For two years, Americans have suffered the consequences of reckless and misguided energy policy. From day one of his administration, President Biden has waged an all-out war on American fossil fuel production that has contributed to record inflation and weakened our national security. Thankfully, last week I was able to vote in favor of H.R. 1, the Lower Energy Costs Act, which passed in a bipartisan fashion in the United States House of Representatives.
When the cost of energy goes up, so does the cost of everything else that Americans rely on. With an abundance of energy resources on American soil, we should never be faced with the decision between buying groceries and paying rent. Unfortunately, that’s a story we’ve heard too many times from folks who are struggling to make ends meet in the current economic climate.
H.R. 1 is designed to fight back against radical climate policies that have halted production and led to record inflation. This starts with an overhaul of the permitting processes to increase the speed of construction on key energy infrastructure projects. From pipelines to transmission and water infrastructure, bureaucratic red tape has gotten in the way for far too long. Provisions such as repealing the national gas tax and reforming the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) will help streamline and simplify the process for American producers who often wait years and spend millions of dollars before breaking ground on projects that are critical to our economic growth.
Iowa is the top fuel ethanol producing state in the nation and provides about a quarter of the nation’s ethanol production capacity. Our cornfields produce over 4 billion gallons of ethanol production in 42 plants around the state. Iowa also leads the nation contributing nearly one fifth of all biodiesel production and is the second largest wind producer in the country. H.R. 1 will support and protect our critical energy producers as we continue to lead the nation.
Until we can increase efficiency, it’s imperative that we take an any-of-the-above approach to American energy production. This means taking advantage of the natural resources available in each state, whether that’s wind, hydro, solar, or biological materials. This strategy will lead to lower costs for Americans and will help us achieve our strategic interests abroad. Energy security is a critical part of our national security, and it’s time we prioritize domestic energy production.
