National Coal Council Reestablishment Act

Mr. Speaker, by direction of the Committee on Rules, I call up House Resolution 707 and ask for its immediate consideration.

Mr. Speaker, for the purpose of debate only, I yield the customary 30 minutes to the distinguished gentleman from Massachusetts (Mr. McGovern), pending which I yield myself such time as I may consume. During consideration of this resolution, all time yielded is for the purpose of debate only.

General Leave

Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all Members have 5 legislative days to revise and extend their remarks.

Mr. Speaker, House Resolution 707 provides for consideration of seven measures. The rule provides for consideration of H.R. 4922, H.R. 5140, H.R. 5143, and H.R. 5125 under a closed rule with 1 hour of debate equally divided and controlled by the chair and the ranking member of the Committee on Oversight and Government Reform or their respective designees.

The rule provides each bill with one motion to recommit.

The rule also provides for consideration of H.R. 3015, H.R. 3062, and H.R. 1047 under a closed rule with 1 hour of debate each equally divided and controlled by the chair and the ranking minority member of the Committee on Energy and Commerce or their designees.

The rule provides each bill with one motion to recommit.

The rule also provides that in the engrossment of H.R. 3633, the Clerk shall add the text of H.R. 1919 as passed by the House as a new matter at the end of H.R. 3633.

Further, the rule tolls the day counts regarding resolutions of inquiry until March 31, 2026.

Finally, the rule tolls the day counts until March 31, 2026, regarding joint resolutions terminating the national emergencies declared by the President on February 1, 2025; April 2, 2025; and July 30, 2025.

Mr. Speaker, I rise in support of this rule and in support of the underlying legislation. The rule before us provides an opportunity for Congress to reverse the disastrous energy and crime policies left behind by the previous administration and restore accountability where needed the most.

For far too long, the American people have been forced to live under a regulatory agenda that drove up costs, weakened our grid, and made our communities less safe. These measures begin to roll back that damage and put us on a stronger and safer trajectory.

To restore accountability in our energy policies, this rule provides for consideration of H.R. 3015, the National Coal Council Reestablishment Act. This legislation permanently restores the National Coal Council, an advisory body for nearly four decades, providing expert recommendations on matters affecting the American coal sector.

Established in 1984, the council delivered 40 reports to the Secretary of Energy on coal markets, research and development into clean coal technologies, and regulatory barriers that affect the coal industry.

However, in 2021, at the behest of leftwing organizations, the Biden administration disregarded this history and disbanded the council, replacing it with an advisory body charged with fulfilling the left's Green New Deal agenda. Make no mistake. This was not about policy, it was about shutting coal out of the conversation, an essential piece of our Nation's energy matrix.

The United States is home to the world's largest coal reserves, with approximately 440 years' worth of supply at current production levels. Today, our fleet of over 400 coal-fired power plants provide 16 percent of America's electricity, and in five States, coal provides more than one-half. In 17 States it provides more than 20 percent. Together, the coal industry supports hundreds of thousands of jobs, lifts up small communities across the country, and provides affordable and reliable baseload power that helps keep prices stable.

Premature retirements of coal plants are being driven by Federal and State policies that intentionally attack their financial viability, yet the demand for electricity is only going up.

Since 2022, the retirement of 29,000 megawatts of coal capacity has been delayed because of rising demand and insufficient replacement resources. To put it bluntly, removing coal from the grid at this moment in time would lead to higher costs and greater instability for families and businesses. This is a reality that my colleagues on the other side of the aisle refuse to acknowledge.

In New York we are already seeing what these anti-energy radical policies have done: shutting down production of reliable baseload power in favor of pursuing unrealistic and dangerous green agenda items.

Now, despite widespread public opposition, Governor Kathy Hochul and Albany Democrats are moving forward with a ban on natural gas and propane hookups in new construction starting in 2026. That means families in western New York, where winters are long, snow is great, and it is cold and oftentimes dangerous in these terrible winter storms, they will be denied the ability to choose the energy source that best keeps them safe and warm in their homes. Taking affordable and reliable options off the table is not sound policy.

It is assaults like this on consumer choice and on the freedom to use reliable, affordable energy like coal and natural gas that leave people more vulnerable when the power goes out. That is why it matters who is at the table. When it comes to energy policy, this measure makes the National Coal Council permanent, so future administrations can't simply shut it down for political reasons.

H.R. 3015 also reinforces President Trump's April 8, 2025, executive order to reinvigorate America's clean coal industry recognizing that coal must remain part of our future if we want to ensure future prosperity, meet rising electricity demands, and lower costs for families.

By reestablishing the National Coal Council, Congress will ensure that reliable, affordable baseload power remains a cornerstone of our energy policy while supporting family-sustaining jobs and fueling next- generation industries like artificial intelligence.

The rule also provides for consideration of H.R. 3062, the Promoting Cross-Border Energy Infrastructure Act. This measure creates a transparent and permanent framework for permitting pipelines and other cross-border energy projects.

For years, developers have been subject to political gamesmanship, destroyed investments, and stranded jobs. The cancellation of the Keystone XL pipeline was not based on science; it was simply based on politics. The Biden administration sided with radical activists over American workers in energy security for our country.

We have seen the same story play out in my own State of New York. The Northern Access pipeline was a major natural gas infrastructure project that promised thousands of good-paying jobs, more affordable energy for families across the northeastern United States, and new tax revenue for rural communities like mine in the southern tier.

However, instead of moving forward, that project was tied up with endless red tape and obstructed by regulators. Western New York and the southern tier lost jobs and investment in energy security that would have come from it. A project that should have supported a large construction workforce and strengthened our region was derailed again because of politics.

This is exactly why permitting reform is needed and is needed now. Without certainty, projects like this will continue to slip away, taking good jobs and economic growth with them.

Energy developers, workers, and communities all deserve better. Yet when it comes to the permitting reforms that would actually allow critical energy projects to move forward, Democrats have consistently acquiesced to the demands of radical environmental groups instead of the needs

of American workers and their families.

The result is higher costs and fewer options for American families. This legislation cuts through that red tape, gives developers certainty, and ensures critical projects can move forward.

In addition, the rule includes H.R. 1047, the Guaranteeing Reliability Through the Interconnection of Dispatchable Power Act.

Year after year, projects that would keep the lights on and lower bills are stuck in the interconnection queues and regulatory wait lists. Sometimes as long as 7 years they are stuck there. That is simply unacceptable. Families do not care about bureaucratic excuses. They care about whether their homes are heated in the winter and cooled in the summer. This legislation cuts through that backlog. It empowers grid operators to prioritize projects that actually enhance reliability.

Let us be clear about how we got here. Democrats have spent years forcing premature retirements of coal, nuclear, and natural gas through excessive regulation, while shoveling subsidies to wind and solar. The result is interconnection queues flooded with projects that only have a 5 percent completion rate.

Meanwhile, Democrat policies have left ratepayers footing the bill for two grids. One grid props up wind and solar with massive transmission costs. The other is the backup power we all rely on when the Sun is not shining and the wind is not blowing.

