Forty-five Republican lawmakers are demanding answers from the Energy Department after a government watchdog group accused it of covering up a critical study that could interfere with one of the Biden-Harris administration's most serious attacks on fossil fuels. [emphasis, links added]
Lawmakers wrote to Energy Secretary Jennifer Granholm on Thursday in response to the regulators' allegations: Her agency conducted or drafted a study on the emissions impacts of liquefied natural gas (LNG) exports in 2023, then was quietly buried The agency suspended approval of certain LNG export terminals in January as it required such reviews.
The watchdog agency that made the charges, Government Accountability and Oversight (GAO), is suing the agency under the Public Records Act to obtain thousands of pages of content that the Energy Department acknowledged may meet specific GAO requests to search. 2023 study the agency allegedly buried for reaching politically inconvenient conclusionsfirst reported by the Daily Caller News Foundation.
“The Biden-Harris administration's attempts to conceal its findings on the impact of LNG are troubling. Despite evidence that U.S. LNG benefits the economy and global energy security, The Department of Energy indefinitely bans exports of liquefied natural gas to non-FTA countries without legal basis,Texas Republican Rep. August Pfluger, who led the letter, said in a statement shared with DCNF.
“The lack of transparency from the Department of Energy about existing research and the motivations behind ongoing research is unacceptable. The American people should be held accountable for the decision-making process surrounding our energy future.“
If the GAO's allegations are ultimately proven The Biden-Harris administration effectively misled the public during an election year, enacting policies that harmed U.S. geopolitical interests and inhibited investment in major energy projects.
However, deep-pocketed environmental lobbying groups aligned with Democrats in the 2024 election cycle welcomed the policy.
The lawmakers' letter specifically asked Granholm to Clarify whether the agency has conducted an analysis of the emissions impacts of LNG exports A freeze on approvals for LNG export terminals shipping natural gas to non-Free Trade Agreement (FTA) countries was announced on January 26.
Lawmakers also asked Granholm Detail whether senior DOE officials or White House personnel received updated information, even preliminary, on such analysis during the first 10 months of 2023also The agency still plans to release its findings in January 2025.
Read the break from The Daily Caller
