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The Energy Issue We Can All Agree On

August 15, 2025

Need to know

 

Common Sense

MAKING ENERGY AFFORDABLE FOR ALL: Affordable energy should be a nonpartisan issue. When your monthly electric bill arrives or you pump gas into your vehicle, no one asks you if you’re a Democrat, a Republican or an Independent. We all pay the same amount. For many, however, electricity bills are soaring at a record pace.

New Jersey is one example and residents are up in arms. It could prove fatal to Democrats, as this article points out.

The New Jersey’s Board of Public Utilities  approved a 17-20 percent hike in June for the majority of households in The Garden State.

Republicans in the state have claimed it is tied directly to Democratic Gov. Phil Murphy’s move to shut down the state’s nuclear and coal plants in 2017. To make it worse, the state is becoming increasingly dependent on out-of-state generation to meet the electricity demand.

Why it matters: Everyone is affected by rising electricity costs associated with data center growth and volatile pricing due to world events. This is why ARC Energy Security is a must-have for all states.

Therefore, bipartisan solutions are required. Fortunately, there are several instances where that is happening at the state and regional levels.

The Trump administration and New York Gov. Kathy Hochul are working together on a much-needed pipeline in the Northeast to deliver price relief to upstate New York and New England residents, who pay sky-high bills. These two leaders are hardly political allies.

New York could move a step closer to approving the state’s biggest natural gas pipeline in at least a decade. This is significant and represents another example of our need to “Build, Baby, Build,” a cornerstone of TEA’s common sense energy agenda.

TEA data shows that about 45% of New York residents list energy affordability as a major concern. Therefore, states must coordinate with neighbors, federal agencies, and energy suppliers to align supply and demand safely and cost-effectively.

Consider: It’s become obvious that utilities and policymakers must be both proactive and collaborative. Building a gas plant near a data center won’t solve anything unless there’s a pipeline to bring the gas to the plant.

  • In Florida, advocacy groups and lawmakers are joining forces in an attempt to hold utilities accountable for rate increases.
  • Other states are challenging the PJM Interconnection regarding associated costs for mega-users like data centers.
  • Data centers are driving record power usage this year and next.

Affordable, reliable, and clean energy benefits all Americans, especially those who live on a fixed income, like retirees, low-income families, the disabled and veterans. In sum, this comprises a vast majority of us. Democrat lawmakers in New Jersey and elsewhere must join the fight to lower their constituents’ electricity bills and improve their standard of living.

Bottom line: Affordable energy for all — especially our most vulnerable — should unite Americans, not divide us.

 

Nonsense

MERITOCRACY ‘TRUMPS’ BUREAUCRACY: Stories like this lamenting the failed Solar for All program are apologizing for a major government boondoggle.

It’s poor reporting on top of failed policy, to be blunt. Another one of Biden’s feel-good projects, buried in bureaucracy and slow to launch.

Why it matters: EPA administrator Lee Zeldin announced the program would end and, as a result, save taxpayers a hefty $7 billion. “EPA no longer has the statutory authority to administer the program or the appropriated funds to keep this boondoggle alive,″ he said.

A program in Michigan was also scuttled. Many state projects were still stalled when the program was wisely scrapped last week, sparking predictable outrage from the left, including the wacky wonder himself, Bernie Sanders.

If you really want to help poor families who are struggling, make domestic energy more affordable. ARC Energy Security is the best method to accomplish that, proving beyond a doubt that meritocracy will always prevail over bureaucracy.

Consider the numbers:

  • 57% of Americans live paycheck to paycheck.
  • About 6 out of 10 residents can’t afford a $1,000 emergency expense.
  • About 1/3 of US households have an income of less than $50,000 a year.

One state that’s already ahead of the curve is Louisiana, which passed a bill earlier this year that defined “natural gas as green energy.” In late June The Pelican State joined Ohio, Tennessee and Indiana in this designation.

“This bill sets the tone for the future and will help the state pursue energy independence and dominance,” Gov. Jeff Landry said.

Clearly, he understands the difference between that path forward and the failed policies of Presidents Barack Obama and Joe Biden, posting on X:

“From Obama’s unconstitutional Clean Power Plan … to the fantasyland Green New Deal … to Biden’s $156 million Louisiana “Solar for All” giveaway, every single one of these schemes bleeds taxpayers dry, drives up rates and leaves our grid weaker than ever.”

Bottom line: ARC Energy Security offers a clear roadmap for America to cut waste, end fraud, and prioritize American energy independence.

 

A look ahead

Nothing on the calendar for next week!

 

Quote of the week

“After decades of flattish growth in demand, US electricity demand is forecast to grow by 31% over the next 15 years. Natural gas has gone from a bridge fuel to THE fuel of choice to satisfy much of this growth going forward (affordable, available, reliable).”

— Energy investor Eric Nuttall on X.