A majority of recently surveyed U.S. voters believe that increasing taxes on oil and natural gas producers, as well as restricting access to energy resources, will only contribute to the escalation in the price of gasoline, according to a new poll by the American Petroleum Institute (API).

In the poll, which was conducted March 9-13, 76% of the 1,009 registered voters responded that higher energy taxes would increase costs of a variety of consumer products and services, including gasoline, and 64% believed that “some in Washington are delaying the development of domestic oil and natural gas resources.”

Three-quarters of those surveyed ranked as “important” the need for the United States to be more energy independent by producing more domestic energy. Nearly half of the voters said they backed an “all-of-the-above” energy strategy. And 73% signaled that they support increased access to domestic oil and gas resources.

“Voters understand that raising taxes is not a solution for high gasoline prices. We should instead be encouraging more safe and responsible domestic energy production,” said API President Jack Gerard.

If the voter sentiment expressed in the poll about the economy and energy policy is any indication, President Obama and members of Congress who are up for re-election this year are in for tough races. The president’s approval rating is less than 50%, and the approval rating for Congress is in the basement — 17%. In general, about two-thirds of those surveyed (62%) said they believed the country is on the wrong track, while only 31% believe it is headed in the right direction.

The surveyed voters were split evenly between male and female, and young and older persons. More Republicans (31%) participated in the poll than Democrats (29%) and Independents (25%). More than half (56%) of the voters referred to themselves as conservatives, while 32% said they were liberal.

With respect to annual income, the largest single segment of the voters (20%) earned $100,000 or more a year. A combined total of 63% had some college education, graduated college or received a post-graduate degree. Another 26% were high school graduates.

The survey results are weighted to be representative of registered voters across the United States. The results of the poll have a margin of error of +/-3% at 95% confidence, according to API.

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