The worry marks lining politicians’ faces in Rhode Island are getting deeper as gasoline prices keep climbing, and the public seeks a quick fix — or at least someone to blame for the problem. This week, AAA Southern New England reported that a gallon of regular unleaded gas had reached the apocalyptic $3 mark. That’s 80 cents higher, or 36 percent more, than a year ago, the organization says. More than a dozen stations were charging more than $3 a gallon this week, with a high of $3.33 at a Citgo station in Newport, says www.rhodeislandgasprices.com. Prices are expected to rise further, as demand for gas increases during the summer driving season. Rhode Island hasn’t experienced any shortages, but the prospect can’t be too far from people’s minds. Local political leaders are well aware of the issue, but they appear hemmed in by 1) an inability to influence the price of a commodity largely fixed by world oil markets; 2) and a nagging budget deficit that constrains their ability to provide tax relief. That hasn’t stopped state Representative Charlene Lima (D-Providence) from trying. She has a bill that would suspend the state gas tax for the summer, or if prices remained at or above $2.50 a gallon. While the bill would cost the state about $49 million, “My thinking is because of the summer season, when we have the greatest gasoline usage . . . the long-term cumulative effect to Rhode Island economy will be far more costly than a temporary gas tax rollback,” Lima says. The bill is in the House Finance Committee, but a hearing has not been scheduled, and no one appears in a hurry to set a date. That’s because neither party knows how to make up the shortfall that would result from suspending the tax, at a time when the state projects a $300 million deficit for the budget year that begins July 1. Unable to influence prices, some politicians have turned to investigating any criminality. Attorney General Patrick Lynch joined 47 of his counterparts to request a meeting with US Attorney General Alberto Gonzalez and the head of the Federal Trade Commission “to ensure that any unlawful conduct in connection with gasoline prices is addressed swiftly and appropriately.” US Senator Jack Reed, meanwhile, joined other Democratic senators to ask President Bush whether he would support a law to go after gas price gougers. Senator Lincoln Chafee takes a longer view. The Republican, part of a small bipartisan group, this month introduced the Enhanced Energy Security Act of 2006, which seeks to reduce the nation’s reliance on oil through greater fuel efficiency, conservation, and renewable energy production. “While we must resolve the short-term price situation that we are facing today,” Chafee says, “we also must take a critical look at where we as a nation are going in the longer term.” | 