Repealing of Greenhouse Gas Reduction Fund

Floor Speech

Mr. Speaker, I rise in strong opposition to H.R. 1023, legislation that repeals the Methane Emissions Reduction Program and the Greenhouse Gas Reduction Fund, which are two landmark programs included in the Inflation Reduction Act.

Now, these two programs work to slash dangerous climate pollution and invest in communities across the country all while lowering the deficit. This bill is nothing more than another shameless giveaway to Republicans' corporate polluter friends at the American people's expense.

What is more, this is the third time Republicans have brought bills to repeal these programs to the House floor. Clearly, my Republican colleagues are struggling to come up with new ideas and are resorting to the same tired old stunts that we have all come to expect.

H.R. 1023 is more of the same. It is the latest in a long line of politicized attempts to reverse course on climate action and reject the historic progress Democrats made toward securing a cleaner, stronger future.

Moreover, Mr. Speaker, make no mistake, the progress Democrats delivered with the Inflation Reduction Act was historic. It finally put us on track to meet our climate goals, and at the same time it has already created more than 271,000 new, good-paying clean energy jobs right here at home.

These are jobs for electricians, construction workers, mechanics, and technicians that can't be shipped overseas. Of course, more than one- half of these jobs and clean energy projects are in districts represented by my Republican colleagues who, right now, are fighting to take them away. It is just unconscionable, and it defies logic.

The United States now experiences a $1 billion or more extreme weather event every 3 weeks, and that is unprecedented in our Nation's history. It underscores just how critical it is that we reduce greenhouse gas pollution and invest in the clean energy jobs that will carry our economy into the future.

Nonetheless, Republicans flat out refuse to hold polluters accountable for the damage they cause. Instead, they are doubling down on their polluters over people agenda with this bill that repeals the Methane Emissions Reduction Program. This program provides incentives to drive down methane pollution, one of the most dangerous and potent greenhouse gases. Methane pollution is responsible for a whole host of health risks and a full one-third of the warming we are experiencing today.

Now, we are likely to hear false claims from Republicans that this is a tax. We have already heard that from my colleague. Nonetheless, it is not a tax. It simply ensures that polluters and not the American people pay for the methane pollution that they cause. It corrects a market failure that currently makes it cheaper for owners and operators to waste methane rather than install or upgrade equipment to prevent leaks and flaring. These are real problems because leaked and intentionally wasted natural gas never makes its way to customers, but they are, nevertheless, stuck with the bill.

The Methane Emissions Reduction Program fixes that and ensures that consumers no longer pay for wasted energy or the harm it causes. Additionally, of course, companies can avoid paying the waste emissions charge altogether by not wasting methane. Wasted methane is bad for business, it is bad for Americans, and it is bad for the climate. H.R. 1023 would allow this waste to continue to go unchecked.

The Methane Emissions Reduction Program also complements the Biden administration's actions to slash methane pollution from the oil and gas sector, and the international community is following suit. Last year, I was at the COP28, and countries around the world committed to accelerating their efforts to control this dangerous pollution. This is the climate conference held in Dubai.

These commitments were possible from other countries because of the United States' leadership in addressing methane here at home. That is why Republican efforts to undermine methane protections is so dangerous, as well. The Republican agenda compromises America's global leadership and threatens our global competitiveness. So the bottom line is that if we move ahead and try to reduce methane and recycle it, if you will, then other countries will follow suit.

Also, the Methane Emissions Reduction Program brings in funds that benefit the American people.

So how are Republicans paying for the repeal of the methane program?

They are repealing another key Inflation Reduction Act program, the Greenhouse Gas Reduction Fund. They are using that to pay for the loss of funding for the Federal Government from the Methane Emissions Reduction Program.

The other fund that they repealed, the Greenhouse Gas Reduction Fund, invests $27 billion to mobilize financing to address the climate crisis, lower Americans' energy bills, promote job creation, and revitalize our community. It is a direct investment in the communities we are here to represent, and this Republican bill takes those investments away.

