“A bill to amend the Energy Policy and Conservation Act to ban the export of natural gas produced in the United States, and for other purposes.”
No CRS summary available for this bill.
This section states congressional findings concerning the impacts of U.S. natural gas and liquefied natural gas (LNG) exports. Specifically, Congress finds that (1) such exports increase domestic natural gas and electricity prices, as shown in federal analyses including a November 2025 Energy Information Administration (EIA) prediction of 16% higher natural gas prices in 2026, a December 2024 Department of Energy (DOE) study projecting 31% higher wholesale prices by 2050 with up to $122 additional annual household costs and $125 billion in added industrial energy costs, and earlier EIA and DOE studies confirming price and volatility increases; (2) U.S. households paid $12 billion more for natural gas from January through September 2025 than the same period in 2024 (a 22% increase, or roughly $124 per household); (3) surging LNG exports from September 2021 to December 2022 caused $111 billion in higher domestic energy bills; (4) the U.S. is the world's largest natural gas producer and LNG exporter, with multiple record export months in 2025 including over 10 million metric tons in October 2025; (5) natural gas is primarily methane, the second-largest contributor to atmospheric warming; and (6) natural gas infrastructure causes health harms in surrounding communities, which are disproportionately affected due to existing pollution.
This section amends the Energy Policy and Conservation Act (42 U.S.C. 6201 et seq.) to insert new section 102, which requires the President to restrict exports of U.S.-produced natural gas—including by promulgating a rule prohibiting such exports—to keep domestic energy costs low. Exemptions are permitted for exports determined to be consistent with the national interest without unreasonably raising residential consumer costs or critical to the national security of the United States or a strategic international partner or ally, but require approval by joint resolution of Congress. This section also strikes subsections (b) through (d) of Section 101 of Division O of the Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2016 (42 U.S.C. 6212a), which prohibited federal officials from imposing or enforcing restrictions on crude oil exports (except under specified national emergency or sanctions authorities). (Thus, this repeal reinstates general authority to restrict crude oil exports.)