Lower Energy Costs Act

Floor Speech

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Mr. FULCHER. Madam Chair, I rise in support of H.R. 1, which will reinsert America back to its proper place as the world's leader in energy and critical mineral production.

My home State of Idaho is blessed to be rich in natural resources, especially when it comes to critical minerals. Right now, there are revolutionary innovations in technology industries, transportation, and healthcare, and they all have one thing in common: an increasing need for certain critical minerals.

Idaho contains an abundance of these minerals, including cobalt, lithium, and antimony. These resources not only can help the United States meet domestic demand, but they can also help fulfill global demand and bring prosperity to communities lacking high-paying jobs.

As part of the Energy and Commerce Committee, I voted for many of these provisions in H.R. 1 that support access to critical minerals in American soil and require the Department of Energy to identify resources vulnerable to supply chain disruptions.

Unfortunately, the Biden administration has proliferated policies that have ceded America's place as a responsible, productive source of critical minerals to foreign nations, many of which are hostile to Americans.

For example, instead of Idaho and America producing the world's antimony, China and Russia account for more than 75 percent of the world's supply. Instead of Idaho and America fulfilling the global demand for cobalt, it comes from the Democratic Republic of the Congo, a country with a horrifically bad human rights record. That has to change.

Madam Chair, today, we offer Americans an all-of-the-above energy strategy that will reverse the America last policies currently in place. H.R. 1 will secure domestic energy supply and allow America to control its own destiny by restoring its position as a global leader in production.

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