The Biden administration, right now, is hard at work establishing this Greenhouse Gas Reduction Fund. Various nonprofits, States, and local governments have submitted applications for funding for grants for their projects. Republican efforts to repeal the fund at this stage of the implementation process is robbing our communities of the money that they need and deserve to grow our middle class, create new jobs, and protect our families from the most catastrophic impacts of the climate crisis.

This is sort of like a green bank. In other words, a lot of towns, States, and nonprofits can't get money from regular financing to finance clean energy projects, and so we are helping them with this green bank or Greenhouse Gas Reduction Fund.

Mr. Speaker, H.R. 1023, the bill on the floor, is a failed proposal that will never become law and that helps absolutely no one except the worst corporate polluters. Big Oil and Gas don't need more help. They get plenty of help from tax exemptions, but the American people need some help. They need some help in moving toward clean energy and reducing all these weather catastrophes that we have and creating new jobs. That is what we are doing.

Mr. Speaker, don't let that all stop because of the Republicans' ideological effort here today to say that we don't need these things. We do need them, and that is why I encourage all of my colleagues to join me in opposing this bill.

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Mr. PALLONE. Madam Speaker, may I inquire as to how much time is remaining.

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Mr. PALLONE. Madam Speaker, I yield 5 minutes to the gentlewoman from Florida (Ms. Castor), the ranking member of our Oversight and Investigations Subcommittee and the previous chair of the Select Committee on the Climate Crisis.

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Mr. PALLONE. Madam Speaker, I yield 3 minutes to the gentleman from Illinois (Mr. Casten).

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Mr. PALLONE. Madam Speaker, I yield myself the balance of my time for the purpose of closing.

My colleague from Florida referred to this week as dirty energy week, and I think that really kind of sums it up. It is not energy week. It is dirty energy week.

I think that maybe I can best describe why this bill is so bad and contributes to dirty energy week by quoting parts of the Statement of Administration Policy that was submitted by the White House, by President Biden in saying that he would veto this bill which, of course, means that what we are doing here today is a complete waste of time.

In his Statement of Administration Policy, the President says:

``This bill would eliminate two key provisions of the Inflation Reduction Act (IRA). Through the implementation of the Inflation Reduction Act, the administration is making unprecedented progress in protecting America's energy security and reducing energy costs for Americans--in their homes and in their communities.

``H.R. 1023 would do just the opposite, repealing programs that provide nonregulatory incentives that help address climate pollution and provide consumer savings. The Greenhouse Gas Reduction Fund will provide $27 billion for the deployment of clean energy technologies that will cut energy costs and drive economic development in communities across the country and in various sectors of our economy, including in the power and transportation sectors.

``The Methane Emissions Reduction Program provides $1.55 billion in investments to identify and help industry curb methane leaks from oil and natural gas production, helping to prevent energy waste and reducing harm to surrounding communities, including communities that are overburdened by pollution.

``The administration wants to work with Congress to lower energy costs, deploy clean energy technologies, and create jobs. H.R. 1023 would take us backward and repeal important programs that help achieve those goals.''

Now, again, the Republicans call this week energy week. It is, in fact, dirty energy week. With House Republicans at the helm, we have seen nothing but chaos, efforts to push failed bills again and again-- this is the third time we have voted on this bill--and attempts by the Republicans to rob American families of energy savings, security, and peace of mind.

Republican leadership has resulted in the least productive Congress since the Great Depression, and, unfortunately, this bill is more of the same. While Democrats and the Biden administration are making great progress toward protecting America's energy security and lowering energy costs for families, Republicans continue to push their polluters over people agenda. Polluters over people. That is what they are all about.

This bill endangers Americans' health and safety. It will do nothing for American families. It is a complete waste of taxpayer dollars and our time. I mean, we keep doing this over and over again. It is a waste of time. I urge my colleagues to vote ``no,'' and I yield back the balance of my time.

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