The Legislative Landscape

Fully in control of Washington, Republicans have made energy one of the top issues on their agenda, particularly promoting American oil and gas and speeding up permitting of infrastructure projects across the country.

On Capitol Hill, GOP lawmakers are trying to seize the moment and push changes to energy policy they have long sought.

The reconciliation bill, the main vehicle for President Donald Trump’s legislative agenda, would roll back clean energy initiatives and permitting barriers for energy projects.

The bill would have “a tremendous impact” on the energy sector, said Rep. Vince Fong (R-Calif.).

“The focus of our energy dominant strategy is to increase domestic production, streamline the process, build in needed infrastructure and allow these projects to develop faster at scale,” said Fong, who represents California’s Central Valley, a major energy producing region.

Beyond reconciliation, lawmakers on both sides of the aisle have introduced dozens of energy-related bills, including legislation to curb offshore drilling and a measure that would repeal the restriction on natural gas exports and imports. 

In this segment, we take a closer look at the key legislations and policy moves that will shape the energy industry into the future.

Reconciliation: The House-passed reconciliation bill included several major changes around energy law. The Senate could also put in more tweaks.

The Congressional Budget Office predicts roughly $5 billion in various programs created or funded by the Inflation Reduction Act will be rescinded. The IRA was a signature legislation passed under the Biden administration.

For example, the bill would eliminate clean vehicle credits in most cases by the end of this year.

However, the Senate is taking a more measured approach, seeking to scale back some of the House’s clean energy restrictions.

Democrats are warning Republicans about possible job losses and stalled projects if they go too far in trying to curb back these types of initiatives created under the Biden administration.

A 2024 U.S. Energy and Employment report found that hundreds of thousands of jobs were created in the clean energy sector under the Biden administration, including thousands of jobs added to GOP-dominated states.

Sen. Ed Markey (D-Mass.) said if the U.S. rescinds its role as a leader in clean energy production, China would take the top position.

“We’re working hard to explain what catastrophic economic consequences would be for their states but also for the country if the Chinese become the dominant leader in clean energy,” Markey said of his GOP colleagues.

From the administration: The current administration has been focused on making the United States a leading energy producer, with Trump, on his first day, revoking several climate-related and green energy executive orders implemented by the Biden administration.

The administration has placed a heavier emphasis on fossil fuels and is working to ease regulations on electricity generators like coal-fired power plants.

Key among those moves is a proposed rule by the Environmental Protection Agency that would repeal clean air protections that the Obama and Biden administrations put in place under the Clean Air Act.

The Trump EPA asserts that greenhouse gas emissions rules and the Mercury and Air Toxics Standards are costly and burdensome on the power sector and are to blame for the closures of multiple coal-fired power plants.

The agency says the rule would save power plants $19 billion in regulatory costs over two decades. Democrats and public health advocates warn that easing regulations on carbon dioxide and toxic emissions will have serious consequences for air safety and the environment as the power sector is the second-leading source of toxic air pollution.

Elsewhere on the Hill: Besides the reconciliation measure, several lawmakers are pushing other priorities that would impact future energy production.

Rep. August Pfluger (R-Texas) is pushing to streamline the process for exporting liquefied natural gas from the United States.

A bipartisan bill led by Rep. Frank Pallone (D-N.J.), the ranking member on the Energy and Commerce Committee, has a bill to amend the Outer Continental Shelf Lands Act to permanently prohibit offshore drilling on the Outer Continental Shelf in the Mid-Atlantic, South Atlantic, North Atlantic and Straits of Florida Planning areas.

GOP Reps. Brian Fitzpatrick (R-Pa.) and Tom Kean (R-N.J.) are cosponsors of the Democrat-led proposal.

— Mica Soellner