Competition in retail sales of motor gasoline. Hearings before the Subcommittee on Energy Regulation of the Committee on Energy and Natural Resources, United States Senate, Ninety-Sixth Congress, First Session, March 16, 1979
The purpose of this hearing was to receive testimony on the impact of the Federal control price and allocation regime on the independent marketing sector. The current, widespread concern with petroleum supplies, made urgent by events in Iran, has convinced the Carter administration that decontrol has been now is not the time. An executive summary of the competitive analysis of the motor gasoline price and allocation regulations was included. It stated that allocation regulations have prevented the formation of more cost-effective patterns of supply and distribution, and distorted the spot market. The price regulations have manufactured an arbitrary distribution scheme of profits and losses. The price regulations have frozen allowable unit margins to the May 15, 1973 level. Subsidization of vertically integrated refiner/marketer operations has also been fostered by the price regulations. By regulating margins rather than profits, the regulations also inhibit investment in needed refinery expansion and improvements. The regulations have imposed disproportinately large compliance burdens on small, independent firms, impacting negatively on their ability to compete. Also included was a memorandum analyzing the harmful effects on completion of attempting to fix the gasoline price and allocation regulations rather than removing the controls. (DP)
- OSTI ID:
- 5358387
- Resource Relation:
- Related Information: Publication No. 96-23
- Country of Publication:
- United States
- Language:
- English
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Related Subjects
29 ENERGY PLANNING
POLICY AND ECONOMY
GASOLINE
ALLOCATIONS
HEARINGS
PRICING REGULATIONS
RETAIL PRICES
GASOLINE SERVICE STATIONS
COMPETITION
COMMERCIAL SECTOR
FUELS
MARKETERS
PETROLEUM PRODUCTS
PRICES
REGULATIONS
RETAILERS
020500* - Petroleum- Products & By-Products
021000 - Petroleum- Legislation & Regulations
294002 - Energy Planning & Policy- Petroleum