This measure puts reliability first. It follows the lead of major grid operators who know the danger of relying too heavily on intermittent sources, and it makes sure that the grid is strong enough not only to keep the lights on at home but also to power next- generation industries like AI and manufacturing so America, not China, leads the future.

Mr. Speaker, energy security is, simply put, national security. The rule before us takes important steps to keep power reliable and affordable and American made.

But security is not just about the strength of our grid. It is also about the safety of our communities. Nowhere is that failure of safety more visible than right here in our Nation's capital.

While Washington should be a place that is showcased as what is the very best of America, it has instead become a city struggling with violent crime, juvenile offenses, and weakened law enforcement. The next measures in this rule take direct aim at those failures and restore accountability where the D.C. council has refused to act.

The rule also provides for consideration of H.R. 4922, the D.C. Crimes Act of 2025. This legislation reasserts congressional oversight over the District by prohibiting the D.C. council from further pursuing its progressive, soft-on-crime sentencing guidelines.

The council has failed to keep residents and visitors from our country and from around the world safe. Even as violent crime has soared, police staffing has dropped to a 50-year low. This measure takes direct aim at the council's reckless decisions. It lowers the definition of a youth offender from under 25 to under 18 where it belongs so that adults are simply treated as adults.

It ends judicial discretion that allows juvenile, violent offenders to escape mandatory minimums, and it prohibits the council from weakening mandatory minimums on sentencing guidelines any further.

Make no mistake, carjackings and robberies by juveniles are out of control. More than 500 minors were arrested for robbery in 2023, and more carjackings were committed by juveniles. Every American should be able to visit their Nation's capital without fear of being the next victim.

We know all too well what happens when local leaders choose leniency over accountability. In my home State of New York, cashless bail has unleashed a wave of tragic and entirely preventable outcomes. Governor Hochul and Democrats have doubled down on procriminal policies that put violent offenders back on our streets, leaving families and communities to suffer the consequences. The American people deserve better. New Yorkers deserve better. People in Washington, D.C., deserve better, and President Trump has already stepped in to end cashless bail here in Washington. It is long past time for New York to follow that lead.

The rule also provides for consideration of H.R. 5140, the District of Columbia juvenile sentencing reform act. Since the pandemic, juvenile crime has surged. More than 2,000 juveniles were arrested in both 2023 and 2024. According to the Metropolitan Police Department, over half of robbery arrests last year were juveniles. This year, juveniles account for more than half of carjacking arrests. This legislation responds to that reality.

Current law allows juveniles 16 and older to be tried as adults for violent crimes. This measure lowers that age to 14. These are not youthful mistakes. They are violent, life-altering crimes.

Consider the tragic example of Mohammad Anwar, a hardworking immigrant killed in 2021 by two teenage girls during a carjacking. Both will be back on the streets by the age of 21.

In July of 2023, another Lyft driver, who previously served as an interpreter for the U.S. military in Afghanistan, was fatally shot while driving. The teen responsible was just 14 years old. They were sentenced to only 3 years of secure detention. Old enough to commit horrific and senseless murder, yet he will be back on the streets in just 3 years.

Let me be clear. This legislation applies only to violent crimes: murder, first degree sexual abuse, burglary in the first degree, and robbery while armed. These are serious offenses that endanger residents and visitors to our Nation's capital every day. They demand serious consequences to truly restore law and order.

The rule further provides for consideration of H.R. 5143, the District of Columbia Policing Protection Act. In 2023, the council imposed a set of restrictions that require officers to evaluate a checklist of 14 factors to decide whether to pursue a fleeing suspect. One of those factors even requires an officer to determine whether anyone in the suspect's car had a chance to surrender a weapon. That is absurd. Officers rarely have time or information to work through such a checklist when a suspect takes off.

This legislation repeals those restrictions. It restores discretion to trained officers. It allows pursuit when an officer or supervisor determines it is necessary, the most effective means of apprehension, and does not present an unreasonable risk to bystanders. Officers must be able to act quickly to protect lives, and this measure restores that authority.

Finally, the rule provides for consideration of H.R. 5125, the District of Columbia Judicial Nominations Reform Act. The Judicial Nomination Commission currently limits President Trump's choices for D.C. judges to a very narrow list of names. That process is slow, it is politicized, and it is very likely unconstitutional under the appointments clause. The result has been persistent vacancies, clogged courts, and criminals slipping through the cracks.

This legislation abolishes the commission and restores normal constitutional processes. The President nominates; the Senate confirms. That is how it works everywhere else in America, and that is how it should work right here in D.C. A duly elected President should not be bound by a bureaucratic commission when choosing judges. By ending this broken system, we can fill vacancies faster, strengthen courts, and ensure justice is delivered without delay.

Mr. Speaker, Democrats' soft-on-crime policies have failed in D.C. just as they have failed in States like New York. These bills hold the line, restore accountability, and put public safety ahead of politics.

Mr. Speaker, I urge my colleagues to support this rule, and I reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.

My colleagues on the other side of the aisle love to talk about affordability. They love to play class warfare, but if Democrats were serious about lowering costs for working families, then they wouldn't have spent the last 4 years driving energy prices higher with more regulations, higher taxes, and subsidies that pick winners and losers.

Families have felt the pain every time they fill up their gas tank, pay their rising utility bills, or try to keep their lights on in their small businesses.

Republicans, working with President Trump, are focused on real solutions: Restoring energy policy that unleashes production here at home secures our grid, delivers reliable, affordable power that families and businesses can count on, and creates jobs in the process. That is exactly what this rule is about.

The three energy bills before us are straightforward. They support family-sustaining energy jobs. They streamline approvals for cross- border infrastructure and ensure reliable and dispatchable generation for the grid. Together, they mean lower bills for families, stronger supply chains, and a more competitive America.

When Democrats talk about affordability, they don't have a leg to stand on in this fight because it is their assault on the American energy industry that led to so much of the inflation that this country suffered under for the last 5 years.

The answer is right here in the rule, and we need to support this legislation.

I strongly support the legislation and encourage my colleagues to do the same.

Mr. Speaker, I want to touch on the gentleman's comments on tariffs.

Republicans are doing what Democrats promised the American people for generations that they would do but utterly failed at: ensuring fair trade, protecting American workers, and bringing countries to the negotiating table in the process. For years, Democrats sold a bill of goods to working-class Americans while they turned a blind eye as their factories closed and their jobs were shipped overseas.

Today, Democrats claim to be the party of working families, and we know that is not the case. Yet, it is President Trump, over the Democrats' loud objections, who is fighting for fair trade deals for our working families, like the working families in New York's 23rd Congressional District.

Access to the American economy is a privilege, not a right. President Trump is using tariffs as leverage to reduce reciprocal barriers, safeguard our national security, and level the global playing field for American producers and manufacturers, and it is working.

