Natural Gas Fee Repeal Pleases Wyoming Industry

On Monday President Donald Trump signed into law a resolution repealing Biden-era fees on methane emissions.

Republicans called the Waste Emissions Charge the equivalent of a natural gas tax, which was authorized by the 2022 Inflation Reduction Act and implemented by the Environmental Protection Agency in November 2024.

Republicans used the Congressional Review Act to rescind the rule and fine.

The CRA legislation gives Congress the authority to repeal regulations issued during the final months of a previous administration.

House Committee on Energy and Commerce Chairman Brett Guthrie, R-Ky., called the repeal.

“a victory for the American businesses and families who would have been forced to bear the cost of the Biden-Harris Administration’s natural gas tax.”

“It’s time to restore American energy dominance by harnessing innovation and producing the natural gas needed to support our electric grid.”

Energy experts speaking before a Congressional committee in February said the high energy prices during Joe Biden’s presidency directly resulted from increased environmental regulations on energy production.

They argued that the regulations slowed down domestic energy production and increased costs to consumers.

The American Exploration and Production Council (AXPC) shares that view.

“AXPC thanks President Trump for signing the Congressional Review Act legislation – to undo EPA’s flawed rule to implement the natural gas tax,” AXPC CEO Anne Bradbury stated. “While American energy producers remain laser-focused on reducing methane emissions, this punitive rule risked undermining those efforts.”

Congressional Budget Office wrote,

“Charging for methane emissions leads to an increase in the price of natural gas and a decrease in the quantity of natural gas produced and consumed.”