As Americans Fight Inflation, Top House Republicans Urge Biden to Change Approach to Agricultural And Energy Policies

Top Republicans in the House are urging the Biden administration to change its approach on energy and agricultural policies. In a letter sent to President Joe Biden this week, the elected officials argue the situation started long before Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, and claim the current administration has failed to take serious action to increase American agricultural production, which in turn, is now costing consumers.

The letter is signed by Rep. G.T. Thompson (R- Pa.), the top Republican on the House Ag Committee, House Minority Leader Rep. Kevin McCarthy (R-Ca.), Minority Whip Rep. Steve Scalise, (R-La.) and Elise Stefanik who serves as the Republican Conference Chair.

The elected officials outline in the letter administrative actions the group says would immediately provide near-term solutions to address the ongoing crisis in the U.S., including:

• Addressing farm input costs
• Halting changes to "Waters of the United States" (WOTUS)
• Ensuring the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) refocuses on sound science
• Ending onerous climate rules
   

The Republican leaders also pointed out the impact of inflation, citing the latest U.S. Consumer Price Index (CPI) that showed the largest price increase in nearly 40 years with food costs up 9.4% year-over-year. That includes USDA data that shows the cost of eggs are up 22%, beef up 14% and dairy products seeing an increase of 9%.

Biden Addresses Inflation 

During a recent speech by Biden at the Port of Los Angeles, the president said his administration is already taking actions to lower prices and address supply chain challenges, and will do everything it can to lower prices for Americans. 

“Today, I’d like to speak about my top economic priority: fighting inflation,” said Biden during a speech on June 10, 2022. “ I understand Americans are anxious, and they’re anxious with good reason.  I was raised in a household when the price of gasoline rose precipitously; it was the discussion at the table.  It made a difference when food prices went up, but we’ve never seen anything like Putin’s tax on both food and gas.”

However, the letter sent to Biden this week refutes that claim, saying prices were on the increase before the crisis in Ukraine.  

“Long before Russia's invasion of Ukraine, America's farm families and consumers were struggling with fractured supply chains, skyrocketing input costs, and historic levels of inflation, each of which continue to contribute to increased food prices and diminished inventories,” the letter states.

While Biden has called on Congress to do more, the group of Republicans urge the Biden administration to remove some of the regulations recently proposed and put into place.

“Despite these impending crises, your administration has neglected to take serious action to increase American production. In fact, you have proposed massive new tax liabilities for farmers, and your regulatory agenda would further limit American farmers’ ability to meet global food demand,” the letter goes on to say.

The White House’s environmental policies were also called into question by the Republican leaders, with claims recently that policies have reduced energy independence in the U.S.

“America's energy independence is compromised, which sends additional shockwaves through our already fractured supply chain. Producers are paying 115 percent more for diesel, while natural gas is up 202 percent. Fertilizer inputs such as nitrogen, phosphorus, and potassium increased 125 percent in cost from January 2021 to January 2022 and an additional 17 percent in the first three months of 2022,” states the letter.

Suggested Steps to Address the Energy and Fertilizer Crisis 

Even with the recent discussion, the Republican leaders called on President Biden to “provide immediate relief from the energy and fertilizer crisis plaguing the agriculture industry” by taking the following steps:

• Withdraw recently proposed revisions to the National Environment Policy Act (NEPA). Allow phosphogypsum (PG) to be safely recycled in road construction or other uses (which eliminates hundreds of millions of dollars in compliance costs);
• Update the definition of critical minerals to include potash and phosphate; and
• Take immediate steps to increase domestic energy exploration, production, and transport, including increasing oil and gas leasing on federal lands and waters, expediting pipeline permitting, and abandoning rulemakings designed to discourage investment in American energy.

According to Pro Farmer, House Democrats are touting legislation that would create a special investigator for agricultural competition and permanently allow year-round sales of E15 fuel as inflation-fighting tools in a package to be considered on the floor later this week.

Pro Farmer reports that according to House Majority Leader Steny Hoyer (D-Md.), “The House will consider the Lower Food and Fuel Costs Act from the Committee on Agriculture and the Committee on Energy and Commerce to address food prices and help bring down the cost of fertilizer for farmers while providing more affordable options at the gas pump for Americans."

Hearing Gets Heated 

In a hearing just last week, Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen testified in front of the House Ways and Means Committee. During the heated hearing, Yellen defended Biden’s policies, saying the administration has gone to extreme measures to help Americans feeling the price pain at the pump, including “a historic release of 1 million barrels a day from strategic oil reserves.”

"I guess the bottom-line question is, 'Is this increase in fuel prices intentional on the Biden administration? Because it seems to me that it is irrefutable. It is an enormous burden on American households," Rep. Tom Rice (R-SC) said during the hearing. "I think it's an intentional effort."

"The president is authorized a million-barrel-a-day release from the strategic," said Yellen.

"Which is a drop in the bucket. It's a showpiece," interrupted Rice.

After Rice was asked to allow Yellen to answer his question, Yellen said, "There are 9,000 permits that have been issued that the oil and gas sector can take advantage of in 20 million acres of public lands under lease right now that are not being produced on."

Yellen says Russia's war in Ukraine has impacted energy and food prices on a global scale, and pointed out virtually every developed country is also experiencing inflation. She also said the U.S. needs to become more dependent on solar and wind energy instead of oil, which is vulnerable to global markets.

In April,  Biden announced the suspension of the ban on summertime sales of E15. The White House  said the move was aimed at reducing gas prices but that energy, experts predicted, would have only a marginal impact at the pump. The White House estimated that approximately 2,300 stations in the country offer the blend and cast the decision as a move toward “energy independence.”