Energy

WASHINGTON, D.C.  – Congressman Bob Latta (OH-05), Chairman of the Subcommittee on Energy, delivered the following opening statement at today’s markup of eight bills. Subcommittee Chairman Latta’s opening statement as prepared for delivery: “Welcome to today’s Energy subcommittee markup of 8 bills to restore consumer choice, reduce energy and housing costs, and remove burdensome regulatory structures. “When selecting appliances or equipment for their home or business, Americans take many factors into consideration: cost, reliability, size, and durability to name a few. It is imperative consumers have a wide range of products so they can choose what works best for their needs. “Under the last administration, nearly 30 energy efficiency standards were issued, totaling over $60 billion in costs and removing products from the market, resulting in fewer options for Americans. “H.R. 4626, the Don’t Mess with My Home Appliances Act, would amend the Energy Policy and Conservation Act to reform the statutory procedures for issuing or amending energy efficiency standards. “This will result in standards that truly meet the statutory requirements of EPCA and provide both manufacturers and consumers with certainty. “Especially as we head into winter, consumers must have access to durable, affordable appliances to perform critical functions, like home heating, while still prioritizing energy efficiency and associated cost-savings. “Airtight building envelopes are also important for consumers, especially in the colder months, to keep warmth in and utility bills low. That is why the subcommittee will be considering H.R. 4758, the Homeowner Energy Freedom Act, to repeal sections of the Inflation Reduction Act that essentially bribed states to recklessly adopt unamended building codes.    “Brian Tebbenkemp, a witness in September’s legislative hearing, said it best, ‘I think we can all agree that American families deserve safe, strong, and efficient homes, but we need a better pathway forward that gives local control, encourages innovation, and keeps homes within the reach of Americans. “The passage of H.R. 4758 is an important step towards accomplishing that shared goal. “The subcommittee will also consider H.R. 4690, the Reliable Federal Infrastructure Act, to repeal section 433 of the Energy Independence and Security Act, which required DOE to phase out fossil fuel use in federal buildings across the country. “This policy, which was opposed by even the Obama Administration, not only poses a significant national security risk, but it could in fact increase energy consumption as the direct use of natural gas is about 92 percent efficient, compared to 33 percent for electricity. That is a significant delta. “Energy efficiency, not bans, are important to prioritize for our federal buildings. I look forward to considering H.R. 3474, the Federal Mechanical Insulation Act, which is bipartisan legislation to require an assessment of whether mechanical insulation should be installed or updated in federal building energy audits. This is a commonsense measure that truly prioritizes energy efficiency. “The subcommittee will also consider H.R. 3699, the Energy Choice Act, which prohibits any state or local policy from banning access to an energy service based on the type or source of energy that is sold. States like New York, which banned natural gas use, are forcing consumers to incur significant costs while jeopardizing their reliability during the winter months. This must change. “Duplicative standards and regulations have also impacted housing, appliance, and equipment affordability for millions of Americans. H.R. 5184, the Affordable HOMES Act, will repeal duplicative energy efficiency standards for manufactured housing, and H.R. 4593, the SHOWER Act, will codify a simple definition of a showerhead, providing more options for consumers. “Lastly, the subcommittee will consider H.R. 1355, the Weatherization Enhancement and Readiness Act of 2025, with the understanding that we hope to reach a bipartisan agreement prior to a Full Committee markup. I thank the gentleman from New York and minority professional staff for continuing to work with us towards a compromise. “The suite of legislation before us today represents an opportunity for this Committee to implement reforms that re-prioritize energy efficiency policies towards the items that matter most to consumers: affordability, availability, and durability. I urge all my colleagues to support these pieces of legislation.” ###

