AGA applauds bipartisan House repeal of natural gas ban in federal buildings

The American Gas Association applauded the bipartisan passage of Congressman Nick Langworthy’s (NY-23) Reliable Federal Infrastructure Act through the U.S. House of Representatives on Wednesday. The bill repeals Section 433 of the Energy Independence and Security Act of 2007 which requires the elimination of on-site fossil fuel use from new and renovated federal facilities. As interpreted by the Biden Administration, the provision would have banned on-site natural gas use from all new and renovated federal buildings beginning in 2030.

“We congratulate Congressman Langworthy on the passage of this important bill to protect access to reliable, affordable and efficient natural gas in federal buildings,” said AGA President and CEO Karen Harbert. “Natural gas is America’s strategic advantage in providing essential energy to our vital federal facilities and protecting taxpayers by keeping costs down. From providing resilient backup energy during outages to enabling energy intensive work at national labs, veterans’ hospitals and military facilities, on-site natural gas use is an efficient source of energy that delivers the reliability our nation needs.”

Section 433 was signed into law in 2007, before the shale boom, when the United States was heavily dependent on foreign energy and energy vulnerability was a strategic liability. Since then, the U.S. has become the world’s largest producer and exporter of natural gas, a transformation that has fundamentally altered our economic and geopolitical position. This transformation has delivered tangible benefits: lower and more stable prices for American families, greater resilience for our economy and the ability to supply allies in times of crisis.

Natural gas direct use in federal buildings helps support our national security and mobilization readiness, according to a recent report from the Center for Strategic and International Studies, supported by the American Gas Foundation. In addition, the removal of natural gas from federal buildings would increase federal energy costs by $2.6 billion through 2035 after combining net energy and equipment costs. Approximately 60% of these costs are from retrofitting older buildings to support all-electric energy needs.

Implementation of the 433 rule would also likely increase greenhouse gas emissions. Natural gas is highly efficient – requiring federal facilities to move to the exclusive use of electricity would increase overall energy consumption by 29,000,000 MMBtu according to the Biden Administration’s own analysis of their final rule.

Learn more about the Reliable Federal Infrastructure Act here.