关于如何降低创纪录的柴油价格,目前尚未做出最终决定。据三位熟悉相关谈判情况的人士透露,特朗普政府的官员们正在考虑多种替代方案,以试图降低柴油价格——其中包括将这一问题交由各州政府处理。
No final decision has been made yet on how to lower record-high diesel prices. Trump administration officials are weighing alternatives to imposing a ban on diesel exports to bring prices for the fuel down from record highs — including passing the issue down to the state level, three people familiar with the negotiations said Friday.
为减轻高油价对农业和交通运输行业造成的经济压力,同时又不完全停止柴油出口(经济学家和石油行业高管警告称,完全停止出口最终会扰乱燃料生产并导致价格进一步上涨),政府提出了几项可行的措施。
Several options are on the table to alleviate the financial burden the high prices have inflicted on the farming and transportation sectors without a full halt to exports of the fuel, which economists and oil industry executives have warned would ultimately disrupt fuel production and push prices higher.
这些人士表示,唐纳德·特朗普总统本周大部分时间都在华盛顿接待中国国家主席习近平,预计他将在周五或下周初宣布某种政策,不过具体方案尚未最终确定。
President Donald Trump, who has been hosting Chinese President Xi Jinping in Washington for much of the latter half of the week, is still expected to announce some sort of policy as soon as Friday or early next week, though no final decision has been made, these people said.
“这周的计划就是尽可能多地尝试各种可能的办法,”其中一位不愿公开姓名的知情人士这样描述与政府的私下讨论。白宫发言人并未立即回应相关问题。
President Donald Trump, who has been hosting Chinese President Xi Jinping in Washington for much of the latter half of the week, is still expected to announce some sort of policy as soon as Friday or early next week, though no final decision has been made, these people said.
据三位直接了解该计划的人士透露,特朗普政府正在考虑的措施包括:增加“染色柴油”的供应——这种红色柴油主要用于农业、建筑以及非公路车辆,目前免征州和联邦税收;此外,政府还希望更多州在中期选举前取消对柴油的州级消费税。
“The plan all week was to throw whatever spaghetti they had at the wall by today,” said one of the people familiar with the discussion who was granted anonymity to describe private discussions with the administration. A White House spokesperson did not immediately reply to questions.
这些人士还指出,特朗普政府内部的讨论仍在进行中,虽然尚未达成最终决定,但官员们正努力尽快公布相关政策,该政策很可能将在下周初公布。
Among the evolving set of options under consideration by Trump officials are measures to boost distribution of “dyed diesel,” a red-colored fuel used in agriculture, construction and for other off-road vehicles that is exempt from state and federal taxes, three people with direct knowledge of the plan said.
内布拉斯加州及其他州的共和党州长已经宣布了一系列紧急措施:暂时免除对非公路用柴油的税收,并实施其他优惠政策,以缓解农民和消费者的压力。
The White House would also encourage more states to eliminate their state-level excise taxes on diesel ahead of the midterms, according to these people.
周五早些时候,阿拉巴马州的共和党州长凯·艾维(Kay Ivey)下令州执法部门暂停执行相关法规(该法规要求对非公路用柴油进行特殊标识)。
The internal Trump administration talks are ongoing and there’s been no final decision, but officials are working to announce a diesel plan soon, the people said, and it would likely be released by early next week.
要暂停任何联邦层面的燃油税收,必须得到国会的批准——但鉴于共和党领导层已经取消了众议院的剩余投票程序,这种情况在中期选举之前几乎不可能发生。一些共和党参议员此前曾拒绝支持实施联邦层面的汽油减税措施;此外,共和党内部关于是否应暂停联邦汽油税的争论也在本月早些时候被搁置了。
GOP governors in Nebraska and other states have already announced a series of emergency plans to waive current taxes for off-road diesel while implementing other exemptions to try to alleviate pressure on farmers and consumers. Earlier on Friday, GOP Alabama Gov. Kay Ivey directed state law enforcement officials to halt enforcement of the dyed-diesel rules for 120 days.