Treasury has already collected more than $29 billion in tariff revenue this year, while countries like India, China, and South Korea are at the table negotiating new deals as we speak.

This is the same decisive leadership that secured stronger trade agreements with the EU, Japan, the U.K., and partners across Asia. These aren't trade wars. They are trade wins that deliver more jobs, higher wages, and greater opportunities for American families and American products around the world.

Mr. Speaker, the same focus on protecting working families is exactly what we are doing with the bills before us today. This rule advances commonsense legislation to strengthen our grid, unleash American energy, and restore coal's role in the mix.

Also, let's not underplay what it means to protect the people of Washington, D.C., which we do have a Federal oversight responsibility for. Having a crime-ridden Nation's Capital is unacceptable by any metric.

Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.

Mr. Speaker, let's set the record straight. There is a lot to unpack there and a lot of talk about playing games, but what my colleagues on the other side of the aisle refuse to admit is how during the COVID-19 pandemic they had intentionally passed premium tax credits with a sunset allowing them to expire and, in the process, playing politics with the healthcare of millions of Americans.

If Democrats truly supported these credits, as they claim they now do, being made permanent, they would have made them permanent when they controlled both Chambers of Congress and the White House. It would have been suggested by President Biden when he was in the White House that it should have been a priority of the Congress. They refused to do so. They never brought that up.

Mr. Speaker, this is a pattern with Democrats. They would rather use working families for their political means and ends than genuinely work to make their lives better. The American people see that for what it is. Mr. Speaker, you are hearing: The sky is falling. Everyone is going to lose their healthcare if this is not attached to a CR at this moment.

Yes, we do have the majority. I am confident we will pass the CR in the House. However, Mr. Speaker, you know darn well that in the Senate, Leader Schumer will hold the majority hostage using the filibuster to force us into a shutdown, just like they threatened to do in March. I mean, that is the tactic that is being played. All these expectations are being set by the other side, knowing that they have a trap door, and they intend to try to leverage the American people to get more of their political will accomplished.

Republicans already voted to deliver lower premiums for patients by passing H.R. 1, which targeted waste, fraud, and abuse across the ACA marketplace. Democrats unanimously opposed this bill, showing once again they are not serious about solving affordability problems for everyday Americans, just like they are not serious about trying to keep the government open. If they were, they would have supported these commonsense policies. Instead, they would rather play politics.

Mr. Speaker, what we are actually debating today are commonsense measures in this rule to strengthen American energy policy, to keep violent crime off our streets here in our Capital City. These bills are about lowering costs for working families, keeping our communities safe and restoring accountability. We are getting the job done with or without their support.

Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. Speaker, my colleagues across the aisle want to pretend Republicans are manufacturing a crime crisis in our Nation's Capital, but the facts tell a completely different story. Under President Biden and Democratic leadership, Washington, D.C., became one of the most dangerous cities in America.

In 2023, D.C. had the fourth highest homicide rate in the Nation, trailing only New Orleans, St. Louis, and Detroit. If D.C. were a State, it would have had the highest homicide rate in America. That number could be even higher because, as we know, D.C. officials may have manipulated the crime

data to hide the true extent of the problem.

Democrats would rather fudge the numbers to justify their radical policy experiments in places like D.C. than actually protect communities from violent crime. The same thing is happening in my home State of New York. They would rather quibble over process arguments and gaslighting using false statistics than acknowledge how many lives have been saved since President Trump took action to enforce law and order in the streets of Washington.

This is how unserious and radical today's Democratic Party has become. Contrast this with what has happened since President Trump stepped in. In the 20 days following the Federal surge, carjackings dropped 87 percent compared to the same period last year. Across the board, violent crime fell 39 percent, burglaries dropped 45 percent, and carjackings fell 75. More than 2,700 arrests were made and 323 firearms were recovered. These aren't talking points. They are results. They are real safety improvements felt by families here in the District of Columbia.

While Democrats scramble to defend their failed policies and liberal experiments in America's major cities, and they downplay the true cost in lives that come from policies that have long been supported in these cities, Republicans are restoring accountability, enforcing the law, and delivering real results to make our communities safer. That is exactly what this rule is about.

The legislation before us strengthens accountability here in Washington, D.C., our Nation's Capital. It should be the gem of the country, and it will be again. If Democrats are truly serious about protecting families, they should support this rule and all of the underlying legislation, which is common sense to support law and order and protect the lives of the residents and the visitors to this great city.

Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.

Mr. Speaker, the authors of inflation, the creators of inflation on the other side of this Chamber, the people who hypercharged an economy and drove down the value of our dollar, are now going to lecture us on why groceries cost so much. Where the hell have they been for the last 4 years? Where were they when Americans were struggling with the cost of their groceries because gas was up near $4 a gallon?

Their policies determined that when they ran all facets of the government. Now, they have this revisionist history, and they want to talk about a cup of coffee.

The tariff negotiations that President Trump has used have created new deals and new markets for our products around the globe. It is making a more competitive America, and we are not going to be taken advantage of by other countries anymore.

Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.

Again, more and more class warfare, Mr. Speaker. We hear the term ``millionaires and billionaires'' thrown around. Yet, every single one of them voted against all the tax benefits that would have helped the middle class and will continue to help the middle class.

The minority voted against no tax on tips, against no tax on overtime,

against doubling the child tax credit, and against doubling the standard deduction, all things that put serious money back into the pockets of my constituents.

Now, to my colleague, $1,800, $2,000, $2,500 might not seem like a lot to him, but it might be two mortgage payments to my constituents. Yet, every single one of them voted no.

I will not be lectured, and none of us should be lectured by people who stood in the way of getting that tax code made permanent.

Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. Speaker, I yield myself the balance of my time.

Mr. Speaker, for far too long, Americans have been forced to endure higher costs, weaker energy security, and rising crime because of policies pushed by the left.

The American people rejected that approach last November, and they elected a President and a Congress committed to restoring accountability, protecting families, and ensuring our future is built on reliable and affordable American energy.

The measures in this rule fulfill that promise. They strengthen our grid, cut through bureaucratic red tape, and make sure America, not China, leads in powering the next generation.

They also hold the line on public safety by rolling back soft-on- crime policies here in our Nation's Capital in Washington, D.C., and they restore the accountability that local leaders have refused to enforce.

Mr. Speaker, I strongly support the rule before us today and the underlying legislation.

Mr. Speaker, I yield back the balance of my time, and I move the previous question on the resolution.

Mr. Speaker, I thank the gentleman from New York for yielding me the customary 30 minutes, and I yield myself such time as I may consume.

Mr. Speaker, we just heard a whole lot of words from the gentleman from New York, but the bills before us today are yet another example of how backward Republican priorities are and how they are hurting this country, hurting the economic well-being of the people I represent, and hurting the economic

well-being of working people all over this country.

People are stressed about their budgets. They are worried about prices going up. They are scared they might lose their jobs. People are struggling to pay the bills and make ends meet, worried about saving for college for their kids and how they are going to deal with the exploding costs of healthcare.

