White House Management Task Force on Energy Shortages Announcement of Establishment of the Task Force.

The President has established a White House Management Task Force on Energy Shortages. The Task Force will be chaired by Jack Watson, Assistant to the President for Intergovernmental Affairs and Secretary to the Cabinet, and directed by Gene Eidenberg, Deputy Assistant to the President for Intergovernmental Affairs and Deputy Secretary to the Cabinet, of the White House staff.

Working with representatives of the appropriate departments and White House staff, the Task Force will be the central point for managing the Federal Government's response to various energy shortage problems as they occur.

The President has said repeatedly that the energy problems facing the Nation will not be easily alleviated. While the Nation embarks on initiatives to develop alternative and increased domestic energy supplies, the U.S. will continue to be dependent on imported oil. The President believes it is essential that there be a governmentwide mechanism charged with anticipating and responding to the periodic energy shortages such as the Nation is presently experiencing.

It is clear that gasoline, diesel, and home heating supplies cannot be managed separately. It is equally clear that the special problems and needs of American agriculture, the elderly, the poor, independent truckers, mass transit riders, and many others cannot be handled separately from each other. The Departments of Energy, Agriculture, Justice, Transportation, the Environmental Protection Agency, and a number of other key Federal agencies must work in full cooperation with each other, under Presidential direction. The White House Task Force will provide the necessary coordination and direction.

The Task Force's initial agenda will include the following topics:

—middle distillates and related problems (truckers, home heating fuel, agriculture, mass transit, etc.);

—gasoline (shortages, etc.);

—electrical power requirements and capabilities in major cities this summer;

—public information efforts to ensure the public is informed of current and prospective energy shortage situations in a timely way.

Because every level of government has a critical role to play in managing scarce energy resources, the Task Force will work closely with the Nation's Governors and other local elected officials.

Stuart Eizenstat will continue to chair the Energy Task Force, responsible for the development of energy policy options for the President.