在那些以农业为主的、由共和党主导的州,共和党人正努力在激烈的选举竞争中抵御民主党的攻势。由于燃油成本不断上升,以及经济对农民造成的负面影响,这些州的选民普遍感到愤怒。
Suspending any federal-level taxes on fuel would require Congress’ action — which is very unlikely to take place before the midterms given that GOP leaders have canceled remaining votes in the House. Key GOP senators have previously dismissed calls for a federal tax holiday on gasoline, and an intense internal fight among Republicans over whether to suspend the federal gas tax died in the House before the chamber left earlier this month.
在内布拉斯加州,州长吉姆·皮伦(Jim Pillen)于周四宣布了这些紧急措施;共和党人正努力挽救该州众议院选举的局势,并应对独立候选人丹·奥斯本(Dan Osborn)对共和党参议员皮特·里克茨(Pete Ricketts)发起的挑战。
In agriculture-dependent GOP-led states, Republicans are trying to fend off a wave of Democratic gains in tight races amid anger over rising fuel costs and the compounding economic blows on farmers. In Nebraska, where Gov. Jim Pillen announced emergency actions on Thursday, Republicans are working to salvage a marquee House race and defend a challenge to GOP Sen. Pete Ricketts by independent Dan Osborn.
然而,在那些民主党占优势的州,共和党候选人也在柴油问题上面临巨大压力;在这些州,特朗普政府不得不依赖民主党州长来暂停柴油税收。正在密歇根州参议院选举中参选的前众议员迈克·罗杰斯(Mike Rogers)、威斯康星州共和党众议员德里克·范·奥登(Derrick Van Orden)等共和党候选人,都身处民主党控制的州。
But key GOP candidates are also getting hammered on the diesel crisis in blue and purple states, where the Trump administration will have to rely on Democratic governors to suspend state taxes on diesel. Former Rep. Mike Rogers, who is running for Senate in Michigan, Rep. Derrick Van Orden (R-Wis.), and other Republicans in incredibly tight races are in states with Democratic governors.
能源部长克里斯·赖特(Chris Wright)警告称,如果实施出口禁令,最终会导致燃油价格进一步上涨;他表示正在推动炼油企业自愿采取行动来缓解燃油价格压力,但相关企业担心这可能引发反垄断纠纷或股东诉讼。
Energy Secretary Chris Wright, who has warned that an export ban would ultimately lead to higher fuel prices, has said he’s pushing for voluntary moves on diesel from refiners to provide some relief as well, though companies say that could raise antitrust concerns or spark shareholder lawsuits.
特朗普政府为柴油问题紧急采取行动。此前一周,政府内部就如何缓解柴油价格持续飙升造成的经济压力展开了混乱的讨论。柴油价格上涨令选民愈发沮丧,尤其是那些秋收需要消耗大量燃料的农业州。政府原本一直在制定柴油出口禁令90天的计划,但在与石油行业这一长期盟友的关系趋紧、且石油业大力游说之际,赖特转而提出了其他替代方案。
The Trump administration scramble on diesel follows a chaotic week of debate within the administration over how to relieve the economic pain from the relentless hike in diesel prices that is frustrating voters, particularly in farm states where the harvests demand large volumes of fuel. The administration had been working on plans for a 90-day ban on diesel exports before Wright pitched for alternatives after heavy lobbying from the oil industry amid strains in their long-standing alliance.
据美国汽车协会(AAA)数据,周五美国柴油均价为每加仑6.50美元,较一年前上涨逾2.80美元。
The U.S. average diesel price was $6.50 a gallon on Friday, according to AAA, up more than $2.80 from a year ago.
自2月底以来,柴油价格已上涨一倍以上。当时,美国和以色列对伊朗发动袭击,导致霍尔木兹海峡的石油运输受扰,该地区炼油厂也遭到破坏。乌克兰为阻止俄罗斯进一步入侵,也摧毁了俄罗斯许多炼油厂,导致柴油供应减少。
Diesel prices have more than doubled since the end of February, when the U.S. and Israel launched attacks against Iran that led to disruption of oil shipments out of the Strait of Hormuz and damage to refineries in the region. Ukraine has also destroyed many Russian refineries as it tries to stave off Russia’s further invasion attempts, reducing supplies of the fuel.