As prepared for delivery:
Good afternoon.
Our business today is to consider H.R. 1, the Lower Energy Costs Act.
President Biden has repeatedly taken actions that have damaged American energy security and driven up the price of energy for American consumers.
On his first day in office, President Biden rescinded the permit for the Keystone XL Pipeline, and followed that up by suspending new oil and gas leasing and drilling on Federal land and in Federal waters. The partisan reconciliation bill that the Democrats passed into law last year included a devastating six billion dollar natural gas tax, while also spending billions of dollars on Green New Deal-style boondoggles.
The consequences of these policies should have been obvious from the beginning. In 2021, American energy prices spiked twenty-nine point three percent according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, and a further seven point three percent in 2022. This was most heavily felt through gasoline prices, which jumped a whopping forty-nine point five percent in 2021. Skyrocketing energy prices heavily contributed to the inflation crisis we have all felt. President Biden’s policies have made life harder every day for already stretched American families.
As part of the Commitment to America, House Republicans promised to end this sad state of affairs and unleash America’s energy resources to make our nation energy-independent. H.R. 1 is the fulfillment of that pledge. In passing this bill, we will roll back the damaging policies pursued by the Biden Administration. We will increase domestic energy production, reform the permitting process for new energy projects, repeal the six billion dollar natural gas tax and the twenty-seven billion dollar “green bank” slush fund, and boost domestic production of critical minerals. Most importantly, lowering energy prices will ensure that no one has to choose between putting food on the table or fuel in their car.
I’m sure my friends in the minority will object to policies that make it easier for America to utilize our vast reserves of traditional fuel sources like natural gas. But the United States should have an “all of the above” energy policy. So-called “green” energy sources, like wind, should be part of the American energy mix. Wind, in fact, produces just under half of the electricity consumed in my home state of Oklahoma.
But we should also utilize and produce our other energy resources, like natural gas. We owe it to the American people to establish our energy independence and ensure we are not reliant on pariah states, like Russia or Iran, for critical energy sources like gasoline. Pursuing an “all of the above” energy policy – which is the policy followed in H.R. 1 – is a fulfillment of that goal.
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