Biden Has Emergency Powers to Counter Fuel Disruption

A cyberattack on the nation’s biggest fuel pipeline system has threatened to disrupt the supply of gasoline, jet fuel and diesel from Atlanta to New York. President Joe Biden can invoke an array of emergency powers to ensure that supplies keep flowing to big cities and airports along the U.S. East Coast, despite the Colonial Pipeline outage. The federal government has the power to waive a slew of requirements governing the formulation of gasoline and even a mandate that U.S. ships be used to transport fuel and other cargo between American ports. Previous presidents have turned to such emergency action to keep fuel flowing after hurricanes, pipeline shutdowns and other disasters. Biden on Sunday used one of them: extending the amount of time delivery drivers can spend behind the wheel when transporting fuel.

Truckers delivering fuel to 17 states and the District of Colombia impacted by the pipeline shutdown can temporarily drive more hours per day under an emergency exemption issued by the U.S. government. The action was designed “to avoid disruption to supply” to states from Alabama to New York, the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration said in an emailed press release. Drivers are normally restricted to a maximum of 11 hours of driving during a 14-hour work day.