Energy, Climate, & Grid Security

Republicans Advocate for American Energy on World Stage Energy and Commerce Committee Member August Pfluger (R-TX) led a bipartisan Congressional delegation to Baku, Azerbaijan, for COP29. Members met with world leaders to discuss efforts to build a cleaner energy future. Throughout bilateral meetings and panel discussions on the international stage, E&C Members not only highlighted America's energy leadership but also underscored our commitment to environmental stewardship. Check out these top photos from the trip: At a press conference , Members highlighted how America has led the world in reducing emissions without sacrificing innovation, economic development, or national security. Our allies and partners benefit from America’s energy exports, technological leadership, and environmental stewardship. At a bipartisan panel moderated by Heather Reams, President of Citizens for Responsible Energy Solutions (CRES), Members highlighted how a robust nuclear energy industry is critical for providing affordable clean energy to communities across the country and around the world. Members also underscored the significance of the ADVANCE Act, signed into law July 2024, which will modernize and improve licensing processes at the Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC).  Meeting with COP 29 President Minister of Ecology Mukhtar Babayev    and Lead Negotiator Yalchin Rafiyev Meeting with the President of Azerbaijan   Meeting with U.S. Ambassador Mark Libby Meeting with South Korean officials Meeting with Taiwanese officials

“DOE is threatening domestic jobs and economic development, weakening the energy security of European allies, and strengthening our adversaries” Washington, D.C. — House Energy and Commerce Committee Chair Cathy McMorris Rodgers (R-WA), Energy, Climate, and Grid Security Subcommittee Chair Jeff Duncan (R-SC), and Oversight and Investigations Subcommittee Chair Morgan Griffith (R-VA) sent a letter to Department of Energy (DOE) Secretary Jennifer Granholm demanding the agency stop rushing to prematurely release its anti-liquefied natural gas (LNG) study, which aims to hamstring the incoming Presidential administration. The letter also calls for DOE to lift the pause on LNG exports, which was a politically motivated decision by the Biden administration to appease radical environmental activists at the expense of American energy security and the security of our allies. KEY LETTER EXCERPTS: “Despite DOE’s prior findings and published reviews in favor of U.S. LNG exports, and contrary to DOE’s limited statutory authority under the NGA, the Biden administration’s DOE announced that it would expand its environmental review as part of a ‘managed transition’ to reduce use of fossil fuels. Recent press reports indicate that DOE is racing to complete a study on the climate impacts of LNG exports to hamper the incoming Republican administration and provide opportunities to challenge future project approvals in court.” [...] “ The results of the 2024 presidential election are clear, and DOE leadership will soon change. As a traditional part of the peaceful transfer of power, DOE should immediately stop work on any plans to expand the scope of review or add new conditions to LNG export licenses. DOE should immediately lift the ban on LNG export approvals in compliance with the NGA and the District Court order.” BACKGROUND: January 26, 2024 : The Biden administration announces indefinite “pause” on LNG export permits. Chair Rodgers immediately rebukes the decision, calling it a “gift to Putin.” February 5, 2024 : More than 150 House Republicans demand President Biden ends his de facto ban on American LNG exports. February 15, 2024 : E&C Republicans lead bipartisan passage of H.R. 7176 to reverse President Biden’s LNG export ban. April 8, 2024 : The Subcommittee on Energy, Climate, and Grid Security holds a field hearing in Port Arthur, Texas, with local leaders and energy workers to highlight the economic and public benefits of American energy production, including job creation. November 7, 2024 : Bloomberg Law reports that the “Biden administration is racing to complete a study that could complicate President-Elect Donald Trump’s plan to immediately approve new liquefied natural gas export terminals.” CLICK HERE to read the full letter.

Washington, D.C. — House Energy and Commerce Committee Chair Cathy McMorris Rodgers (R-WA) today sent letters to five independent federal agencies urging the Biden-Harris administration appointees to abandon partisan efforts and instead focus remaining efforts on bipartisan, consensus items.   The letters state, “The results of the 2024 presidential election are now apparent and leadership of the [agency] will soon change. As a traditional part of the peaceful transfer of power, the [agency] should immediately stop work on any partisan or controversial item under consideration, consistent with applicable law and regulation.”    Click below to read each agency’s letter:   Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) Federal Communications Commission (FCC)   Federal Trade Commission (FTC)   Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC)   Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) Note: In the letter, Chair Rodgers urges NRC to continue timely implementation of the ADVANCE Act. 

