HOW TO FIX GAS PRICES: RELY ON U.S. RESERVES

The highest U.S. gasoline prices ever have produced howls from motorists and from politicians who find the need for government to step in regardless of the situation.

Look at what has happened in Illinois:

In addition to federal and state taxes imposed on each gallon of gasoline sold in Illinois, the state also has a sales tax on gasoline -- a tax on both the cost of the fuel and on other taxes.

Illinois officials thought it would be politically prudent to drop the sales tax, at least for now, to give motorists some relief. After all, filling stations in the Chicago area have been charging some of the highest prices in the country for unleaded regular.

Here's what else happened:

Suppliers of ethanol, a fuel additive that makes for cleaner auto emissions, have raised their own chorus of protests. Why? Because higher-grade gasoline with ethanol was actually cheaper at the pump than lower-octane regular without the additive. Without the sales tax, ethanol gas was suddenly more expensive, and the ethanol lobby saw a potential drop in sales.

So much for whether the price-at-the-pump issue is about taxes.

Meanwhile, officials in other states including Missouri have been making noises about taking action, cutting fuel taxes or initiating investigations. Gasoline retailers appeared to take no heed, adjusting prices on the basis of other factors such as wholesale prices and crude-oil production levels.

And our OPEC friends, the ones on which U.S. taxpayers have lavished billions of dollars over the years, seemed to enjoy jerking American consumers first one way and then another. At week's end, they were talking about increasing oil production, which should have the effect of lowering prices here.

There are two things that need to be said about all of this:

First, federal and state politicians should be careful about lowering fuel taxes here and there -- unless they intend to make the cuts permanent. Even in a good economy, taxpayers are fed up with government's ever-increasing cut. Any state official or congressman who says the country can get along without a tax for awhile is basically saying we probably don't need that tax anyway. This is something taxpayers might remember when it comes time to put the lapsed tax back on the books.

Second, the impact OPEC oil production has on U.S. retail gasoline prices is about as trumped up as any issue can get. The oil that comes out of an Saudi oil well today doesn't turn into gasoline overnight. But that's how the prices fluctuate. What's more, the United States has so much oil reserves that it needn't ever spend another dime on foreign crude. But current policies and environmental warriors are keeping that oil from reaching our refineries.

Let's fix our own problems and give Americans affordable gasoline with stable prices. Maybe someone in charge will do something right.