Press Releases

WASHINGTON, D.C. – Today, the Congressional Western Caucus and House Committee on Oversight and Reform Republicans hosted a joint forum on rising American energy prices titled, “Holding the Biden Administration Accountable for Skyrocketing Prices & Failing Energy Policies.” The forum, hosted by Chairman Dan Newhouse (WA-04), Vice Chair & Ranking Member of the Oversight and Reform Committee James Comer (KY-01), and Ranking Member of the Oversight Environment Subcommittee Ralph Norman (SC-05) examined the Biden Administration’s energy policies and their impacts on energy costs and prices at the pump across the United States. Click here to watch the forum.
 
“This past year presented the United States with an opportunity – an opportunity to capitalize on our energy and climate leadership by investing in domestic energy production. This opportunity was squandered by the Biden Administration,” said Chairman Newhouse. “High energy, oil, and gas prices are not a failure of industry, but rather a failure of anti-energy policies that have artificially restricted supply with continued threaten to handcuff industry’s ability to provide affordable and reliable energy when people need it most. President Biden must unleash America’s resource potential and protect our nationwide gains toward energy leadership, national security, and climate progress. Instead, his policies are failing the American people.”
 
“Last November, we wrote to Chairwoman Maloney requesting a hearing on this subject but we still haven’t gotten a response. In the meantime, Democrats have been busy attacking America’s domestic energy production and pushing expensive Green New Deal policy dreams that are a nightmare for the American people,” said Vice Chair Comer, Ranking Member of the House Committee on Oversight and Reform. “…Just a few short years ago, the United States was experiencing an energy renaissance – we even became a strong exporter of oil and natural gas, allowing us to compete on the global stage. But President Biden’s policies threaten the jobs and investments that hardworking Americans spent so long creating. President Biden and his Democrat allies have proven they are not equipped to deal with these issues. We need leaders who are willing to work with industry and confront the policy issues that are at the forefront of American’s minds. Working with my colleagues on the Western Caucus, I believe we can provide these solutions.”
 
“I sit on the Oversight Committee as the Ranking Member on the Environment Subcommittee, and I’ve learned first-hand that Democrats are focused on destroying our domestic energy industry and the jobs it provides to distract us from the fact they have no plan to preserve our energy workforce or energy independence,” said Rep. Norman, Ranking Member of the Oversight and Reform Subcommittee on the Environment. “…The oil and gas industry provides good paying jobs that help Americans reliably heat their houses, power their cars, and keep the lights on through the storm and when the sun doesn’t shine. The United States has abundant clean energy natural resources. We must use those resources to advance American interests while continuing to lead the world in emissions reductions. This is the path forward, but Democrats want to block it at every chance they get.”
 
Over 20 Western Caucus and Oversight Members participated in the forum. They heard from five expert witnesses who described how the Biden Administration’s energy agenda is failing the American people, as well as what we can do to strengthen our energy industry, bolster the economy, and secure energy independence:

• Leslie Beyer, CEO of the Energy Workforce & Technology Council
• Kathleen Sgamma, President of the Western Energy Alliance (WEA)
• Thomas Pyle, President of the American Energy Alliance
• Heather Reams, President of Citizens for Responsible Energy Solutions (CRES)
• Katie Tubb, Senior Policy Analyst, Energy and Environment, for the Heritage Foundation

 
Background:
 
In November 2021, Ranking Member Comer led Oversight and Reform Republicans in sending a letter to Chairwoman Maloney requesting a hearing on rising energy prices throughout the United States. The request was never fulfilled.
 
As the United States recovers from the economic depression caused by COVID-19, the Biden Administration has underinvested in – and directly attacked the viability of – baseload energy resources, such as oil and natural gas, resulting in skyrocketing energy prices. The reckless and irresponsible actions of President Biden have created uncertainty in U.S. energy markets and made it even more difficult for consumers to find reliable and affordable energy.
 
According to the U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA), energy prices rose more than other commodities in 2021. Not only were costs to heat homes and keep the lights on more expensive, but traveling for the holidays was significantly more expensive as well. Around Thanksgiving, KAYAK noted the average rental car price was up 66% from the previous year and up more than 75% from before the pandemic started, and in December 2021, gas prices were up $1.12 from the same time last year.