ABQ Times

WASHINGTON —U.S. Representative Melanie Stansbury (N.M.-01), ranking member of the House Natural Resources Subcommittee on Oversight and Investigations, defended the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) during this afternoon’s Subcommittee hearing.

The Inflation Reduction Act (IRA) which passed the 117th Congress invests $1 billion in permitting reform by fully funding federal agency permitting offices, which is expected to drastically shrink the timelines for permitting.

“I think it's crucial as part of this conversation to acknowledge we're going to hear a lot on May 11 probably about permitting and leasing,” Ranking Member Stansbury said. “Because of the limitations on our ability to affect global oil and gas prices, the argument that ultimately at the end of the day, what is constraining prices at the pump is leasing on public lands, it's just factually untrue. Really, at the end of the day, what it is about and what is driving that argument is the desire by the oil and gas industry to make future oil and gas leases in order to keep their business plans afloat, especially as there's been consolidation in the industry and over capitalization.”

In her questioning, Rep. Stansbury outlined the true factors driving permitting delays, including: 

• Understaffing in key agencies charged with the permitting process;
• Applicants deciding against specific developments due to the commodity markets’ constant shifts; and
• Compliance with state and federal laws wholly separate from NEPA statute.

Ranking Member Stansbury also pointed out that attacking NEPA is a top priority for the oil and gas industry, because they want even less government regulation. The more pressing issue instead, is climate change, she said.

“We know that we have to take climate action now and it is our job to ensure that we create a more sustainable, a more just, and a more equitable future for our communities,” Ranking Member Stansbury said.

Ranking Member Stansbury’s full remarks as prepared for delivery are below:

All right. Well, good afternoon, everyone. And thank you, Mr. Chairman. And thank you to all of our witnesses for being here on May 11. I do want to just take a moment before, I make a few statements about the content of on May 11 hearing, just to note that, while we are aware that the administration is unable to join us on May 11, we're also want to be clear that the reason why they're unable to join us is there was not sufficient notice given in order for them to be here.

So we look forward to working with a majority in order to make sure that they can attend a future hearing. We're going to hear a lot on May 11 about domestic energy production.

And we're going to hear a lot on May 11 about permitting about climate change and about environmental justice. Why are these important? Why are these topics so important? And why do we continue to have hearings about these? First and foremost, as we all know, the science is telling us and a lake the latest report from the IPCC has indicated that if we do not take climate action now, our planet is facing a major nexus in terms of potential planetary disaster.

And that is why we in the majority, the Democrats, during the last Congress passed the most significant infrastructure and climate action Bill's ever in the history of the United States, including the inflation Reduction Act, which is really aimed at reducing climate emissions by 40% by 2030.

But let's talk a little bit about domestic energy production, it's important to understand that over the last 20 years, the United States has actually become the second largest, not only consumer of energy in the world, but the second largest producer of energy in the world.

In fact, we have the second highest crude oil production in America ever and the highest natural gas production ever. And in my home state of New Mexico, in the Permian Basin, we are seeing the highest production ever in the history of our state.

So, the oil and gas industry is not struggling in the United States. And certainly that is not what is driving prices at the pump as our colleagues across the aisle would like to have us believe we are in fact coming out of a major global pandemic, in which our communities like probably everyone who's sitting here in this hearing room spent at least a year if not more, inside our homes, we were not driving we were not consuming petroleum products on the level we had historically. And as a result, oil and gas production actually reduced due to the lack of demand, and also that affected the price of oil and gas.

We then saw of course last year, Russia invaded Ukraine that caused another spike in global oil and gas prices. And then there was an effort by OPEC plus and Russia to restrain oil production globally, all of these global forces have affected the global supply and demand of oil and gas, which drives the prices at the pump.

Our president, this administration and the Congress that is sitting before you have done everything we can within our toolbox to try to address these issues so that we can lower prices at the pump for Americans. But at the end of the day, much of this is outside of the power of the individuals who are sitting on this Dyess or sitting at the other end of Pennsylvania Avenue. I think it's crucial as part of this conversation to acknowledge we're going to hear a lot on May 11 probably about permitting and leasing.

That because of the limitations on our ability to affect global oil and gas prices, the argument that ultimately at the end of the day, what is constraining prices at the pump is leasing on public lands, it's just factually untrue. Really, at the end of the day, what it is about and what is driving that argument is the desire by the oil and gas industry to make future oil and gas leases in order to keep their business plans afloat, especially as there's been consolidation in the industry and over capitalization.

It is not a permitting problem; it is not a leasing problem. And so it's crucial that we stay focused on the facts.

Now the reason why the administration has advanced multiple efforts, and this Congress this past Congress, under Democratic leadership has advanced environmental justice initiatives is because our communities for far too long have borne the brunt of development of our oil and gas and other natural resources without seeing the benefits of those.

And so it's crucial that we ensure as we're investing in a more sustainable transition, a more climate justice future, that our communities have the opportunity to get access to those resources that they're able to plan for their own future and to determine what they would like to see The is their own economic future for their communities.

So, I want to thank our witnesses once again for being here. We're fortunate to be joined by one of our nation's foremost experts on NEPA, which is one of the environmental policy bills that we're going to discuss on May 11.

And I just want to, to end by saying that we know that we have to take climate action now and it is our job to ensure that we create a more sustainable a more just and a more equitable future for our communities. Thank you, Mr. Chairman, and I yield back.

Original source can be found here.