ENERGY ANALYST PROPOSES U.S. OIL TARIFF Energy analyst Edward Krapels said the United States should consider an oil tariff to keep U.S. dependence on imports below 50 pct. "On the supply side, the argument in favor of a contingent, variable import tariff is most persuasive," Krapels, president of Energy Security Analysis, Inc said in a statement at a House Energy and Power subcommittee hearing. "An optimal tariff would be one implemented only if the international price of crude oil falls below, say, 15 dlrs a barrel. On the demand side, the obvious policy is an excise tax on transportation fuels," Krapels said. But William Johnson of the Jofree Corp disagreed with the oil tariff proposal, saying Congress should remove price controls on natural gas, repeal the windfall profits tax on oil companies, allow exports of Alaskan oil and provide tax incentives for U.S. oil production, or, at the least, preserve exisiting tax incentives for drilling. He also urging filling the Strategic Petroleum Reserve at a faster rate. Richard Adkerson of Arthur Andersen and Co told the subcommittee oil imports were expected to increase because funds for exploration and development of domestic oil sources cannot now be economically justified due to low oil prices.