House GOP advances bills to thwart Biden environmental agenda
Breanne Deppisch
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House Republicans voted Tuesday to advance bills aimed at expanding U.S. energy production and reining in Biden-era environmental regulations.
The legislation would undo some of the administration’s most prized bills and regulations related to climate change.
The House Energy and Commerce Subcommittee on the Environment, Manufacturing, and Critical Minerals and the House Subcommittee on Energy, Climate, and Grid Security convened separately to approve 16 bills aimed at restoring U.S. energy dominance and reducing what Republicans argue are overly burdensome regulations imposed by the Biden administration.
“We must create an energy system in the United States that is affordable, reliable, and secure while maintaining our high environmental standards to ensure clean air, water, and soil, and these bills do just that,” House Energy and Commerce Chairwoman Cathy McMorris Rodgers said Tuesday at the outset of the hearings.
The 16 bills will advance to the full committee for a vote.
One bill, introduced by Rep. Jeff Duncan (R-SC), would prohibit Biden from implementing any sort of ban on hydraulic fracking, while another called to slash the timeline by which the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission and other federal agencies would have to finish environmental reviews for new gas pipelines.
The Unlocking Our Domestic LNG Potential Act of 2023, from Rep. Bill Johnson (R-OH), would streamline the approval process for U.S. liquefied natural gas export facilities to be brought online. That’s a goal its proponents argue is key for the U.S. as it continues to send a record amount of supplies to Europe.
Another bill was written by Rep. Bob Latta (R-OH), the Researching Efficient Federal Improvements for Necessary Energy Refining Act, or the REFINER Act, which would direct the National Petroleum Council to analyze the near-term capacity of U.S. petrochemical refineries and identify new ways to boost capacity.
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“As a result of refinery closures — coupled with an increase in the demand for fuel — North American refining capacity has reached its lowest level in years,” Latta said in a statement, adding that the dwindling capacity threatens to push U.S. energy prices even higher.
The Natural Gas Tax Repeal Act, from Rep. August Pfluger (R-TX), would strike the natural gas tax included in Democrats’ Inflation Reduction Act, arguing during the session that new fees and taxes imposed as a result of the policy will raise costs on consumers and create a burden on lower-income families.
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From here, the measures will be sent to the full committee and then the House floor for a vote, though their chance of passage in the Democratic-controlled Senate is unlikely.