Instead of addressing any of that, we are dealing with this. When we are not dealing with this, Republicans are obsessed with fighting culture wars. That is what they want 24/7: culture wars, culture wars, culture wars. Some of them are now proposing a new committee to investigate their political opponents, a new House un-American activities committee that would make Joe McCarthy blush. That is all this place is to Republicans: a venue for culture wars, a venue for legislation to further divide people and divide this country. Meanwhile, they do nothing, absolutely nothing for everyday people, nothing at all.

Actually, it is worse than nothing. They are actively trying to screw over regular people. Look no further than yesterday. Democrats tried to force a vote on Trump's tariffs, and nearly every Republican blocked it. Every one of them is now on record as supporting Trump's disastrous tariffs. They are not just ignoring the economy. They are making it worse.

For the other side, this is all about genuflecting to Donald Trump. It is all about power for the sake of power. It is not about the American people. It has never been about the American people for Republicans. It is about power, and they use that power to help the rich, the well-connected, and the well-off.

Four of these bills that we are going to be dealing with are about local issues in Washington, D.C., something none of my constituents have ever asked me about. For the record, 0.2 percent of the U.S. population lives in Washington, D.C., and Republicans want to get into the weeds about their local policing policies.

Do you know what my constituents ask me about? They don't ask me about local issues that affect Washington, D.C. They ask me about why their healthcare insurance premiums are going up. They ask me about prices going up because of Donald Trump's tariffs. They tell me they need more money in their pockets to make ends meet.

Yet, week after week, Republicans do nothing about healthcare and nothing about inflation. It is constant culture wars. It is constant giveaways to the rich and powerful. It is constant distractions.

One of the Republican bills that we are considering today reestablishes a coal council--not even establishes, reestablishes. Wow, that is really important, a coal council. Who the hell asked for that? A coal lobbyist?

Mr. Speaker, the Department of Energy already reestablished this stupid council months ago. It is apparently so important that President Trump hasn't even bothered to appoint anyone to it yet. If you look up their website, he still hasn't appointed anybody to the council. Go to the website.

This is stupid. We are wasting time by doing this. Energy prices are going up in this country, and this is the majority's response: reestablishing a coal council. You can't make this stuff up. This is laughable.

The other bills that Republicans are bringing forward today are giveaways to polluters who dump toxic chemicals into our air and water. Why? Follow the money. Did the CEO of ExxonMobil call Donald Trump and ask for a favor?

Mr. Speaker, all of these bills are a disgrace. The people we represent want us to address the real issues that we face every day. They want us to talk about the cost of living, healthcare, and fixing what is broken with this country's economic system.

Meanwhile, as we are gathering here to do this stuff, the clock is ticking toward a shutdown. Republicans control the House. They control the Senate. They control the White House. They should be able to fund the government, but they won't. They won't.

Let me be clear: Democrats are not going to stand by and do nothing while my Republican colleagues try to kick millions of people off their healthcare.

I hear that the Speaker of the House is saying that it is no big deal, that we will just kick the can down the road, deal with it sometime, maybe in December, and talk about it then.

Let me be clear. I will speak in ``See Spot Run'' language so that my Republican colleagues can understand. Mr. Speaker, the CBO, the Congressional Budget Office, says that 1.5 million people--that is a lot of people--will lose their healthcare if we wait. People's premiums--that is, their monthly payments--will go way, way up because the insurance companies are making important decisions right now about how much to charge. We do not have time to wait.

Mr. Speaker, now that that is clear, Republicans have three choices: First, they can work with us in a bipartisan way to make sure it doesn't happen. Second, they could do what Trump said and pass the CR alone since they control government. Third, they can choose to shut the government down.

Those are the three options. Democrats are for keeping the government open, but we are not for passing legislation that tells millions of people who we represent, including sick people: Good luck. You are on your own. Best wishes.

We are not for that. If there is a shutdown, I say that Republicans own this. It is their shutdown. If Republicans would rather shut down the government than protect people's healthcare, then we do not share the same values.

I want to keep people on healthcare, not kick them off. I go home and ask people what they care about. I go to coffee shops and county fairs. I hold townhalls--something Republicans should try to do, by the way. Do you know what I hear from my constituents? They are sick and tired of those at the top getting ahead while they struggle to pay their bills.

They are sick and tired of Republicans in Congress passing bills to help the rich while everyone else has to breathe in dirty air and drink dirty water.

They are sick and tired of this culture war garbage and this weird obsession that Republicans have with micromanaging Washington, D.C. They want Republicans to leave Washington, D.C., the hell alone and focus on their own damned communities.

They are sick and tired of Republicans trying to kick people off of their healthcare to pay for taxes for multimillionaires and billionaires.

These are rotten bills. To top it all off, we have seven more completely closed rules with no amendments allowed. Take it or leave it from this Republican majority. I think we ought to leave it. These are terrible bills that are going to hurt the people we represent.

Mr. Speaker, I urge a ``no'' vote, and I reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. Speaker, Republicans are protecting American families, my foot. You just passed this big, ugly bill that throws millions of people off of healthcare, that gives tax breaks to multimillionaires and billionaires, and then you accuse us of playing class warfare because we are trying to stick up for the middle class in this country, for working families. You can't call it class warfare when you are giving tax breaks to multimillionaires and billionaires while cutting people's healthcare benefits.

Let me just say for the record that in the gentleman's district, New York District 23, as of 2024, 6,000 people in his district received tax credits to help lower their monthly premium payments to make quality comprehensive health insurance coverage more affordable, and these tax credits are due to expire. These people are going to lose their healthcare or they are going to see their premiums go through the roof.

For a 60-year-old couple earning $82,800 a year in the gentleman's district, annual premiums would increase by $7,349. That is a 110 percent increase.

For a family of four earning $129,800 a year, ages 45 and up, the annual premium would increase by $17,741. That is a 172 percent increase.

For a family of four earning $64,000 a year, the annual premiums would increase by $2,571. That is a 369 percent increase.

Mr. Speaker, I don't know. I guess in his district his constituents don't care about that. According to him, they care more about micromanaging D.C.

In my district and in other districts that I know of in this country, people are worried about their healthcare costs, and we ought to do something about it. We shouldn't kick the can down the road so more and more people end up feeling the pain.

Mr. Speaker, if we defeat the previous question, I will offer an amendment to the rule to strike sections 9, 10, and 11, which together block privileged consideration of measures ending the administration's global tariffs and tariffs on Canada, Mexico, and Brazil until March 31, 2026.

Mr. Speaker, President Trump made a campaign promise that he would lower prices ``on day one,'' yet Trump's disastrous trade war continues to increase the prices Americans are paying for food, for gas, and for other everyday goods.

According to independent estimates, Trump's current tariff regime is resulting in a $2,300 tax increase in 2025 alone for the average American household. Fruits, vegetables, beef, and coffee are just some of the products experiencing the highest price increases. Go to a supermarket for heaven's sake in your district and you will know what I am talking about.

