Urge Biden to back more domestic energy production
Surging inflation is affecting all sectors of our economy, but the steep increase to energy prices has been particularly painful for consumers. As American families head into summer, regular unleaded gas and diesel hit another record high this week of $4.97 and $5.74, respectively. Unfortunately, President Joe Biden doesn’t seem to believe these prices are particularly concerning and recently appeared to praise the increase as an “incredible transition” during a joint press conference with Japan’s prime minister. Though his administration’s restrictive, long-term energy policies can’t be entirely blamed for shortterm skyrocketing prices, they aren’t helping lower costs either — and perhaps that’s their intention.
Through canceling offshore leases, the Keystone XL pipeline and restricting drilling on federal lands, the administration has sent a clear signal to the domestic oil and gas industry. Our leaders need to put partisanship aside and commit to serious policies that will free families from the crippling worries of their wallets and bring down the high cost of energy.
With the midterms approaching in November, the White House is surely aware of the political implications of high energy costs. Yet, the administration’s inadequate response to rising costs was to send Energy Secretary Jennifer Granholm to a wind turbine center in Louisiana and a Strategic Petroleum Reserve site. We need to be embracing all-of-the above solutions as we did during my tenure as secretary of energy, but in an energy abundant state like Louisiana, the secretary should also be touring oil and natural gas facilities. Short-term solutions offered by the administration, such as tapping the Strategic Petroleum Reserve, are not effectively addressing the price shock at the pump and should be saved for emergency drawdowns during times of war and natural disasters, especially as we enter hurricane season.
The Interior Department’s recent decision to cancel oil and gas leases off the coast of Alaska and the Gulf of Mexico is another move the Biden administration has taken to undermine energy producers. In Alaska, the Cook Inlet lease sale would have provided over 1 million acres for drilling, spanning at least 40 years of production. The Biden administration is poised to release a proposed five-year offshore oil and gas leasing plan this month. As energy prices continue to rise, the administration can end the uncertainty now and move forward on renewing the five-year offshore leasing plan.
Over the last 15 years, hard work and collaboration between the government, energy investors and American workers have built a robust energy sector. The shale oil and gas revolution created tens of thousands of good-paying union jobs (the kind the president talks about regularly), strengthened the economy and helped our country become less dependent on foreign producers.
Instead of prioritizing ineffective policies that may push prices higher, we need our leaders to support an all-ofthe-above approach to energy production. That means expanding where energy can be extracted, deploying innovative technologies and keeping regulatory burdens in check.
It also means supporting and safeguarding the infrastructure needed to transport energy to consumers. This month marks an important milestone for the Dakota Access pipeline, as it has been operating since June 2017. It carries crude oil from North Dakota through South Dakota and Iowa to Illinois, and is a critical artery for American energy. The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers is currently conducting an environmental review of the pipeline with an expected decision later this year.
Shutting down the Dakota Access pipeline would be both detrimental to our own domestic energy supply and our allies in Europe. A recent poll commissioned by the Grow America’s Infrastructure Now Coalition found bipartisan support (79 percent of Democrats and 89 percent of Republicans polled) for the U.S. continuation of strong domestic energy production, as opposed to relying on energy from countries like the Middle East, Russia and Venezuela.
As the energy crisis in Europe and at home continues to worsen, the U.S. cannot risk losing a key cog in its energy supply chain. By recognizing the pipeline’s integral role in securing domestic energy independence, the administration would send a strong signal to millions of hard-working Americans struggling with inflated fuel costs.
The Dakota Access pipeline is more than just a way of transporting energy resources. Communities in North Dakota, South Dakota and Iowa have also benefitted from the $113 million worth of property taxes — funds that go toward police and fire departments and help keep schools open. And the American people were provided some 12,000 jobs.
Inflation and rising gas prices have once again brought energy to the forefront of our national debate and election season. We need our elected officials to pursue policies that expand domestic production, create opportunity and reduce prices. We need leaders who don’t embrace patchwork policies in favor of long-term solutions that effectively address our country’s energy crisis. If they can’t even do that, then November will be a month of reckoning.