by Ben Jealous
Rate payers, beware. President Donald Trump’s eagerness to enrich his fossil fuel industry allies with a “drill baby drill” and “export baby export” agenda will raise energy costs for American households.
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Burning fossil fuels is deadly on many levels. Pollution from burning coal, oil and gas contaminates air and water, harming and killing people. Extracting and transporting fossil fuels also has fatal consequences.
Moreover, the climate crisis, fueled by these practices, has led to extreme weather events — heat waves, wildfires and hurricanes — that cost lives and damage ecosystems.
Just as our continued reliance on fossil fuels kills people and entire ecosystems, slowing down our transition to clean energy kills jobs. Thanks to President Biden’s legislative achievements — the Inflation Reduction Act (IRA), the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law (BIL) and the CHIPS and Science Act — more than 406,000 new clean energy jobs have been created. These include jobs in manufacturing solar panels, wind turbines, electric vehicles and batteries, bringing entire supply chains back to the United States.
Despite these gains, the Trump administration and its allies in Congress threaten to reverse this progress. By slowing the clean energy transition, they jeopardize economic opportunities while driving up energy costs for consumers.
Energy from solar and wind is already less expensive and more resilient than fossil fuels — and the cost keeps dropping.
Policies aimed at undoing the IRA or similar measures would result in higher energy bills for households. Claims that increased fossil fuel production and supply lower energy costs are misleading, especially with liquefied natural gas (LNG).
The U.S. is the world’s leading LNG exporter. While LNG is marketed as a cleaner alternative, its life cycle — from fracking and transport to burning — releases harmful methane emissions and drives up domestic energy prices.
The Department of Energy confirmed that expanding LNG exports would increase costs for American consumers.
Big Oil and Gas prioritize profits over household energy burdens. Companies exporting LNG to countries like China risk not only higher domestic prices but also national security concerns.
President Trump has openly courted the fossil fuel industry, promising them favorable policies in exchange for campaign contributions. At one fundraiser, he encouraged oil and gas executives to collectively contribute $1 billion to his reelection, describing it as a “deal” for them.
Beyond LNG, Trump’s proposed policies, such as tariffs on Canadian and Mexican imports, could raise gas prices by 35 to 75 cents per gallon, according to industry analysts. His attacks on energy-efficient appliances also threaten utility savings for millions, particularly low-income families who spend a disproportionate share of their income on energy bills.
While Trump talks about lowering energy prices, his policies are more likely to increase costs for consumers. Americans need relief from high energy bills, not policies that prioritize fossil fuel profits over their needs.
The writer is the executive director of the Sierra Club and a professor of practice at the University of Pennsylvania.