“DOE is threatening domestic jobs and economic development, weakening the energy security of European allies, and strengthening our adversaries” Washington, D.C. — House Energy and Commerce Committee Chair Cathy McMorris Rodgers (R-WA), Energy, Climate, and Grid Security Subcommittee Chair Jeff Duncan (R-SC), and Oversight and Investigations Subcommittee Chair Morgan Griffith (R-VA) sent a letter to Department of Energy (DOE) Secretary Jennifer Granholm demanding the agency stop rushing to prematurely release its anti-liquefied natural gas (LNG) study, which aims to hamstring the incoming Presidential administration. The letter also calls for DOE to lift the pause on LNG exports, which was a politically motivated decision by the Biden administration to appease radical environmental activists at the expense of American energy security and the security of our allies. KEY LETTER EXCERPTS: “Despite DOE’s prior findings and published reviews in favor of U.S. LNG exports, and contrary to DOE’s limited statutory authority under the NGA, the Biden administration’s DOE announced that it would expand its environmental review as part of a ‘managed transition’ to reduce use of fossil fuels. Recent press reports indicate that DOE is racing to complete a study on the climate impacts of LNG exports to hamper the incoming Republican administration and provide opportunities to challenge future project approvals in court.” [...] “ The results of the 2024 presidential election are clear, and DOE leadership will soon change. As a traditional part of the peaceful transfer of power, DOE should immediately stop work on any plans to expand the scope of review or add new conditions to LNG export licenses. DOE should immediately lift the ban on LNG export approvals in compliance with the NGA and the District Court order.” BACKGROUND: January 26, 2024 : The Biden administration announces indefinite “pause” on LNG export permits. Chair Rodgers immediately rebukes the decision, calling it a “gift to Putin.” February 5, 2024 : More than 150 House Republicans demand President Biden ends his de facto ban on American LNG exports. February 15, 2024 : E&C Republicans lead bipartisan passage of H.R. 7176 to reverse President Biden’s LNG export ban. April 8, 2024 : The Subcommittee on Energy, Climate, and Grid Security holds a field hearing in Port Arthur, Texas, with local leaders and energy workers to highlight the economic and public benefits of American energy production, including job creation. November 7, 2024 : Bloomberg Law reports that the “Biden administration is racing to complete a study that could complicate President-Elect Donald Trump’s plan to immediately approve new liquefied natural gas export terminals.” CLICK HERE to read the full letter.

Washington, D.C. — House Energy and Commerce Committee Chair Cathy McMorris Rodgers (R-WA) today sent letters to five independent federal agencies urging the Biden-Harris administration appointees to abandon partisan efforts and instead focus remaining efforts on bipartisan, consensus items.   The letters state, “The results of the 2024 presidential election are now apparent and leadership of the [agency] will soon change. As a traditional part of the peaceful transfer of power, the [agency] should immediately stop work on any partisan or controversial item under consideration, consistent with applicable law and regulation.”    Click below to read each agency’s letter:   Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) Federal Communications Commission (FCC)   Federal Trade Commission (FTC)   Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC)   Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) Note: In the letter, Chair Rodgers urges NRC to continue timely implementation of the ADVANCE Act. 

More than a decade has lapsed since the GAO’s last review Washington, D.C. —  In a new letter to the U.S. Government Accountability Office (GAO), bipartisan Energy and Commerce Leaders are requesting that the GAO conduct an extensive review of the Department of Energy’s (DOE) Isotope Program. Led by Committee Chair Cathy McMorris Rodgers (R-WA) and Ranking Member Frank Pallone, Jr., (D-NJ) as well as Subcommittee on Energy, Climate, and Grid Security Chair Jeff Duncan (R-SC) and Ranking Member Diana DeGette (D-CO), the letter addresses concerns regarding U.S. dependence on Russia for isotopes and other materials critical to American national security, advanced manufacturing, and medicine, especially following Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. KEY LETTER EXCERPT: “The DOE Isotope Program has been working for at least a decade to shore up domestic isotope development and free the United States from a position of dependence, but its progress in doing so is unclear. Current U.S. production still has not replaced our reliance on Russia and possibly other high-risk countries, and several proposed DOE facilities conceived as major contributors to the U.S. domestic supply chain remain in the design phase or, at best, under construction (chief among these is Oak Ridge’s Stable Isotope Production and Research Center, or SIPRC, which is reportedly not expected to start production until 2032). These dynamics raise serious questions and concerns about the security of the U.S. supply chain for these critical isotopes.” BACKGROUND: The DOE’s Isotope Program produces and sells hundreds of high priority isotopes that are rare—but essential—for the production of important commodities in national security, advanced manufacturing, and medicine.  The DOE is often the only, or one of very few, global producers of such isotopes, which are in short supply or represent a supply chain risk. However, the United States still relies on obtaining several materials and commercially produced isotopes from other, sometimes adversarial countries, such as Russia.  The GAO last reviewed the DOE Isotope program in 2012 and has not conducted a review since Russia invaded Ukraine in 2022.  According to a 2022 testimony by the executive director of the Council on Radionuclides and Radiopharmaceuticals, the U.S. still relies nearly exclusively on Russia to obtain 44 isotopes that are critical in industrial applications and cancer treatment.  China has also emerged as a new global supplier of stable isotopes, positioning the U.S. for even further foreign reliance to keep Americans healthy and safe. CLICK HERE to read the full letter.