Protecting the Rights and Safety of Women

Floor Speech

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Mrs. FEDORCHAK. Mr. Speaker, I am proud to represent all North Dakotans in the United States House of Representatives. This is my first speech on the House floor, and I want to take this opportunity to tell you a little bit about our State and what I hope to accomplish during the 119th Congress.

North Dakotans are hardworking, independent, resourceful people who are dedicated to their faith, families, and communities. From Abercrombie to Zap, and every place in between, North Dakotans show up every day, regardless of rain, snow, or subzero temperatures. That is what I will do here.

Our biggest industries in North Dakota are agriculture and energy. We are very proud of those, but we have so many other innovative things taking place: autonomous systems, artificial intelligence, defense technology, and more.

This is why I sought a seat on the Committee on Energy and Commerce, one of the best and most powerful committees on Capitol Hill. From my seat there, I will help advance the interests of our State, particularly in energy.

Before I became a Member of Congress, I served as a public service commissioner for 12 years. I regulated five multistate monopoly utilities, permitted $15 billion worth of new energy infrastructure, and advocated for market rules and policies to support reliable and affordable energy resources.

I saw firsthand the challenges to our energy policy and the direct and dire consequences it has. North Dakotans, and Americans, too, have also seen the impacts of these policies and the prices they pay at the grocery store, at the gas pump, and to power their homes.

American energy reliability, affordability, sustainability, and security are the weakest they have been in years. Take yesterday's action by the Biden administration to lock up millions of acres of oil, gas, and coal leases in North Dakota through the Bureau of Land Management's resource management plan for the State. This is absolutely the wrong direction.

As demand for energy reaches record highs, we should be unleashing American energy production, not shutting it down. It is time to abandon the one-size energy strategy that stifles domestic energy production and jeopardizes hardworking Americans' jobs.

I am eager to work with the Trump administration, Governor Burgum, and my colleagues in the House to invest in a true all-of-the-above energy strategy and regain American energy dominance. Doing so will help reduce America's debt, lower prices for hardworking families, reduce global emissions, and bolster our national security.

I also rise today in support of H.R. 28, the Protection of Women and Girls in Sports Act of 2025. This legislation seeks to make sure women and girls have the opportunity to compete on a fair playing field by requiring schools to comply with Title IX recognition of a person's gender at birth.

Competing in girls' sports as a kid gave me strength, taught me resilience, and helped me form lifelong friendships. My experience as a kid would have been completely different if I had been forced to compete against biological males.

Let's let our kids be kids. Let's let our daughters dream big, train hard, and compete on a level playing field.

H.R. 28 is a commonsense bill. It strengthens protections for women, and I was proud to vote for it. Men simply do not belong in women's sports, and House Republicans are leading the charge to ensure fairness for women and girls.

Yet, our commitment to women and families doesn't just stop there. Last week, we also passed the Laken Riley Act, which will give Immigration and Customs Enforcement the tools it needs to hold illegal immigrants who commit theft and other crimes accountable.

This is the Republican agenda in action. We are protecting women, supporting families, and making our communities safer. This is just the beginning of our work.

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