Ten Actions Congress Could Take to Lower Energy Prices | Fact Sheet

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Energy powers modern life, and affordable, reliable energy powers prosperity. Prices stabilize—and often decline—when Congress sets reasonable safety and environmental standards, then steps back to let free markets, innovation, and competition deliver supply, reliability, and controlled costs. The 10 actions below would increase domestic production, reform burdensome regulations, reduce federal cost burdens, expand infrastructure, and protect reliable baseload power. Together, they reverse recent price spikes, strengthen grid reliability, and deliver lower electricity, gasoline, and natural gas bills for American families and businesses. (Full arguments and data are in the Issue Brief.)

Ten Congressional Actions that would Lower Energy Prices

1. Codify the repeal of the 2024 Mercury and Air Toxics Standards (MATS) amendments.
   Retaining existing, already-paid-for coal plants prevents forced early retirements, keeping electricity affordable and reliable while preserving the effective 2012 MATS protections.
2. Clarify that Clean Air Act Section 111 does not cover greenhouse gases.
   Restoring the original intent of the law stops unachievable carbon-capture mandates that threatened to close reliable coal and gas plants and drive up electricity costs for consumers.
3. Create a federal reliability safe harbor for at-risk coal and gas units.
   A temporary safe harbor keeps critical baseload plants operational until they can be replaced by equally reliable and affordable generation, protecting grid stability and preventing price spikes and reliability concerns caused by rushed closures.
4. Require data centers and hyperscalers to cover their costs.
   Requiring large new loads to self-fund their generation and grid upgrades stops cost-shifting to residential ratepayers and protects household electricity bills.
5. Fast-track firm generation, especially at brownfield sites.
   Prioritizing rapid permitting and interconnection for dispatchable power plants on existing industrial sites quickly adds reliable capacity using current infrastructure at far lower cost.
6. Codify hard deadlines for new reactor licenses, uprates, and restarts with automatic approvals.
   Strict timelines and automatic approvals at the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission overcome decades of regulatory delays and accelerate deployment of clean, reliable, dispatchable nuclear power.
7. Impose a 180-day deadline on Federal Energy Regulatory Commission decisions for interstate pipelines.
   Firm deadlines eliminate endless regulatory delays, allowing natural gas to reach markets faster, increasing supply and lowering prices for electricity, heating, and manufacturing.
8. Codify limits on Clean Water Act Section 401 permits.
   Restricting Section 401 certifications to genuine water-quality issues stops states from blocking interstate pipelines and ensures all Americans can access affordable domestic energy.
9. Fully repeal the federal methane fee.
   Eliminating the Waste Emissions Charge removes an unnecessary tax on natural gas producers that raises consumer prices with virtually no global climate benefit. Long-term statutory approaches here would ensure future administrations cannot rush the rule back into place.
10. Reform the Jones Act to reduce costs for shipping oil and refined products.
    Targeted waivers or reform of Jones Act restrictions on domestic energy shipping cuts excessive transportation costs and lowers gasoline, diesel, and natural gas prices nationwide.

Implementing these 10 commonsense policies would restore American energy dominance, stabilize prices, and ensure reliable power for families, businesses, and the grid. For supporting data, citations, and detailed analysis, refer to the full Issue Brief.