The House passed legislation Thursday to overturn President Biden’s moratorium on new liquefied natural gas (LNG) exports, marking the latest instance of centrist Democrats joining Republicans to buck the president’s green energy agenda.
The bill, led by Texas GOP Rep. August Pfluger, passed 224-200, with nine Democrats joining the Republicans. It would lift the moratorium on new exports but faces an all-but-certain blockade in the Democrat-controlled Senate.
The Department of Energy last month stopped granting new applications for LNG exports pending a review to determine whether such projects are in the public’s best interest and how the agency can better factor climate change into its approvals.
Proponents of the House measure said the administration’s freeze would become a de facto ban on new exports of an American energy source relied upon heavily by allies. The U.S. quickly ascended to become the world’s largest LNG exporter after Russia’s invasion of Ukraine prompted European nations to ditch Russian gas.
“This ban will harm the American economy, jeopardize good paying jobs, weaken our energy security, and it threatens the security of our friends and allies,” said House Energy and Commerce Committee Chair Cathy McMorris Rodgers, Washington Republican. “President Biden’s ban sends a signal to our allies that we’re no longer a dependable energy partner.”
Democrats who support Mr. Biden’s export halt say that it helps prevent American LNG from going to China, and insulates domestic natural gas prices from increasing due to exporters receiving higher prices elsewhere.
The Republican bill assumes that all LNG exports are automatically in the public interest,” said Rep. Frank Pallone of New Jersey, the top Democrat on House Energy and Commerce. “This is utterly absurd, considering there is widespread consensus among researchers and economists that increasing LNG exports directly leads to higher natural gas prices here at home.”
Mr. Pallone said fears of the pause turning into a ban were based on “blatant disinformation” and accused Republicans who say Mr. Biden is abandoning allies of hypocrisy.
“I want to note how ridiculous it is to have the same Republicans who refuse to support aid for Ukraine lecture us on being good allies,” he said.
In announcing his policy last month, Mr. Biden conceded that he was responding to political pressure and said the action would help to address climate change.
“We will heed the calls of young people and frontline communities who are using their voices to demand action from those with the power to act,” the president said at the time.
Although receiving bipartisan support in the GOP-controlled House, the bill is dead on arrival in the Democratic-led Senate. Mr. Biden has also issued a veto threat.
Speaker Mike Johnson, Louisiana Republican, said Mr. Biden’s freeze amounts to a “setback for American workers and our overseas partners, and a victory for [Russian President] Vladimir Putin and radical climate activists.”
The nine Democratic defectors were Reps. Jared Golden of Maine; Vicente Gonzalez, Marc Veasey and Henry Cuellar of Texas; Mary Peltola of Alaska; Marie Gluesenkamp Perez and Rick Larsen of Washington; Yadira Caraveo of Colorado and Jim Costa of California.
A separate group of 10 House Democrats, which included Mr. Veasey, Ms. Peltola, Mr. Gonzalez and Mr. Costa, recently urged Mr. Biden to reverse course, arguing that LNG exports help U.S. allies and are critical for curbing global warming-emissions by replacing coal.
“The administration’s support for U.S. LNG is not only a boon for America but a beacon for the world’s pursuit of cleaner, more sustainable energy sources,” the Democrats wrote last week in a letter to Mr. Biden.