AAA Questions Energy Practices At Federal Trade Commission Hearings

    WASHINGTON--Aug. 2, 2001--AAA, North America's largest membership organization for motorists and other travelers, asked the U.S. Federal Trade Commission today to take a hard look at government policies and industry practices that have created price instability at the nation's gasoline pumps.
    Appearing before a Federal Trade Commission public conference to discuss factors that influence the prices of refined petroleum products, Michael J. Right, vice president of Public Affairs for AAA Missouri, said motorists want to know:

--	whether economic competition in the gasoline retailing industry has significantly eroded in recent years because of industry mergers and acquisitions;
--	if improved gasoline inventory management procedures are leaving regions of the nation vulnerable to fuel supply shortages in the event of a natural or man-made disaster;
--	whether reducing the number of reformulated gasoline blends required by state and local governments could meet the nation's clean air goals at less cost to consumers; and
--	whether increasing reliance on the ethanol additive produces the unintentional result of decreasing the highway trust fund of significant revenues because of the lower taxes paid per gallon for fuel which contains this additive.

    This summer's record high increase in gasoline prices -- unlike last year -- did not involve pipeline shutdowns, refinery outages and the struggle to implement new refining processes associated with reformulated gasolines. AAA asked the FTC to explain to motorists why prices nevertheless have been so unstable.
    Right said, AAA's 44 million members have concerns about policy decisions and approaches to the nation's price and supply of gasoline. As an organization for motorists -- and not an oil company -- we can only hope the Commission will examine these and other issues that may come up in this hearing."
    Since its founding in 1902, the not-for-profit, fully tax-paying AAA has been a leader and advocate for the safety, security, and mobility of all travelers.
    (A complete copy of AAA's testimony to the Federal Trade Commission is available on the Internet at www.aaa.com/news)