Oil

As the Strategic Petroleum Reserve Hits a 40-Year Low, It's Time To Scrap It

Presidents have repeatedly used the SPR to manipulate markets and shield consumers from the consequences of bad policies.

Jeremiah Alondra | 7.16.2026 11:23 AM

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(Adani Samat/Midjourney)

With President Donald Trump beginning a "new war" in Iran, and oil prices starting to rise as a result, America's emergency oil stockpile is reaching dangerously low levels. 

Last week, the Energy Department revealed that stocks of crude ​oil in the ‌Strategic Petroleum Reserve (SPR) fell to 316.5 ​million barrels, its lowest since April 1983. Predictably, this decline can be attributed to years of political maneuvering. 

Created in 1975 to mitigate oil supply disruptions after the Arab oil embargo, the SPR has often been used by presidents to score political points and shield consumers from the impacts of bad policies. In 2022, then-President Joe Biden authorized the release and sale of a record 180 million........

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