WASHINGTON, D.C. (WOAY) – Congresswoman Carol Miller joined seven other representatives in sending a letter to House and Senate leadership, asking that the Energy and Water Appropriations Act for Fiscal Year 2024 prohibit the use of funds to change the procedures for the export of liquefied natural gas (LNG).
In addition to Miller, Representatives Henry Cuellar (D-TX), Guy Reschenthaler (R-PA), Vicente Gonzalez (D-TX), Alex Mooney (R-WV), Jim Costa (D-CA), Michael Cloud (R-TX), and Mary Sattler Peltola (D-AK) signed the letter.
It is in response to the Biden administration’s decision to pause new permits for LNG exports. That decision was announced Jan. 26.
“During this period, we will take a hard look at the impacts of LNG exports on energy costs, America’s energy security, and our environment. This pause on new LNG approvals sees the climate crisis for what it is: the existential threat of our time,” President Biden said in a statement at the time.
Representatives are asking that federal funds granted by the Energy and Water Appropriation Act not be allowed to change the permitting and approval process for the export of natural gas.
According to Miller, Congress has the power to limit the Biden administration via its control over the budget.
“The letter basically is a request that we as a Congress use our constitutional authority as the funders of the government, to stop the administration from using a rule to make changes to the current permitting process,” Miller told WOAY Monday afternoon. “Leave our LNG alone.”
The letter disputes the Biden administration’s environmental concerns, saying that gas produced in the United States is cleaner than in Russia.
“The Department of Energy has also confirmed that American LNG is up to 30% cleaner than Russian natural gas, and if we do not fulfill the demand for LNG and let other countries like Russia control the markets, emissions will continue to rise,” it read.
Further, the letter argues that the decision “threatens national security, the economy, and clean energy goals.”
“In the wake of Vladimir Putin’s invasion of Ukraine in 2021, our European allies have nearly tripled their import of U.S. LNG while significantly reducing their reliance on Russian natural gas. This has cemented the United States’ status as the top exporter of LNG in the world. The U.S. natural gas industry supports more than 10 million American jobs and supported nearly $1.8 trillion in U.S. gross domestic product in 2021.”
