Press Releases

Today, Chairman Dan Newhouse (R-WA) issued the following statement on the Department of the Interior’s 60-day moratorium on all oil and gas leasing, drilling permits, and lease extensions on federal land: 

“This unilateral move is one of several dangerous actions taken in the first 24 hours of the Biden Administration that increases our dependence on foreign oil and harms American sovereignty,” said Chairman Newhouse. “Oil and gas play an important role in our nation’s energy independence – by blocking leasing and drilling permits, President Biden is putting our nation’s ability to control its economic and energy decision-marking in peril. It is clear we should have taken President Biden and Vice President Harris at their word when they threatened to harm America’s energy dominance on the campaign trail – in 24 hours, they’ve already taken dangerous steps in doing so.”