Carter's speech argued the oil crisis was "the moral equivalent of war". Critics, then and now, argued that his varied proposals would make the situation worse, not better.[18] Several months later, in January 1980, Carter issued the Carter Doctrine, which declared that any interference with U.S. oil interests in the Persian Gulf would be considered an attack on the vital interests of the United States.[19] Additionally, as part of his administration's efforts at deregulation, Carter proposed removing price controls that had been imposed by the administration of Richard Nixon before the 1973 crisis. Carter agreed to remove price controls in phases; they were finally dismantled in 1981 under Reagan.[20] Carter also said he would impose a windfall profit tax on oil companies.[21] While the regulated price of domestic oil was kept to $6 a barrel, the world market price was $30.[21]
In 1980, the U.S. Government established the Synthetic Fuels Corporation to produce an alternative to imported fossil fuels.
When the price of West Texas Intermediate crude oil increased 250 percent between 1978 and 1980, the oil-producing areas of Texas, Oklahoma, Louisiana, Colorado, Wyoming, and Alaska began experiencing an economic boom and population inflows.