1979, when the average price of crude oil was US$15.85 per barrel (42 US gallons (160 L)). Starting with the Iranian revolution, the price of crude oil rose to $39.50 per barrel over the next 12 months (it is all-time highest real price until March 3, 2008.)  Deregulating domestic oil price controls allowed U.S. oil output to rise sharply from the large Prudhoe Bay fields, while oil imports fell sharply.
  Although not directly related, the near-disaster at Three Mile Island on March 28, 1979, also increased anxiety about energy policy and availability.
  Due to memories of oil shortage in 1973, motorists soon began panic buying, and long lines appeared at gas stations, as they had six years earlier during the 1973 oil crisis.
  As the average vehicle of the time consumed between two and three liters (about 0.5–0.8 gallons) of gasoline (petrol) an hour while idling, it was estimated that Americans wasted up to 150,000 barrels (24,000 m³) of oil per day idling their engines in the lines at gas stations.
  The amount of oil sold in the United States in 1979 was only 3.5 percent less than the record set for oil sold the year previously.  A telephone poll of 1,600 American adults conducted by the Associated Press and NBC News and released in early May 1979 found that only 37% of Americans thought the energy shortages were real, 9% were not sure, and 54% thought the energy shortages were a hoax.
  Many politicians proposed gas rationing; one such proponent was Harry Hughes, Governor of Maryland, who proposed odd-even rationing (only people with an odd-numbered license plate could purchase gas on an odd-numbered day), as was used during the 1973 Oil Crisis. Several states actually implemented odd-even gas rationing, including California, Pennsylvania, New York, New Jersey, Oregon, and Texas. Coupons for gasoline rationing were printed but were never actually used during the 1979 crisis.
  On July 15, 1979, President Carter outlined his plans to reduce oil imports and improve energy efficiency in his "Crisis of Confidence" speech (sometimes known as the "malaise" speech). It is often said that during the speech, Carter wore a cardigan (he actually wore a blue suit)  and encouraged citizens to do what they could to reduce their use of energy. He had already installed solar hot water panels on the roof of the White House and a wood-burning stove in the living quarters.  However, the panels were removed in 1986, reportedly for roof maintenance, during the administration of his successor, Ronald Reagan.
  Carter's speech argued the oil crisis was "the moral equivalent of war". Critics, then and now, argued that his varied proposals would make the situation worse, not better. In November 1979, Iranian revolutionaries seized the American Embassy, and Carter imposed an embargo against Iranian oil. In January 1980, he issued the Carter Doctrine, declaring: "An attempt by any outside force to gain control of the Persian Gulf region will be regarded as an assault on the vital interests of the United States." Additionally, as part of his administration's efforts at deregulation, Carter proposed removing price controls that had been imposed by the administration of Richard Nixon before the 1973 crisis. Carter agreed to remove price controls in phases; they were finally dismantled in 1981 under Reagan. Carter also said he would impose a windfall profit tax on oil companies. While the regulated price of domestic oil was kept to $6 a barrel, the world market price was $30.
  In 1980, the U.S. Government established the Synthetic Fuels Corporation to produce an alternative to imported fossil fuels.
  When the price of West Texas Intermediate crude oil increased 250 percent between 1978 and 1980, the 
caption: Gas coupon printed but not issued during the 1979 energy crisis
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