cruz.senate.gov

WASHINGTON, D.C. – U.S. Sen. Ted Cruz (R-Texas) introduced legislation to repeal the Natural Gas Tax included in the Biden administration’s Inflation Reduction Act, which would others raise costs for energy customers and create a new burden for American families struggling with historic inflation. Sen. Cruz’s bill specifically eliminates a new methane emissions fee created by the law.

Upon introduction, Sen. Cruz said, “Joe Biden and Biden officials have proven time and time again that they care more about their radical climate agenda the needs of the American people. They have driven up inflation and jeopardized American jobs and energy security, all of which would be made significantly worse by the methane emissions fee in the Inflation Reduction Act. This fee will particularly harm Texas by undermining producers in the Permian Basin and across the state.”

Sen. Hyde-Smith said, “President Biden’s assault on the U.S. oil and gas sector continues to worsen for the economy and for consumers. Since he took office energy prices have risen by more than 40 percent and the Inflation Reduction Act taxes on producers will only make it worse. When Democrats forced their climate change bill through Congress, I told everyone then that hard-working, middle-class families would end up paying the price for the tax increases on energy producers. That’s still true and the reason we need to pass this Natural Gas Tax Repeal Act.”

Sen. Cotton said, “The Biden administration’s war on fossil fuels only hurts American business and makes us dependent on other countries for our energy. We should get rid of this tax and focus on American energy production.”

Sen. Tuberville said, “The Biden Administration has once again prioritized woke climate activists over the American people,” said Senator Tuberville. “Since day 1 in office, Joe Biden has waged war on American energy — driving up costs and sending American jobs overseas. The last thing Americans need right now are higher taxes and government red tape. I am proud to join this legislation which puts American taxpayers first and works towards restoring American energy independence.”

Sen. Britt said, "As this Administration wages its war on American energy, I will continue to work alongside my colleagues to ensure our domestic energy producers aren’t strangled by President Biden’s red tape regime. For the past three years, this Administration has been intent on prioritizing its irresponsible, partisan Green New Deal Agenda, ultimately weakening our national and economic security. It’s past time to unleash not just U.S. energy independence, but energy dominance."

Rep. Pfluger said, “President Biden’s tax on natural gas production does nothing but make it harder to produce American-made energy while driving up costs. Congress must take action to repeal this looming regulatory disaster. The House has already passed my legislation to repeal the tax, and I am proud to work alongside Senator Cruz to get it to the President’s desk. Energy security is national security.”

The bill is co-sponsored by Sens. Roger Marshall (R-Kan.), Mike Lee (R-Utah), Pete Ricketts (R-Neb.), Cindy Hyde-Smith (Miss.), John Hoeven (R-N.D.), Katie Britt R-Ala.), Mike Braun (R-Ind.), Tommy Tuberville (R-Ala.), J.D. Vance (R-Ohio), Tom Cotton (R-Ark.), and John Barrasso (R-Wyo.). Rep. August Pfluger (R-Texas-11) introduced the companion legislation in the U.S. House of the Representatives, which passed earlier in the 118th Congress.

Read the full text of the legislation here.

Sen. Cruz’s bill is supported by Independent Petroleum Producers of America (IPAA), American Exploration and Production Council (AXPC), Permian Basin Petroleum Association (PBPA), Texas Public Policy Foundation (TPPF), Texas Alliance of Energy Producers, U.S. Oil & Gas Association (USOGA), American Petroleum Institute (API), and National Ocean Industries Association (NOIA).

Ben Shepperd, President, Permian Basin Petroleum Association said, “Senator Cruz continues to fight for the American people, the American economy and American energy security. Worldwide demand for natural gas continues to grow and the American people, our economy and even the world’s environment, are better off when domestic natural gas production is supported by those in Washington, D.C. This Act does just that.”

Karr Ingham, President, Texas Alliance of Energy Producers said, “The natural gas tax is an ill-conceived piece of legislation that will clearly raise the cost of energy to US consumers, and at the same time, place Texas independent oil and gas companies, and tens of thousands of wells in the state in jeopardy. The Texas Alliance of Energy Producers, the voice of independents in Texas, strongly supports its repeal, and we applaud Senator Cruz for his efforts to protect the fabric of the oil and gas industry in Texas.”

Jeff Eshelman, President & CEO, Independent Petroleum Producers of America said, “The methane tax that was included in the Inflation Reduction Act seriously complicates industry efforts to plan and comply with EPA and state regulations that address emissions from oil and natural gas production. The tax was passed without appropriate understanding of its impact or safeguards. IPAA supports Sen. Cruz’s legislation to repeal the misguided tax on American energy producers.”

Erik Milito, President, National Ocean Industries Association said, “The recent regulatory overreach targeting various facets of U.S. oil and gas development and use threatens both economic stability and energy accessibility for American households. We applaud Senator Cruz for leading efforts to ensure that regulatory measures do not unfairly disadvantage consumers or American energy production. We strongly support efforts to curtail these regulations and promote balanced, practical energy policies.”

Anne Bradbury, CEO, American Exploration & Production Council said, "In an era of global economic and security uncertainty, the punitive natural gas tax is counterproductive because it will lead to at least $6 billion in new taxes and higher energy prices for the American people. Thank you to Senator Cruz for leading the effort in the Senate to eliminate this burdensome tax on American energy, and now is the time for the Senate to show support for lower energy prices for families and businesses across America."

Brent Bennett, Policy Director for Life: Powered, Texas Public Policy Foundation said, “The tax on methane in the Inflation Reduction Act is a harebrained scheme to punish American energy producers and increase energy prices for Americans with no environmental benefit. Even if the U.S. eliminates all methane emissions by 2040, the effect on global temperatures will be less than 0.03 degrees C, and this tax will only cover a small fraction of that. The market for natural gas is increasingly a global market, and taxing American producers will simply lead to increased production and emissions by less responsible companies in other countries. We support the Natural Gas Tax Repeal Act and hope that this scheme can be put to bed for good."

Tim Stewart, President, USOGA said, “Small US oil and gas producers are the backbone to our domestic oil and gas industry and the Biden Administration has had us in its sights since the day one. It’s poorly designed tax on natural gas producers is designed to drive most of the small companies out of business so it can overregulate and overtax the ones that remain. The repeal of the natural gas tax brings balance back to the economics of producing energy in America. It will help lower energy costs so businesses can expand, and household budgets have a little more wiggle room for other necessities. And it reduces the numbers of Americans who are falling into energy poverty. The faster we ditch this bad idea – the quicker we can get back to work. We applaud the Senator for taking action.”

Holly Hopkins, Vice President of Upstream Policy, American Petroleum Institute said,

“The men and women of the U.S. oil and natural gas industry are focused on meeting demand for affordable, reliable energy while reducing emissions, but we need policies that incentivize progress rather than limit it. The natural gas tax creates an incoherent regulatory regime that could stifle innovation and hamper America’s energy advantage, and we thank Sen. Cruz and Rep. Pfluger for their leadership in repealing this misguided policy.”

Official Press Release