This is not what the American people voted for. The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit recently held that Trump's tariffs that he imposed under the guise of bogus emergencies are unlawful and that Congress, not the President, must make the calls when it comes to imposing new tariffs.

As we await the Supreme Court's decision, Congress should be voting on these tariffs and whether they should remain in place, but in the Republican rule, they are, again, blocking the Congress from taking a vote on whether we should keep or remove these emergency tariffs.

The President imposed huge tariffs on Canada and Mexico in February, global tariffs in April, and most recently, a 50 percent tariff on Brazil because he didn't like that his friend, Brazil's disgraced former President, was just tried and convicted of trying to overthrow a democratic election to stay in power.

Mr. Speaker, does that remind you of anyone, by the way?

The American people paid $30 billion in new tariff taxes in August alone, and Republicans are continuing to hide their heads in the sand.

Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent to insert the text of my amendment into the Record, along with extraneous material, immediately prior to the vote on the previous question.

Mr. Speaker, for God's sake, we ought to do our work. We ought to live up to our constitutional responsibility and debate and vote on these things. I am sorry that the President has instructed you to do nothing, but we ought to do something.

Mr. Speaker, I yield 3 minutes to the gentleman from New York (Mr. Meeks), the distinguished ranking member of the Foreign Affairs Committee, to discuss our proposal.

Mr. Speaker, I yield an additional 30 seconds to the gentleman from New York.

Mr. Speaker, I am confused by what the gentleman said. I don't know whether he supports the ACA tax credits or not. If he doesn't, then 6,000 of his constituents will be adversely impacted. If he does, then we should just fix it right now. By the way, Republicans all opposed the ACA when it came up, so I don't want to hear that garbage.

Don't blame the Senate. Donald Trump just said to Republicans over in the Senate: Do it on your own. I think what he is referring to was just last week Republicans nuked the filibuster when it comes to nominations. Republicans control the House, the Senate, and the White House. Basically what they are telling us is that they don't give a damn about working families in this country, and that is what is at stake here.

I yield 3 minutes to the gentleman from Texas (Mr. Doggett.)

Mr. Speaker, you have got to love these Republicans. They spend more time talking about micromanaging 0.2 percent of the American population in D.C. and more worried about that than they are worried about the fact that over 99 percent of the American people are about to see their premiums go up. Millions of people are going to lose their healthcare. We just have a different set of priorities. We have a different set of priorities.

By the way, when we talk about national security, healthcare is part of it. If you don't have healthcare, you don't have security.

Mr. Speaker, I yield 2 minutes to the gentlewoman from New Mexico (Ms. Leger Fernandez), a distinguished member of the Rules Committee.

Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.

Mr. Speaker, as I mentioned just a few moments ago, Republicans are blocking a vote on Trump's tariffs in this rule. I think it is pretty obvious why. The consequences of his economic policy are being felt in communities across this country, and Republicans know they can't defend it. That is why they are not doing townhalls.

Moms and dads are coming home with pink slips because their employers don't know if they can keep the doors open. Small businesses are shuttering. Farmers are struggling under higher input costs and shrinking markets.

Food, gas, electricity, basic goods and services--the prices are all up. They are likely to climb even higher as Trump's tariffs ripple through the supply chain. It is clear that the Trump economy is not working for average Americans.

President Trump and Republicans promised to reduce inflation. Instead, last month, we saw the largest monthly increase in inflation since January.

They promised to reduce grocery prices. Instead, last month, grocery prices spiked at the fastest pace in 3 years, driven in part by tariff- fueled costs.

They promised to cut electricity prices in half. Instead, August electricity prices were 6 percent higher than they were a year ago, and Americans are having to navigate a weakening job market and rising costs.

Fruits and vegetables are up nearly 2 percent. Dairy products are up 1.3 percent. Cereal and bread are up 1.1 percent. Meat, poultry, fish, and eggs are all up a whopping 5.6 percent. Give me a break.

Mr. Speaker, let's be frank. The only winners in Trump's economy are millionaires and billionaires. He packed his Cabinet with the rich and well-connected. Republicans' reconciliation bill hands out nearly $100,000 in tax cuts for those making over a million dollars a year in 2027 alone.

Just last week, the Trump administration started rolling back efforts to crack down on offshore tax shelters that billionaires and giant corporations use to avoid paying their fair share of taxes. Who does that?

Mr. Speaker, Trump promised an economy for the American people, but time and time again, his tariffs and policies have only delivered for the ultrarich, while families, farmers, and small businesses pay the price. We ought to be voting on this stuff.

Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.

Mr. Speaker, is the gentleman talking about the reconciliation bill that the Republicans brought to the floor that resulted in trillions and trillions of dollars and more debt, all to give multimillionaires and multibillionaires a tax cut? I mean, I am sorry. If there is class warfare going on here, I know which side my Republican friends are on.

Mr. Speaker, millions of everyday Americans all across the country are about to get notice that their healthcare premiums are going to skyrocket, including in the gentleman's district. Moms, dads, and grandparents, people working two jobs just to get by, are going to be at their kitchen tables, facing the awful decision of which bills to pay.

For nearly 24 million people in this country who have ACA marketplace health insurance, premiums will increase, on average, by 93 percent. A 60-year-old couple making $80,000 per year will see their premiums increase by over $17,000 per year. That is like $1,400 per month. A family of four earning $64,000 will owe an extra $2,600 in healthcare premiums every year.

Where on Earth are families supposed to find this kind of extra money, Mr. Speaker? We are talking hundreds and hundreds, if not thousands, of dollars. That is not extra change that you can find in your couch cushion.

It will mean 5 million people, including 2 million with chronic conditions, lose their healthcare coverage altogether.

It will mean older adults have to choose between paying their high energy bills and affording their healthcare.

It will mean families going without food because their healthcare premiums are unaffordable.

It will mean people fall behind on their rent just so they can afford basic healthcare in the United States of America, the richest country in the history of the world.

This is a crisis, Mr. Speaker. It is a crisis of the Republicans' own making. Instead of spending the summer working with Democrats to address this looming healthcare cliff, Republicans spent it instead slashing Medicaid by a trillion dollars, kicking 15 million people off their coverage altogether, blocking access to cancer screening and prenatal care by defunding Planned Parenthood, cutting NIH's budget, and taking food away from families with teenagers, veterans, and older adults, which will make them less healthy, all to give tax breaks to Elon Musk and Trump's billionaire friends.

Honest to God, Mr. Speaker, I have no idea what to say to the working families who visit my office scared to death that their healthcare costs are going to force them to go broke.

I don't know how my Republican friends can talk to people back home in their districts, regular people, hardworking people, and somehow justify what they are doing. I guess many of them don't because they don't do townhalls.

With all due respect to the Speaker of the House, no, this actually cannot wait. I understand why they are trying to minimize the crisis that they created, I really do, but hardworking people back home are counting on us, Mr. Speaker.

