McCollum Vote on H.R. 7176
Mr. Speaker, I rise in opposition to H.R. 7176, the Unlocking our Domestic LNG Potential Act of 2024.
This bill would open the floodgates for gas exports that enrich our adversaries, raise consumer energy costs, and accelerate the climate crisis. Mr. Speaker, why would Republicans want to export our natural resources to foreign adversaries without even considering if those exports will harm everyday Americans? This bill does just that. H.R. 7176 removes the requirement that the Department of Energy (DOE) first determine if liquified natural gas (LNG) exports are in the public interest before approving export applications to countries with whom the U.S. does not have a free trade agreement. By removing essential safeguards, this bill will allow our adversaries, like China, to purchase even more of our natural resources to use against us.
This bill is nothing more than a giant handout to Republicans’ big oil and gas friends, and hard-working Americans will pay the price with higher home energy costs. H.R. 7176 is detrimental to my constituents who already have to deal with volatile fossil fuel costs and gas prices being manipulated by the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC). Big oil and gas corporations don’t need another handout from Congressional Republicans. They already enjoy billions in taxpayer-funded subsidies and continue to rake in record-breaking profits.
The U.S. is the number one exporter of LNG worldwide, and U.S. exports are expected to double by the end of this decade. Last November, I joined my colleagues in the House and Senate in sending a letter to DOE urging the agency to update how it determines if new licenses for LNG exports are in the public interest. I was pleased to see the Biden administration’s announcement in January that DOE would pause approvals for pending and future applications to export LNG from new projects until the agency can update the public interest analyses for authorizations. President Biden’s decision will ensure that impacts on costs to American families and businesses, climate impacts, and environmental justice are factored in when approving LNG exports. I commend President Biden for his commitment to leading the way in ambitious climate action.
This is the third time that I have voted on this bill on the House Floor in the 118th Congress. For the third time, I urge my colleagues to reject H.R. 7176 and the Republicans’ radical agenda that puts polluters over people.
Thank you, and I yield back.