Statement by Press Secretary Jen Psaki on Restart of Colonial Pipeline and Continued Federal Government Efforts to Mitigate Impacts

Tonight’s announcement means there’s an end in sight for the supply disruptions that have affected States across the Southeast. As Colonial Pipeline works to safely and fully resume operations over the next few days, we will stay in close contact with the company and will continue to offer any assistance needed—as we have done since the outset of this shutdown on Friday.

As supplies return to normal, we will also continue our whole-of-government effort to mitigate any challenges, including the swift steps we’ve taken to boost gas supply in affected States through actions by the EPA, the Department of Transportation, the Department of Energy, the Department of Homeland Security, and other agencies. Tonight, as part of that effort, the Secretary of Homeland Security announced that he is issuing a temporary and targeted Jones Act waiver to an individual company. This waiver will enable the transport of additional gas and jet fuel between the Gulf Coast and East Coast ports to ease supply constraints.

President Biden and the White House will monitor the situation closely in the coming days, and continue to urge Americans to just purchase what they need, and not hoard fuel, as supply is restored. The President and his team also thank the Governors and State and local leaders throughout the affected region who have moved quickly to address problems in their communities, and will continue to partner closely with them to provide any additional assistance as needed.

Earlier tonight, President Biden signed an executive order to chart a new course to improve the nation’s cybersecurity. This incident demonstrates that Federal agencies and the private sector must work collaboratively to learn the lessons of this incident, strengthen cybersecurity practices, and deploy technologies that increase resilience against cyberattacks.

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