WASHINGTON, D.C. — As gas prices remain high across the country, the CEOs of six major oil companies faced members of Congress on Wednesday to explain what they can do to help.


What You Need To Know

  • Democrats in Congress had six oil CEOs testify about high gas prices April 6

  • Two Ohio Republicans took part in the hearing and defended the oil industry

  • The average price for a gallon of regular gas in Ohio is $3.92 as of April 6

  • Ohio ranks in the top 10 for both natural gas and crude oil production

In Ohio, the average price for a gallon of regular gas was $3.92 on April 6, according to AAA — $1 more than a year ago.

Ohio currently ranks in the top 10 for both natural gas and crude oil production, according to the Ohio Oil and Gas Association.

The industry employs more than 208,000 Ohioans, many of whom live in Republican Rep. Bill Johnson’s southwest Ohio district.

At Wednesday’s hearing, Johnson defended the CEOs.

“For heaven’s sake, they’re blaming you for high gas prices, for inflation, for bad weather and all the world’s problems that [Democrats’] failed policies are actually causing,” Johnson (R, OH-6) said during the hearing.

Gas prices are higher nationally and have reached a 10-year high in Ohio.

But the heads of Chevron, ExxonMobil and Shell all testified that they can’t wave a wand to change it.

“We do not control the marketplace of crude oil or natural gas,” Chevron CEO Michael Wirth said.

“No single company sets the price of oil or gasoline,” said Darren Woods, the head of ExxonMobil.

Shell President Gretchen Watkins said her company “does not set or control the price that consumers pay.”

While Republicans blame President Joe Biden and the climate agenda he’s pursuing, Democrats accuse the CEOs of being greedy.

They pointed out the oil companies made tens of billions in profit last year and paid their shareholders billions, all while prices at the pump have climbed because the U.S. and its allies are no longer using Russian oil because of the war in Ukraine.

“If the price of gas is driven by the global market, why is the price of oil coming down but the price at the pump is still near record highs?” asked Colorado Rep. Diana DeGette, the top Democrat on the committee.

Northwest Ohio Rep. Bob Latta (R, OH-5) used the hearing to blame Democrats for going after the fossil fuel industry while, in his opinion, not thinking through what would be needed to mass produce electric vehicles in America, like mining for batteries.

“They always say this is a very simple thing, but at the same time they’re trying to kill everything that you have to have to be able to manufacture it,” Latta said in an interview after the hearing, referring to Democrats.

Biden has pledged to release a million barrels of oil per day from the U.S. reserve for six months to drive down prices, but Republicans say it’s too little too late.

“We’ve got to have oil and gas and coal and nuclear to provide our base load,” Johnson told Spectrum News after the hearing. “If the Democrats would just agree with us on that, we could talk about some of these other things that they want to do.”