As gas prices in Gainesville climb past the $4 mark, Florida Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services Commissioner Charles H. Bronson has called on Congress and the Bush administration to conduct an in-depth investigation into rising gasoline costs.
The investigation would be aimed at finding the root cause of skyrocketing fuel prices, whether it is increased wealth in China and India or even price gouging at the pumps.
"He's looking for a top-to-bottom thorough investigation," said Terence McElroy, department spokesman.
McElroy said the investigation would consider what roles private investors and speculators play in the gasoline market, what roles gas companies play and other potential factors.
"We just want to get to the bottom of it," McElroy said.
UF economics professor Mark Rush said a number of factors are contributing to the rise in gas prices, including the depreciation of the U.S. dollar and the increased standard of living in China and India.
"In China and India, you have people's incomes rising 10 percent or so a year," Rush said, "and when they get to a certain level, they want to buy a car."
Rush said that this increase in the amount of cars worldwide increases the demand for petroleum, which would cause a rise in the price of gasoline. As these countries industrialize, they also require more energy to produce electricity, which sometimes comes from oil.
Rush said while oil companies could potentially increase the production of oil, they probably wouldn't because they benefit from the higher prices.
This means that the supply of oil will remain somewhat fixed while the demand will constantly increase.
Furthermore, Rush said that gas prices won't continue to skyrocket indefinitely, unless a natural disaster affects the production of oil.
He added that China, India and the U.S. are going through recessions, which will consequently slow the increasing demand for petroleum.
"They won't rise at the clip they have risen over the past six months or so," Rush said.
Gainesville Mayor Pegeen Hanrahan said the city is trying to come up with innovative ways to decrease the demand for gasoline within Gainesville.
"What we're trying to do from the city's perspective is to provide citizens with alternate modes of transportation," Hanrahan said.
