Support Increased Domestic Energy Production

Floor Speech

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Mr. WALBERG. Madam Speaker, I thank the gentleman from South Carolina (Mr. Duncan) for yielding.

Often during that polar vortex, I thought of South Carolina and sometimes wished that I could enjoy the warm breezes.

Madam Speaker, as a member of the House Energy Action Team as well as a proud member of the Energy and Commerce Committee serving on the Energy Subcommittee, I rise today about an important subject we have been talking about here, and that is American energy security and independence.

Madam Speaker, like many of my colleagues, I understand the importance of being a good steward of our environment. As an avid outdoorsman, a proud representative of the energy district of the Great Lakes State, a district that has wind, solar, nuclear, hydro, and coal power, along with natural gas, we have it all there. But I want my children and my grandchildren to experience the same beautiful world that I have experienced. In fact, Madam Speaker, I want them to experience even better.

We can do that in the use of our energy as well, but we are not going to get there through socialist policies like the Green New Deal that will cause energy prices to skyrocket and commit, really, a fraud on the American people.

Instead, we should focus on solutions that spur innovation and encourage investments in new technologies that support these goals while keeping a reliable, resilient grid. These investments are happening now, but the transition needs to happen in an orderly way that doesn't hinder economic growth or the security of our country.

One step we can take right now is to update our energy policies for the 21st century. The energy landscape looks totally different than it did 40 years ago. Energy resources are abundant instead of scarce. It is a more diverse market than ever before, and it will continue.

With that in mind, I introduced H.R. 1502, the PURPA Modernization Act. The bill simply increases competition and reforms outdated regulations from the 1970s, so that consumers are not burdened with unnecessary costs on their utility bills coming from stale, outdated green energy regulations.

We also can't forget that an all-of-the-above energy approach will continue to utilize safe, clean, and resilient nuclear-based power, like that produced at the Fermi plants in my district.

Getting new technologies, like advanced carbon capture, out of a lab and into the market is also crucial. This past winter, we saw the importance of baseload power when temperatures in Michigan and other places in the north plummeted to lower than 40 degrees below zero.

I would point my colleagues to bipartisan legislation that I helped introduce last week with my friend and colleague from Texas, Representative Crenshaw, which would provide a jump-start to those innovative technologies at commercial scale.

In closing, Madam Speaker, let's get to work on legislating, not political messaging. The American people sent us here to work on solutions that impact their pocketbooks and, yes, also promote their pursuit of happiness. That is what America is about: unleashing American energy. And bringing down prices for families we represent is certainly an important crucial discussion to have.

Madam Speaker, I thank the chairman tonight for leading this.

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