[Congressional Record Volume 168, Number 48 (Thursday, March 17, 2022)]
[Senate]
[Pages S1256-S1257]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




 SENATE RESOLUTION 553--EXPRESSING THE SENSE OF THE SENATE THAT, SINCE 
  JANUARY 20, 2021, PRESIDENT BIDEN HAS IMPLEMENTED POLICIES IMPEDING 
   DOMESTIC ENERGY PRODUCTION AND GAS PRICES HAVE STEADILY INCREASED

  Mr. HAGERTY submitted the following resolution; which was referred to 
the Committee on Energy and Natural Resources:

                              S. Res. 553

       Whereas, on Election Day 2020, the average price of gas in 
     the United States was $2.11 per gallon;
       Whereas, on January 20, 2021, the inauguration day of 
     President Joseph R. Biden, Jr., while the average gas price 
     was $2.38 per gallon, President Biden--
       (1) through Executive Order 13990 (86 Fed. Reg. 7037; 
     relating to public health and the environment)--
          (A) revoked the Keystone XL pipeline permit;
          (B) paused oil-and-gas leases in the Arctic National 
     Wildlife Refuge; and
          (C) placed new regulations on oil-and-gas production in 
     the United States, including directing agencies to assess a 
     ``social cost

[[Page S1257]]

     of carbon'' on producers in the United States;
       (2) rejoined the Paris Climate Agreement, a landmark 
     international fossil-fuel suppression mandate; and
       (3) through Executive Order 13992 (86 Fed. Reg. 7049; 
     relating to federal regulation), repealed several executive 
     orders issued by President Donald J. Trump that reduced 
     Federal regulation and increased regulatory transparency, in 
     order to facilitate ``robust regulatory action'' to address 
     climate change;
       Whereas, during President Biden's second week in office, 
     President Biden issued Executive Order 14008 (86 Fed. Reg. 
     7619; relating to climate change), which stopped new oil and 
     natural gas leases on public lands and offshore waters, where 
     approximately a quarter of United States oil-and-gas 
     production occurs;
       Whereas, in the first week of May 2021, President Biden 
     issued Executive Order 14027 (86 Fed. Reg. 25947; relating to 
     establishment of the Climate Change Support Office), which 
     established the Climate Change Support Office to support 
     efforts by the Biden Administration ``to elevate and 
     underscore the commitment the Administration will make 
     towards addressing the global climate crisis'';
       Whereas, by mid-May 2021, the average price of gas had 
     climbed to $3.02 per gallon, at which point President Biden 
     signed Executive Order 14030 (86 Fed. Reg. 27967; relating to 
     climate-related financial risk), which directed financial 
     regulators to take actions to discourage financing of United 
     States oil-and-gas production in order to ``mitigate climate-
     related financial risk'';
       Whereas, by early September 2021, the average price of gas 
     rose to $3.17 per gallon after President Biden signed 
     Executive Order 14037 (86 Fed. Reg. 43583; relating to clean 
     cars and trucks), which requires at least 50 percent of new 
     sales of passenger cars and light-duty trucks in the United 
     States to be zero-emission vehicles by 2030;
       Whereas, by early January 2022--
       (1) the Environmental Protection Agency had proposed a 
     denial of all pending exemptions to small refineries for 
     compliance years 2019 through 2021 and the reversal of the 
     decision to grant exemptions for the 2018 compliance year, 
     meaning that small refineries, which are normally exempt from 
     annual renewable fuel standard (RFS) obligations, will owe 5 
     years' worth of RFS compliance costs in a single calendar 
     year;
       (2) President Biden signed Executive Order 14057 (86 Fed. 
     Reg. 70935; relating to clean energy industries and jobs), 
     which called for the Federal Government to achieve a carbon-
     free electricity sector by 2035 and net-zero emissions 
     economy-wide by 2050; and
       (3) the average price of gas was $3.28 per gallon; and
       Whereas, 2 days before the Russian Federation invaded 
     Ukraine and nearly a week before President Biden banned oil 
     and energy imports from the Russian Federation, the average 
     price of gas was $3.61 per gallon: Now, therefore, be it
       Resolved, That it is the sense of the Senate that President 
     Joseph R. Biden, Jr., has implemented policies impeding 
     domestic energy production and gas prices have steadily 
     increased throughout his presidency.

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