WASHINGTON, D.C.  – Today, Congressman Brett Guthrie (KY-02), Chairman of the House Committee on Energy and Commerce, and Congressman Bob Latta (OH-05), Chairman of the Subcommittee on Energy, announced a subcommittee markup of eight bills. WHAT : Subcommittee on Energy markup of eight bills. DATE: Wednesday, November 19, 2025 TIME: 10:15 AM ET LOCATION: 2123 Rayburn House Office Building Items to be considered: H.R. 3474 , Federal Mechanical Insulation Act (Rep. Weber) H.R. 3699 , Energy Choice Act (Rep. Langworthy) H.R. 5184 , Affordable Housing Over Mandating Efficiency Standards (Affordable HOMES) Act (Rep. Houchin)  H.R. 4690 , Reliable Federal Infrastructure Act (Rep. Langworthy) H.R. 4593 , Saving Homeowners from Overregulation With Exceptional Rinsing (SHOWER) Act (Rep. Fry)  H.R. 4758 , Homeowner Energy Freedom Act (Rep. Goldman) H.R. 4626 , Don’t Mess With My Home Appliances Act (Rep. Allen) H.R. 1355 , Weatherization Enhancement and Readiness Act of 2025 (Rep. Tonko) This notice is at the direction of the Chairman. The markup will be open to the public and press and will be livestreamed online at energycommerce.house.gov . If you have any questions concerning this hearing, please contact Calvin Huggins at Calvin.Huggins1@mail.house.gov . If you have any press-related questions, please contact Ben Mullany at Ben.Mullany@mail.house.gov . ###

WASHINGTON, D.C.  – This week, the House Committee on Energy and Commerce is holding two Subcommittee Hearings and two Subcommittee Markups. Read more below. SUBCOMMITTEE MARKUP: The Energy and Commerce Subcommittee on Communications and Technology will hold a markup of 28 bills to streamline broadband permitting. DATE: Tuesday, November 18, 2025  TIME: 10:15 AM ET  LOCATION: 2123 Rayburn House Office Building SUBCOMMITTEE HEARING: The Energy and Commerce Subcommittee on Oversight and Investigations is holding a hearing to examine the risks and benefits of AI chatbots. DATE: Tuesday, November 18, 2025  TIME: 2:00 PM ET  LOCATION: 2123 Rayburn House Office Building SUBCOMMITTEE MARKUP: The Energy and Commerce Subcommittee on Energy will hold a markup of eight bills to reform appliance and building policies. DATE: Wednesday, November 19, 2025  TIME: 10:15 AM ET  LOCATION: 2123 Rayburn House Office Building SUBCOMMITTEE HEARING: The Energy and Commerce Subcommittee on Commerce, Manufacturing, and Trade is holding a hearing to examine time, travel, and tourism. DATE: Thursday, November 20, 2025  TIME: 10:00 AM ET  LOCATION: 2123 Rayburn House Office Building ###

WASHINGTON, D.C.  – Today, Congressman Brett Guthrie (KY-02), Chairman of the House Committee on Energy and Commerce, and Congressman Bob Latta (OH-05), Chairman of the Subcommittee on Energy, sent a letter to Dr. Fatih Birol, Executive Director of the International Energy Agency (IEA), highlighting the IEA’s decision to restore the inclusion of objective data analysis in the World Energy Outlook (WEO). By bringing back the Current Policies Scenario (CPS) in the report, the IEA is returning to its core mission and working to promote energy security. “Strengthening our nation’s energy security is vital to securing our grid, powering AI and domestic manufacturing, and ensuring that Americans have the energy resources they need,” said Chairmen Guthrie and Latta. “For the last several years, IEA forecasts incorrectly assumed the peak demand for oil and natural gas would come before 2030. As a result, these forecasts deterred investments by painting an inaccurate picture of what energy markets will need in the future. By finally standing up to activist pressure opposing the use of oil and natural gas to power our economy, the IEA will once again be able to provide the unbiased market forecasts decision makers rely on to provide reliable and affordable energy into the future.”   Key excerpts from the letter:   “Maintaining objective data analysis, free from activism, is imperative. The IEA has long stood as an invaluable source of unbiased data and analysis on the security of oil markets. The agency’s work carries significant weight for policymakers, the energy industry, and global financial firms. “Yet in 2020, the IEA, under pressure from climate activists eager to exploit the agency’s credibility to discourage oil and gas investment, abandoned its longstanding CPS, and began only publishing WEOs that relied on subjective scenarios that assumed different degrees of adherence to climate action agreements. These aggressive Stated Policies Scenarios (STEPS), rely heavily on policy aspirations, while ignoring market realities. “In the United States alone, oil and natural gas account for about 74 percent of the primary energy sources consumed every year, with natural gas accounting for approximately 43 percent of electric power generation. Due to artificial intelligence and other technologies, the U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA) forecasts significant natural gas demand growth over the next several years. As you know, the EIA maintains the use of a policy-neutral baseline reference case. “Politicized and censored demand scenarios can distort policy decisions and misguide capital investment. Just last year, the Biden-Harris Administration leveraged these questionable IEA projections, while ignoring EIA data, to support banning liquefied natural gas export projects. This decision discouraged sufficient capital allocation toward critical energy supplies and emboldened Russia’s war machine.”   CLICK HERE to read the full letter. ###

