Restoring American Energy Dominance Act

Floor Speech

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Mr. LEVIN. Mr. Speaker, I rise today in opposition to H.R. 6009, the so-called Restoring America's Energy Dominance Act.

This legislation would gut critical provisions that I secured in the Inflation Reduction Act to ensure a fair return for American taxpayers as fossil fuel companies that extract on our public lands make record profits.

This bill undermines the Bureau of Land Management's current proposed rule that follows commonsense recommendations by the Government Accountability Office to protect taxpayers, including a change in royalty rates for the first time since they were established over a century ago.

For my colleagues who care so much about fiscal responsibility, the majority should be aware that, if this bill becomes law, Federal and State governments will lose out on billions of dollars of revenue.

This bill would also allow fossil fuel companies to completely disregard their responsibility to clean up after they cease drilling operations, potentially leaving the American people on the hook for over $6 billion in cleanup costs.

When oil and gas producers ignore their reclamation responsibilities, they leave their abandoned wells to contaminate our water supplies, degrade our ecosystems, and leave climate-warming methane emissions.

This is personal to me. My wife and I have two young kids at home. As many parents know, one of the first lessons we teach our kids is to clean up after themselves when they make a mess. Why on Earth would we give fossil fuel companies a free pass on this core responsibility?

Additionally, this bill would prevent BLM from directing oil and gas drilling away from areas that don't have a high potential for extraction to begin with. When fossil fuel companies stockpile cheap, unproductive leases, they unnecessarily put these lands and the important wildlife habitats they support at risk of development. It can also complicate any other use for these lands when appropriate, such as renewable energy projects.

H.R. 6009 would block BLM from balancing the extraction of oil and gas with the multitude of uses for our public lands, including the conservation of wildlife habitat, the preservation of landscapes sacred to indigenous peoples, outdoor recreation opportunities, and the list goes on.

My friends across the aisle will say this bill is necessary to increase American energy independence. I have heard that, in fact, several times this afternoon, but if we really want to talk about energy independence, we must focus on the transition to cleaner, cheaper, and safer domestic renewable energy, including modernizing our electric grid and making it easier to build transmission lines.

H.R. 6009 does absolutely none of that. This bill is a shameless giveaway of our public lands to Big Oil companies, which are raking in record profits and enjoying billions in taxpayer-funded subsidies while still charging working families high prices. It is long past time that fossil fuel companies pay their fair share and do their part to clean up after their actions.

Mr. Speaker, I urge my colleagues to oppose this bill.

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