Energy policy improvements will need to be an essential part of US policy reforms voters demanded on Nov. 8 and expect in the next 4 years, American Petroleum Institute Pres. Jack N. Gerard maintained.
"[Their] clear expectation is that their elected leaders work together to achieve commonsense policy that is focused on their needs and their daily realities, rather than continue the perpetual partisanship and government gridlock that has marked recent years," he said as API released its 2017 State of American Energy report on Jan. 4.
"We have a once-in-a-generation opportunity to find solutions for many of today's pressing issues, including creating middle class jobs, tackling income equality, ensuring sustained affordable energy for consumers, and enhancing our national security. And for all of these goals, and others, the 21st century American energy renaissance offers a solution," Gerard stated.
He said that the 2017 report's title, "Energy is Everything," says it all, because energy is fundamental to US society. "Energy is so thoroughly woven into our daily lives that few will ever question whether it will be there, or in fact where it comes from," he said. "By detailing energy's integral contribution to almost every moment of every day, the report gets back to the basics and keeps the focus where it should be: on the American energy consumer."
Gerard recommended that more elected officials do the same. "Pundits are still analyzing the 2016 election, but one thing is certain: Voters want and expect change and, above all, they want results and a renewed focus on finding positive solutions that improve their lives," he said.
Calls for bipartisan vision
Gerard said API hopes that in the weeks and months ahead, policies, at all government levels, will be guided by a collective, bipartisan vision of the American energy future that generates the kinds of jobs, revenue to governments, and economic opportunities that have been the US oil and gas industry's hallmark since it first began.
"Ultimately, the very foundational nature of oil and gas as a source of electricity, fuel, and feedstock for everyday products makes the national energy policy discussion more than a collection of abstract policy positions," he said. "Truly, energy is everything."
In a press conference following his address, Gerard said API will ask Trump administration officials and members of the 115th Congress to consider which federal regulations are unnecessary and duplicate what states are doing already. Specifically, he mentioned a federal offshore air impact rule that was issued before its underlying study was completed, and a proposed onshore venting and flaring regulation that encroaches on existing state enforcements.
API generally supports the Regulations from the Executive in Need of Scrutiny (REINS) Act, which aims to limit Executive Branch imposition of regulations, and the Midnight Rules Review Act, which would expedite the Congressional Review Act's use to roll back high-cost regulations the outgoing administration imposed in its final months, Gerard said.
"They both try to roll regulation back to Congress where it belongs," he said. "Unfortunately, some parts of the Executive Branch have been too active and made this necessary. Basically, we need to take American government back to the people, starting with their elected House and Senate members. That's what voters said they wanted on Nov. 8."
Gerard said the recent achievements of the US oil and gas industry are all the more remarkable considering constraints federal regulators recently have imposed. "We must reexamine the regulatory onslaught of the last few years that has proposed or imposed some 145 regulations and other actions on our industry, and instead work to implement smart energy regulations that are focused on the consumer, help our economy grow, protect workers, and continue to improve the environment," he said.