Congress must address this looming healthcare crisis now, including one of the most significant healthcare premium hikes in history, and the historic cuts to Medicaid that are closing hospitals and nursing homes on a daily basis, to give families peace of mind that they won't go bankrupt trying to afford their healthcare.

Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. Speaker, may I inquire as to the time I have remaining.

Mr. Speaker, I yield myself the balance of my time.

Mr. Speaker, I am losing my voice but not my passion.

Mr. Speaker, the truth is simple. Families are being crushed by high prices. Rent, groceries, gas, and healthcare are all going up.

What are Republicans doing? They are obsessed with micromanaging Washington, D.C., with not one, not two, not three, but four different bills today about Washington, D.C.

I hate to break it to Republicans, but none of the people whom I represent, and I think none of the people from the gentleman's district, live in Washington, D.C., which leads me to wonder why the hell Republicans are wasting time on this nonsense.

Mr. Speaker, the other bills that we are dealing with hand out favors to Big Coal and Big Oil. Again, there is nothing for regular families from these guys. There is nothing for average Americans. They have no vision and no plan for economic growth.

The bottom line is that healthcare premiums are about to go through the roof. People will see their healthcare bills explode because these guys refuse to act.

Republicans are putting ideology over everyday people. They are putting headlines over solutions. They are playing games instead of governing.

All of this--micromanaging D.C. and the coal commission garbage--is what the Republicans are focused on while the government teeters on the edge of a shutdown, while Trump's tariffs drive up prices, and while millions of people are about to get kicked off their health insurance.

Mr. Speaker, I urge a ``no'' vote, and I yield back the balance of my time.

Mr. Speaker, on that I demand the yeas and nays.

Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.

Mr. Speaker, I rise in opposition to H.R. 3015. This bill would require the Department of Energy to reestablish the National Coal Council, something that President Trump already did 3 months ago.

It goes further than that. House Republicans don't just want to reestablish the National Coal Council. They want it to play by different rules than the 27 other advisory councils that the Department of Energy maintains by making it permanent.

Of course, they offer no justification as to why this council and only this council is special. There isn't one.

I also want to point out that among DOE's other 27 advisory councils, not a single one is focused on clean energy. There is no solar council, no wind council, no battery council, and not even a geothermal energy council. All of those could be very useful.

Instead of using their floor time to prompt the Department to develop a council for some of our cheaper, cleaner energy, Republicans are focused on giving coal special treatment. Frankly, it is ridiculous. I think it is a waste of time.

Mr. Speaker, the country is in turmoil. We are facing a national healthcare crisis. Republicans are actively taking healthcare away from millions of Americans. Meanwhile, millions more are about to watch their healthcare premiums skyrocket and their local hospitals close, not to mention the astronomical cost of living that is rising more and more each day, thanks to Trump's tariffs.

Rather than addressing one of these real crises, Republicans have us wasting time on a bill that would order the DOE to do something it has already done.

Republicans could be using the floor time to ensure millions of Americans don't get priced out of their healthcare plans. They are not doing that.

Republicans could use floor time to rein in Trump's tariffs, which are projected to cost hardworking families thousands of dollars each year. They are not going to do that.

Republicans could use floor time to pass an energy policy that would bring electricity bills down. Clearly, they are not doing that.

The reason is simple. Republicans care more about signaling their love of coal than they care about fighting for hardworking families struggling to make ends meet. They don't care about the hardworking families who are trying to make ends meet. They are just signaling that they love coal.

That is particularly shameful when we consider coal consumption has declined by nearly two-thirds since its peak in 2007. Instead of celebrating the newer sources of cleaner and cheaper energy, Republicans are frantically trying to turn back the clock and ignore Americans' pleas for real and meaningful help in the process.

Mr. Speaker, I urge opposition to this bill and to this massive waste of time. It is completely meaningless. I hope they will do something else.

Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. Speaker, once again, I yield such time as she may consume to the gentlewoman from Florida (Ms. Castor), who is our ranking member of the Energy Subcommittee.

Mr. Speaker, I yield such time as she may consume to the gentlewoman from California (Ms. Matsui), who is the ranking member of our Subcommittee on Communications and Technology.

Mr. Speaker, I yield such time as he may consume to the gentleman from Kentucky (Mr. McGarvey).

Mr. Speaker, I yield myself the balance of my time.

Mr. Speaker, I have heard my colleagues on the other side talk about how long it takes to bring energy plants or energy sources online. I have heard about the suggestion that the Democrats are trying to close fossil fuel plants.

President Trump is a President who, in the 8 months now since he has been President, has proceeded to try to cut off almost any source of clean energy. Just a few weeks ago, he announced that he was going to stop the offshore wind projects that were over 90 percent constructed in Rhode Island. He has done the same throughout the eastern seaboard.

I think it was the gentleman from Kentucky (Mr. Guthrie) who said that it takes a long time to build these energy facilities, and either the gentleman or one of the other Republicans today said that Republicans favor all of the above, which means that the majority favors fossil fuels, would like to see clean energy, and would like to see nuclear energy, presumably.

Mr. Speaker, that is not what we are getting. That is not what we are getting from the Trump administration. That is not what we are getting with these bills. Everything favors fossil fuels. Every effort is being made by this President to cut off clean energy, not only windmills but also solar, et cetera.

The bottom line is that everything is being done to prioritize dirty fuels, in particular, whether it is coal, oil, or whatever it is, at the expense of clean energy.

Clean energy is cheaper. Even if my colleagues didn't believe that, we need more energy, regardless of the source. Why would Republicans want to just cut off offshore windmills in Rhode Island that are over 90 percent complete? It makes no sense unless they are trying to favor the oil and gas and the fossil fuel interests.

Mr. Speaker, Republicans say that they want to save the coal industry. Secretary Wright recently implied that he doesn't want a single fossil fuel plant to close.

This is ridiculous for several reasons, the most important being that keeping these plants open is more expensive than building new sources of clean energy. The proof is really in the pudding here. The Trump Department of Energy recently forced two fossil fuel plants that were days away from retiring to remain open and is directly forcing homeowners hundreds of miles away from these plants to pay to keep the plants online.

The Consumers coal plant in Michigan was slated to close and save Michigan residents $600 million on their power bills, but Donald Trump pulled the rug out from everyone and, instead, is increasing families' power bills.

The administration pulled the same trick with the Eddystone oil and gas plant in Pennsylvania, where two units that were nearly 60 years old were set to expire. Pennsylvania's grid operator determined that taking the plants out of service would not impact grid reliability, but President Trump didn't care. The Pennsylvania Public Utility Commission chairman noted that ``the price tag for consumers could grow quickly.''

Consumers aren't getting a say in this process. President Trump dictates that a coal plant stays online, and homeowners have to pay for it.

A recent study by Grid Strategies found that, if the administration refused to let a single fossil fuel plant close, Americans would be on the hook for $6 billion per year and increased costs by the end of the Trump administration.