WASHINGTON, D.C.  – Yesterday, Congressman Brett Guthrie (KY-02), Chairman of the House Committee on Energy and Commerce, along with Congressman Bob Latta (OH-05), Chairman of the Subcommittee on Energy, penned a letter to Secretary Jennifer Granholm questioning the Department of Energy’s involvement in the Biden-Harris Administration’s decision to prevent new offshore oil and gas production, leading to higher prices for consumers and harming U.S. energy security. KEY LETTER EXCERPT: “Closing off swaths of U.S. offshore areas to energy production, as the Biden-Harris Administration reportedly intends to do, will lead to higher energy prices for American families, the loss of American jobs, and greatly diminish our country’s energy security. As the Secretary of Energy, you have an obligation to weigh in on this matter and insist on a full review of the energy security and economic impacts before any decisions are finalized. “The United States stands at an energy crossroads, facing mounting global security threats and soaring demand for power. Instead of leading the world in energy production, we’ve allowed misguided “green” policies to hamstring our potential. It’s time to unleash American energy dominance again—the federal government must become an ally, not an obstacle, to our nation’s energy security. We look forward to your prompt response to this request, no later than January 10, 2025.” Read the story  here . BACKGROUND: This morning, the Biden Administration announced that more than 625 million square miles of coastline would be off-limits for energy production. Republican Members of the House Committee on Energy and Commerce have continuously called on the Biden-Harris Administration to end its attack on American energy production before leaving office on January 20th. The letter requests an explanation of the DOE’s involvement in the decision and whether the White House or the Department of Interior consulted with the DOE about the plans to close off access to offshore resources. Any decision to shut down access to significant American energy resources impacts U.S. energy policy and should be reviewed by the DOE. The Biden Administration’s energy policies have continued to create major harm to America’s energy production and workforce. A unilateral ban on energy production in large swaths of the U.S. coastline will have lasting impacts on American energy production and security.

“DOE is threatening domestic jobs and economic development, weakening the energy security of European allies, and strengthening our adversaries” Washington, D.C. — House Energy and Commerce Committee Chair Cathy McMorris Rodgers (R-WA), Energy, Climate, and Grid Security Subcommittee Chair Jeff Duncan (R-SC), and Oversight and Investigations Subcommittee Chair Morgan Griffith (R-VA) sent a letter to Department of Energy (DOE) Secretary Jennifer Granholm demanding the agency stop rushing to prematurely release its anti-liquefied natural gas (LNG) study, which aims to hamstring the incoming Presidential administration. The letter also calls for DOE to lift the pause on LNG exports, which was a politically motivated decision by the Biden administration to appease radical environmental activists at the expense of American energy security and the security of our allies. KEY LETTER EXCERPTS: “Despite DOE’s prior findings and published reviews in favor of U.S. LNG exports, and contrary to DOE’s limited statutory authority under the NGA, the Biden administration’s DOE announced that it would expand its environmental review as part of a ‘managed transition’ to reduce use of fossil fuels. Recent press reports indicate that DOE is racing to complete a study on the climate impacts of LNG exports to hamper the incoming Republican administration and provide opportunities to challenge future project approvals in court.” [...] “ The results of the 2024 presidential election are clear, and DOE leadership will soon change. As a traditional part of the peaceful transfer of power, DOE should immediately stop work on any plans to expand the scope of review or add new conditions to LNG export licenses. DOE should immediately lift the ban on LNG export approvals in compliance with the NGA and the District Court order.” BACKGROUND: January 26, 2024 : The Biden administration announces indefinite “pause” on LNG export permits. Chair Rodgers immediately rebukes the decision, calling it a “gift to Putin.” February 5, 2024 : More than 150 House Republicans demand President Biden ends his de facto ban on American LNG exports. February 15, 2024 : E&C Republicans lead bipartisan passage of H.R. 7176 to reverse President Biden’s LNG export ban. April 8, 2024 : The Subcommittee on Energy, Climate, and Grid Security holds a field hearing in Port Arthur, Texas, with local leaders and energy workers to highlight the economic and public benefits of American energy production, including job creation. November 7, 2024 : Bloomberg Law reports that the “Biden administration is racing to complete a study that could complicate President-Elect Donald Trump’s plan to immediately approve new liquefied natural gas export terminals.” CLICK HERE to read the full letter.