[Congressional Record Volume 171, Number 99 (Tuesday, June 10, 2025)]
[Senate]
[Pages S3296-S3297]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
Energy
Mr. BARRASSO. Mr. President, I just heard the minority leader of the
U.S. Senate come here to the floor to talk about energy--the cost of
energy, the impact of what we are doing here legislatively with regard
to energy. The minority leader's comments, I would say, were laughable,
but if I had to describe them in one word, that word would be
``rubbish,'' and let me explain why. It is because this week, Senate
Republicans are going to continue to point out the benefits of our
comprehensive economic plan, and Americans are going to be able to see
for themselves how our growth agenda delivers for them what they want,
what they need, what they voted for. And they voted for safety and
prosperity.
This is a 180-degree turn from the past 4 years of high prices and
open borders. The Biden administration caused the worst economic
disaster in our Nation since the 1970s. Democrats went on a tax-and-
spend binge, and they piled job-killing regulations on the economy to
the tune of over $1.8 trillion. The reckless spending and the
regulatory rampage fueled the worst inflation in 40 years.
So I hear him talk about energy. Prices were up across the board by
21 percent from the day Joe Biden came into office until the day he
left. Energy bills climbed 31 percent as a result of the Democrat
policies.
Families saw their savings evaporate, families saw their credit card
debt skyrocket, and families struggled to keep up. Young families were
locked out of homeownership because mortgage rates continued to climb.
Over 10 million illegal immigrants flooded into our Nation. Millions
of these illegal immigrants were given free food, free housing, free
phones, free travel, and free healthcare.
The American people have had enough, and they spoke up about it, and
they elected Republicans to clean up the mess. We are delivering, and
under Republican leadership, America is getting back on track.
Inflation is down. Grocery prices are down. Gas prices are down.
Wages are up. Jobs are coming back. And consumer confidence is rising.
For the first time in the history of polling, a majority of Americans
say our country is headed in the right direction. That is in the
history of polling. That is what the American public is saying because
the state of our economy is strong.
Friday's job numbers just showed more new jobs were created last
month than they even expected--than the experts expected. Republicans'
comprehensive plan is going to make it even stronger.
Our plan cuts taxes. It targets waste, fraud, abuse, and corruption.
Our plan unleashes American energy, which will continue to bring down
prices.
At the heart of our plan, of course, is tax relief. Republicans are
going to stop a crushing $4 trillion tax increase. This is a tax
increase that every Democrat wants and has promised to vote for. That
would be the biggest tax increase in American history.
Additionally, we are going to eliminate taxes on tips, on overtime,
and on Social Security. Now, that is going to be a pay raise for hard-
working Americans and for seniors.
The Republican plan puts more money in Americans' wallets, pockets,
and purses. Families will have more money for gas, for groceries, and
for emergencies. Families will have more money to pay the rent, to pay
a mortgage, and to save for their kids' education.
Remember, it was Democrats who vowed to vote for a $4 trillion tax
increase. They actually said they are going to fight with everything
they have to stop us from passing our bill. Our bill prevents that tax
increase. How can they look at waiters, seniors, bartenders, police
officers, and firefighters and admit that they voted to raise the taxes
on all these hard-working Americans?
And let's not forget why Democrats want to raise taxes. They want to
pay for healthcare for illegal immigrants. That is what they have been
doing. Over a million illegal immigrants have had healthcare paid for
because of what the Democrats have been doing.
Oh, and they want to subsidize electric vehicles that most people
don't want, don't need, and can't afford.
The question is simple: Are you for stopping a $4 trillion tax
increase that will hit every working family in America--for the average
middle-income family, $3,000 of increased taxes--or are you not for
stopping that and letting it go through?
While Republicans are standing with Americans families, Democrats are
opposing them.
But, specifically, on what the minority leader addressed this
morning, which was affordable energy, let's talk about that, because
Americans want, need, and voted for affordable American energy, and
Americans are starting to feel that relief.
Now, the Republicans are in the House, the Senate, and the White
House. This Memorial Day, just a week or so ago, gas prices were 50
cents a gallon lower than they were a year ago. You know, you go fill
up a vehicle in Wyoming, and you are going to save about 10 bucks.
Why? Why is it better? Because Joe Biden's war on American energy is
over.
I will never forget when Joe Biden told members of his Cabinet to
prioritize climate over energy that is affordable, available, and
reliable--climate over affordable energy, the mantra of the Democrats.
President Trump has taken more than 50 bold actions to unleash and
unlock American energy. He has done it onshore, offshore, and in
Alaska. He overturned crushing regulations on available and affordable
American energy. He took the handcuffs off of our energy workers and
our energy producers.
I spent Friday in Laramie, WY, at the Wyoming Mining Association
meeting. People from all around the State and country come together to
that annual meeting. The hard-working men and women of Wyoming are
celebrating the actions of President Trump.
The Republicans' comprehensive economic plan unleashes American
energy like never before. It opens up new Federal land and Federal
waters leases to all-of-the-above energy production. That means oil and
natural gas, coal, geothermal, and critical mineral production. It also
refills our Strategic Petroleum Reserve.
Remember when Joe Biden drained the Strategic Petroleum Reserve? Why?
Because gas prices were so high under his punitive administration. It
was the era of massive Democrat inflation. He drained our Strategic
Petroleum Reserve rather than allow us to produce more American energy
here at home. He drained it to a dangerously low level. It was the
lowest level in over 40 years. He actually sold some of our reserves to
China. That is the Democrats' approach to energy.
Well, Republicans are reversing all of this. Congress is returning to
fiscal sanity and energy reality. Both of those were sorely missed the
last 4 years.