Republicans' obsession with coal is going to cost Americans billions of dollars and pollute our air and water for nothing except some additional cash for Republicans' friends in the coal industry. It is really a rotten deal for the average American.

Mr. Speaker, I also want to say in opposition to this bill that Republicans claim that the National Coal Council is so important that it demands floor time in the House of Representatives, even though the President has already reestablished it. We could be passing legislation to lower energy costs or avoid a spike in health insurance premiums instead.

If Republicans believed that the National Coal Council is such a priority, then surely the Trump administration does, as well. Yet, the Trump administration has let the National Coal Council languish for 3 months. They reestablished it back in June. It hasn't met. No one has been appointed to lead the council. Remember, those positions don't require a Senate confirmation or even consultation with the Office of Presidential Personnel.

There are no meetings scheduled. It should at least have some members if Republicans think that it is important. Unfortunately, none of those things has happened.

If you look on the website for the National Coal Council, it says that all of this is coming soon: members, meetings, or whatever. That is like the neighborhood coffee shop not quite ready to open to visitors. They put up a ``coming soon'' sign.

The reality is that all of this is a charade. Republicans can try to sell to donors that they are rescuing the coal industry, but in fact, they are doing nothing, not even with the National Coal Council.

It is not like it was that great under the previous Trump administration, either. The National Coal Council operated in the previous Trump administration as some kind of bizarre organization that was intertwined with a trade association that went by the same name, funded by private contributions from companies that made up the real government coal council.

It got so bad that a Federal judge found that the shadowy trade association was the alter ego of the real coal council, with no clear lines of separation between the Federal entity and its mirror image.

Official Coal Council events were funded by the trade association. At a meeting of the government's Coal Council, a speaker called upon members to become dues-paying members of the trade association.

You can't make this stuff up. You really can't. This idea that the National Coal Council will be important and that anyone really cares about it is just a joke. The Trump administration obviously doesn't think the National Coal Council is important. The last time it existed, it didn't even seem to do anything.

I don't understand the point of advancing a bill to reconstitute it without adding guardrails to prohibit the mixing of industry priorities with legitimate research. This is what the court pointed out to us.

I only mention these things because I am trying to emphasize that this bill is a complete waste of time and a disservice to our constituents that we are even here talking about it.

Mr. Speaker, I urge opposition to the bill, and I yield back the balance of my time.

Mr. Speaker, on that I demand the yeas and nays.

Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.

Mr. Speaker, I rise in strong opposition to this trio of pro-polluter bills that we are debating today. These bills just double down on the Trump administration's commitment to raising American electricity prices by discriminating against clean, cheap energy. They prove that Republicans have never been for an all-of-the-above energy strategy and that they don't care about fixing the insanely high cost of living that is crushing families across this country right now.

The only thing Republicans care about is making their fossil fuel friends even richer.

All of this comes a few months after Republicans passed their big, ugly bill. That law will cause Americans' utility bills to go up by about nearly $300 per year. That is on top of the nearly $29 billion in electricity bill rate hikes that utilities have requested just since the start of President Trump's term. All this from a President who promised to cut Americans' electricity bills in half. That is just one of President Trump's broken promises.

President Trump and House Republicans also claim to care about China, particularly about beating China in the artificial intelligence race. That requires getting as much power on to the grid as quickly as possible, but the big, ugly bill will do the opposite. It will instead cause electricity capacity to decrease by more than 2\1/2\ times the size of the entire Midwestern electric grid, and Trump's law will render the United States unable to meet growing power demand or to compete with China.

All this doesn't factor in the enormous toll that Trump's tariffs will take on America's energy bills. A recent analysis found that Trump's tariffs will cost your average American family $2,300 each year. That is $2,300 that families need to pay rent, to buy groceries, and to afford clothes and school supplies for their kids. Trump decided to make everything more expensive, even the energy we buy.

The inconvenient truth that Republicans don't want to acknowledge is that clean energy can compete with fossil fuels. They don't like that. They are trying to put their thumb on the scale, and that is where this week's bills come into play.

The first bill we are discussing right now, H.R. 3062, the cross- border energy bill, was first proposed way back in 2013 to respond to the energy politics of the 2010s. It is simply irrelevant in this day and age. The Keystone Pipeline has been dead for 4 years. The Canadians are not interested in building energy infrastructure connecting our two nations thanks to Trump's tariffs, yet this bill would gut the Federal Government's ability to review the environmental impact of oil and gas pipelines that cross into Canada and Mexico.

Currently, the Federal Government reviews the entirety of a cross- border oil pipeline, but under this bill, the review would be limited to only 1,000 feet crossing the border. There would be virtually no Federal review for natural gas pipelines running from Texas to Mexico. This will make it easier to export American natural gas to liquid natural gas facilities in Mexico, which, again, will drive up utility prices here at home in the United States.

Finally, the bill creates a massive loophole allowing any existing cross-border facility to expand without any review whatsoever. A pipeline could be expanded by 10 times, dramatically increasing its environmental impact, and there would still be no review.

If Republicans want to get serious about permitting reform, they need to work with Democrats to advance policies that will fix the way we permit and plan our Nation's grid.

Later today, we are going to consider another bill, H.R. 3015, that would reestablish the National Coal Council, something that Energy Secretary Wright has already done. Instead of using floor time on anything important, like maybe trying to fix the affordability crisis that is strangling middle-class America, Republicans are wasting time passing a bill to do something that has already happened.

Then after that, the third bill, H.R. 1047, the GRID Power Act, would require the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission to allow electric grid operators to prioritize connecting fossil fuel plants to the grid over connecting clean energy power plants to the grid.

Now, this is just another way Republicans are tipping the scales toward fossil fuels over wind and solar energy.

Taken together, Mr. Speaker, these three bills will only continue to raise America's energy bills and, in some cases, do so while also removing the guardrails that keep our communities safe and healthy.

Mr. Speaker, I strongly urge opposition to all three bills, including the one we are debating right now, and I reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. Speaker, I yield such time as she may consume to the gentlewoman from Florida (Ms. Castor), the ranking member of our Energy Subcommittee.

Mr. Speaker, I yield such time as she may consume to the gentlewoman from Virginia (Ms. McClellan), who is a member of the committee.

Mr. Speaker, I yield myself the balance of my time.

Mr. Speaker, I want to comment on what the gentleman from Georgia said. I know he is not here. I don't like to comment on people when they are not here, but I am not really being critical personally, just substantively.

The gentleman from Georgia and my colleagues on the other side keep talking about how they are going to use this legislation to address another pipeline from Canada. References were made to Keystone. Keystone is dead.

There is no reason to believe in any way that the Canadians are looking to work with us to build a pipeline and export more fossil fuels to the United States. Right now, we barely have a relationship with Canada because of the tariffs.

The fact of the matter is that there is a tariff on Canadian exports. The bottom line, I guess, is the only way that we could get Canada to maybe send us more oil or gas is if we did what President Trump says and annex them and make them the 51st State. I am not an advocate for that. I don't think that is going to happen.

