[Congressional Bills 119th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H. Res. 57 Introduced in House (IH)]
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119th CONGRESS
1st Session
H. RES. 57
Recognizing the benefits of natural gas to the United States economy
and environment, and recognizing natural gas as an affordable and
``green'' energy.
_______________________________________________________________________
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
January 23, 2025
Mr. Balderson (for himself, Mr. Pfluger, Ms. Tenney, and Mr. Meuser)
submitted the following resolution; which was referred to the Committee
on Energy and Commerce, and in addition to the Committee on Natural
Resources, for a period to be subsequently determined by the Speaker,
in each case for consideration of such provisions as fall within the
jurisdiction of the committee concerned
_______________________________________________________________________
RESOLUTION
Recognizing the benefits of natural gas to the United States economy
and environment, and recognizing natural gas as an affordable and
``green'' energy.
Whereas Public Law 117-169 (commonly referred to as the ``Inflation Reduction
Act of 2022'') established a punitive fee on methane emissions, which
will result in a regressive tax on all Americans, including low-income
and fixed-income Americans;
Whereas a natural gas tax or methane emissions fee results in higher costs to
natural gas customers, including families, farmers, and small
businesses;
Whereas any natural gas tax or methane emissions fee will disproportionately
impact natural gas producing regions, and businesses across the natural
gas supply will be harmed by government-imposed taxes and fees;
Whereas, since 2005, two-thirds of the power sector greenhouse gas emissions
reductions are a direct result of the switch to natural gas;
Whereas, because of increased innovation and technology in the natural gas
industry, United States methane emissions were 10 percent lower in 2020
compared to 2005, despite the United States increasing production of
natural gas by nearly 100 percent between 2005 to 2020;
Whereas, according to the Energy Information Administration, using natural gas
to generate energy results in fewer emissions of nearly all types of air
pollutants, including carbon dioxide, compared to other fossil fuels;
Whereas, according to the Environmental Protection Agency, since 1970, combined
emissions of criteria and precursor pollutants have dropped by 78
percent in the United States;
Whereas, in 2021, 45 percent of the European Union's natural gas imports were
from Russia, accounting for 155,000,000,000 cubic meters of liquefied
natural gas;
Whereas, on March 9, 2022, the European Commission approved a Complementary
Climate Delegated Act that specifies certain nuclear and natural gas
activities are covered by the European Union taxonomy and thus
considered ``green'' investments;
Whereas the European Commission's Complementary Climate Delegated Act allows
natural gas and nuclear energy activities to be considered as renewable
or green investments, which will spur private and public investments in
natural gas and nuclear energy and make Europe less reliant on Russian
energy in the future;
Whereas, on March 25, 2022, the United States announced an agreement with the
European Union for the United States to supply the European Union with
up to 15,000,000,000 additional cubic meters of liquefied natural gas by
the end of 2022;
Whereas, in November 2022, an energy security agreement between the United
States and European Union implied that Europe would seek up to
147,000,000,000 cubic meters of liquified natural gas imports in 2023;
Whereas, on January 26, 2024, President Biden announced a ban on the approval
process of liquified natural gas export permits to countries that do not
have a free trade agreement with the United States;
Whereas United States liquified natural gas exports helped reduce natural gas
prices in Europe by over 83 percent from 2022 levels;
Whereas the Department of Energy's National Energy Technology Laboratory
estimates that American liquified natural gas exported to Europe is 41
percent cleaner than Russian liquified natural gas exported to Europe;
Whereas the International Energy Agency predicts global demand for natural gas
will increase by 57 percent by 2050, and an additional 240,000,000,000
cubic meters per year of liquified natural gas export capacity is needed
by 2050;
Whereas increased usage of natural gas domestically will also reduce United
States dependence on foreign energy and strengthen United States
national security; and
Whereas natural gas is abundant in the United States, and the Energy Information
Administration estimates the United States has enough dry natural gas to
last nearly a century, and the potential for even more with advances in
technology and exploration: Now, therefore, be it
Resolved, That the House of Representatives--
(1) recognizes natural gas produced in the United States as
an affordable and ``green'' energy;
(2) recognizes that the United States should be committed
to an ``all of the above'' approach to meet United States
energy needs, and that natural gas is necessary for the United
States to be energy dominant; and
(3) supports efforts of the Trump administration, including
the Department of Energy and the Department of the Interior, to
increase domestic production of natural gas and natural gas
infrastructure, identify and remove barriers to the production
of natural gas, and expedite the approval of new liquified
natural gas export facilities in the United States.
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