Joe Biden's energy policies were defined by waste, fraud, abuse, and
corruption. I investigated Joe Biden's Department of Energy. It was a
disgrace.
The Department of Energy's loan office funneled billions of dollars
in taxpayer money to politically connected wind and solar projects.
Specifically, one of them is a company known as Sunnova.
I describe them as a very shady solar company. Sunnova was called on
the carpet for scamming seniors. They targeted seniors and pressured
them into signing leases that were impossible to make. Joe Biden
rewarded this malicious behavior by giving them a $3 billion loan,
guaranteed by the taxpayers
[[Page S3297]]
of our country, guaranteed by each and every one of us--a $3 billion
loan.
Thankfully, President Trump was able to pull back part of that loan.
Sunnova spent $371 million of taxpayer dollars.
Well, guess what. Just yesterday, Sunnova filed for bankruptcy. Here
is the article. I plan to put this into the Congressional Record, the
article from the Wall Street Journal this morning, Tuesday, June 10:
``Solar Installer Sunnova Seeks Bankruptcy.''
The handwriting was already on the wall, but the arrogant,
condescending, and elitist personnel of Joe Biden's Department of
Energy refused to read it.
Republicans need to keep investigating, and we will. We need to
finish the job we have started.
Today, Republicans in the Senate are unleashing affordable, reliable
American energy. It will fuel our prosperity. It will benefit the
entire Nation. Families will pay lower energy bills. Small businesses
will be able to afford to invest and to expand. Our country will no
longer depend on dictators for energy and critical minerals.
America is an energy superpower. Under Republican leadership, we are
acting like it. That is why I started my comments by referring to the
minority leader's speech this morning about energy as ``rubbish.''
Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the article that I
referred to in my speech, ``Solar Installer Sunnova Seeks Bankruptcy,''
be printed in the Record.
There being no objection, the material was ordered to be printed in
the Record, as follows:
[From the Wall Street Journal, June 10, 2025]
Solar Installer Sunnova Seeks Bankruptcy
(By Jodi Xu Klein and Alicia McElhaney)
One of America's largest rooftop-solar installation
businesses filed for chapter 11 on Monday, a stark
illustration of the strains haunting the U.S. clean-energy
sector as shifting federal policies shake investor
confidence.
Sunnova Energy International, once a poster child for
America's residential renewable energy boom with a market
value above $5 billion and more than 400,000 customers at its
peak, plans to sell or wind down its assets in bankruptcy.
Now a penny stock with $8.9 billion debt, Sunnova in recent
months struggled to take on new business providing solar-
panel installations, energy storage and financing for
residential customers.
Privately held Solar Mosaic, which makes loans to
homeowners for solar installations, also filed bankruptcy on
Friday. Both companies blamed political uncertainty around
the future of solar-related tax credits, which hurt their
ability to refinance debt or attract new investment,
according to their filings with the U.S. Bankruptcy Court in
Houston.
Debt defaults were building among solar companies before
Sunnova and Solar Mosaic ran low on cash. Residential
installers SunPower and Lumio also filed for bankruptcy last
year, while Titan Solar unwound its business, leaving many
residential customers with little support.
Weak demand, rising interest rates and shifting government
tone toward renewables have pummeled the solar energy sector,
especially in recent months as Congressional leaders have
moved to curtail incentives.
President Trump's tax-and-spending package passed by the
House sunsets certain tax credits for rooftop solar and
battery storage, viewed by some analysts as a potential death
knell for the solar industry. Further changes to the
president's ``Big, Beautiful Bill'' are likely in the Senate,
where Republicans hold a 53-47 Majority.
Some senators from states benefiting from clean-energy job
growth are pushing to preserve certain tax incentives, but
investors have lost patience baking businesses like Sunnova
with the continuing uncertainty.
Sunnova started out in 2012 in Texas to provide affordable
residential solar products across the U.S. by offering
financing options for homeowners that couldn't afford the
hefty upfront costs for installation. Customers can also
lease the panels and pay monthly fees for the energy they
use.
After going public in 2019, the company continued to
leverage a residential solar boom driven by dropping panel
costs and government incentives, expanding to be a nationwide
provider. Trouble in its business, which relies on borrowed
capital, began to escalate in late 2023 after rising interest
rates made homeowners hesitant to install new solar systems.
The company reported a net loss of $448 million for 2024,
and its liquidity dried up. By April 2024, its shares lost
more than 93% in value from their peak in 2021.
In March, Sunnova warned that even after securing a fresh
$185 million loan from asset manager KKR, the company might
not generate enough cash to remain operational due to
weakness in the residential solar market. The loan from KKR
provided a temporary life-line, but at a steep cost of 15%
interest.
Creditors holding roughly $2 billion in junior debt hired
advisers and began restructuring talks with the company. In
the following weeks, Oaktree Capital acquired more than $400
million of Sunnova's debt and has since been driving the debt
negotiations, said people familiar with the matter.
In an effort to quell creditor concerns, Sunnova replaced
its founder and Chief Executive William J. Berger, promoting
its chief operating officer Paul Mathews, who joined in 2023,
to the top job. In April, Ryan Omohundro was appointed chief
restructuring officer. On Friday, the company said it laid
off more than half of its workforce, some 718 employees, in
May.
While larger solar and wind projects now face an earlier
expiration of federal credits in 2028, three years ahead of
schedule, the impact was far more severe for battery storage
and residential solar installers like Sunnova. The company
recently exited a $3 billion partial loan guarantee program
it had secured from the federal government in 2023, citing
falling demand for solar loans.