It is unrealistic right now to talk about any kind of additional oil or gas coming to the United States through a Canadian pipeline. That is just not going to happen.

What I think is really happening here is that there is going to be an effort, because of the way the bill reads, to double, triple, or even 10 times the amount of gas that would go from the United States to Mexico, because the bill doesn't have any review with regard to that. If you have an existing pipeline, you can just double, triple, or quadruple it, or whatever, and send American gas to Mexico, where it is going to be made into LNG and shipped throughout the world.

That is only going to increase our gas prices here in the United States. That is what is going to happen here.

Again, we on the Democratic side have been stressing the fact that when it comes to energy prices, they are going through the roof. The Republicans don't seem to care at all about dealing with the issue. All they want to do is make it possible for more of our gas to go abroad.

The way this bill is tailored, there would be basically no review, other than, I think, for 1,000 feet, or something, into the other country. The suggestion that somehow there is still going to be some significant review here before these pipelines are permitted is simply not the case, based on what this legislation says.

Mr. Speaker, for all of these reasons, I ask my colleagues to vote in opposition to this bill.

I will talk more about the two that are following, but the same is true: They are not helpful to Americans. They are going to increase energy prices. They are another indication that the Trump administration and House Republicans don't care at all about the increased costs of energy for the American consumer.

Mr. Speaker, I yield back the balance of my time.

Mr. Speaker, on that I demand the yeas and nays.

Mr. Speaker, pursuant to House Resolution 707, I call up the bill (H.R. 3015) to reestablish the National Coal Council in the Department of Energy to provide advice and recommendations to the Secretary of Energy on matters related to coal and the coal industry, and for other purposes, and ask for its immediate consideration in the House.

Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all Members

may have 5 legislative days to revise and extend their remarks and include extraneous material on H.R. 3015.

Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.

Mr. Speaker, I rise in support of the National Coal Council Reestablishment Act, introduced by my colleague from Ohio's Sixth District (Mr. Rulli).

This legislation would codify the National Coal Council, an important advisory committee that had aided our Federal Government for 37 years with expertise and technical reports on all matters affecting the coal industry and its workers.

The reestablishment of the National Coal Council couldn't come at a better time. It is no secret that our energy demands are rising. If the demand isn't met with sufficient supply, we risk ceding leadership in the next-generation economy to China, while raising costs on American households along the way.

We are seeing the demand for reliable electricity affect nearly every industry. At the end of the day, electricity policy is technology policy, and electricity policy is manufacturing policy.

There is one source of reliable electricity that has been powering American industry for many years. Coal-powered generation is a key baseload resource that even today can protect against upward price pressures and provide the right type of energy to fuel American innovation and the next-generation industries.

Unfortunately, the previous administration sought to deliberately undermine the financial viability of coal while subsidizing preferred sources like wind, solar, and batteries.

Instead of regulating one industry and subsidizing another to make it competitive, we need to get back to making things affordable in the first place.

The National Coal Council plays a critical role in developing a cohesive national energy strategy that will unleash American energy dominance to lower costs for hardworking households.

Mr. Speaker, I urge my colleagues to support H.R. 3015, and I reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.

Mr. Speaker, we are absolutely concerned about families making ends meet through cheaper electricity. There are also hardworking families in my Commonwealth of Kentucky who work in the coal industry and have been really hurt by the policies that came out of the prior administration.

This has been reinstated by the Trump Presidency. This ensures a future President can't again undo what we experienced in the last 4 years. That is the difference in where we are. That is why it is important that we are doing it.

Mr. Speaker, I yield 5 minutes to the gentleman from Ohio (Mr. Rulli), the sponsor of this legislation. He is a new member of the Committee on Energy and Commerce, and I am proud to have him on the committee.

Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.

Mr. Speaker, I just want to say that over the next decade, we are going to

need 152 gigawatts of power. A gigawatt of power is about what is needed to power the city of Seattle, so 152 Seattles over the next decade is what is estimated.

We are also slated to close 112 gigawatts of power, so we need 152 gigawatts of power in the next decade. It takes years to get any project approved. Hopefully we can speed that up through permitting reform that hopefully we all can work on. However, when you need that much power and you have existing power, then why take it offline?

My understanding--I have had a couple of people bring this coal plant up that was just mentioned--is that the grid needed it for the summer because they were afraid they were not going to have enough power to get through the summer. It wasn't just that the Federal Government forced them to keep it open. The Federal Government allowed them to keep it open.

The first thing we can do to help our fight against China--that is what it is all about. We know either we have the scaling data centers here, or China is going to dominate. That is the only choice.

Europe can't do it. We know what happens if you overregulate and don't produce the energy. That is a good example right there from Europe.

We know we need the power or we are going to lose the great battle of our time of who is going to control AI and supercomputing, eventually quantum computing.

The very first thing we can do to really bridge that power gap is not take power offline. I think it is reasonable to do. I think it is the right thing to do, and I think that it is absolutely what we should do.

Mr. Speaker, I yield 5 minutes to the gentlewoman from Wyoming (Ms. Hageman).

Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. Speaker, I have no further speakers, and I reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. Speaker, I yield myself the balance of my time.

Mr. Speaker, I thank my friend, Congressman Rulli, for sponsoring this legislation. It is important. We don't want this to be unestablished. I know it is getting reestablished.

The reason President Trump is having to reestablish it and it is coming soon is because it got unestablished. That is what we are trying to prevent in the future.

Mr. Speaker, I wish the gentleman from Kentucky (Mr. McGarvey), my friend and colleague, were still here because I would thank the gentleman for the kind words. He is a good friend with kind words.

I will say that I wish that he were in here just a couple of years ago when he said we haven't spent 1 minute or any time helping the coal miners. There are more retired union coal miners in Kentucky and the surrounding areas than there are current coal miners. Their entire pension system and their healthcare system were based on a time when there were always new people coming in and fewer people going out.

It is upside down now. If my friend had been here, he would have seen in the Longworth Cafeteria or the Rayburn Cafeteria, day in and day out, people with their coal hats on, their miner hats on, their shirts, and a lot of them from Kentucky saying, what am I going to do? This is something I had depended on.

I will tell you, we all worked on it. I will have to say that his constituent, our colleague on the other side of the bill and the leader at the time, Leader McConnell, took that as his issue. I will tell you, if you ask any coal miner, retired coal miner in Kentucky with a pension, a union benefit, retired union benefit, they will tell you who spent time on that issue, who was the leader on that issue.

Leader McConnell used to go around Kentucky when he was campaigning and say things like, Kentucky punches above its weight, and we absolutely did on that. He threw the right punch on that.

Our retired union coal miners have the benefits they have today because in an omnibus or spending bill--I can't remember, probably both together--he put in a provision that preserved their benefits.

When you say we hadn't spent a minute on it, maybe he is talking about right now, but I can tell you we have here in this Congress, the leader absolutely did, and I commend him for that.

Mr. Speaker, I urge support of this bill, and I yield back the balance of my time.