Republicans have the playbook for energy prices |
Republicans have the playbook for energy prices
Congress has entered 2026 on the back of some big wins. Enacting the Working Families Tax Cuts, passing permitting modernization through the House, and advancing legislation to strengthen our electrical grid has created a clear playbook to lower energy costs and further American energy dominance.
As the representative of Colorado’s 8th District — home to one of the highest energy-producing counties in the U.S. — Congressman Evans is proud to be one of the first freshmen in 14 years placed on the House Energy and Commerce Committee. This seat has given him the opportunity to both introduce and advocate for commonsense policies that will continue to make energy a winning issue for Republicans in 2026.
In the Working Families Tax Cuts, Republicans passed tax incentives that allow innovators to do what they do best — develop cutting-edge technologies that provide reliable clean power to millions. In the Trump administration’s executive orders, new nuclear energy is surging forward, with the potential to power millions of homes and a new wave of American manufacturing with safe, affordable and reliable energy.
Over the last year, gas prices have fallen to their lowest point since 2021, providing tangible relief to everyday Americans. The same thing can happen for energy prices. The Republican trifecta in Washington has a chance to keep building on conservative energy wins and scale new generation, invest in modern infrastructure to build new energy projects, and grow domestic industry and supply chains.
Supporting the development and deployment of all types of energy — from advanced nuclear and enhanced geothermal to solar, wind, storage, and natural gas with carbon capture — is a good first step toward providing safe, reliable and affordable energy. Congress has an opportunity to help take new, innovative technologies from lab to market. Leveraging public-private partnerships with the National Labs, including the National Lab of the Rockies, through Rep. Evans’ latest bipartisan legislation; the Energy Threat Analysis Center Act, along with the Department of Energy’s Office of Energy Dominance Financing tool, present additional opportunities to build breakthrough technologies here in America.
Deploying these new energy technologies and delivering power to Americans requires a modernized permitting system that lets America build and lets American energy move.
Now Republicans in Congress are taking the next step to deliver these projects, cost savings, and new jobs faster than ever before. Rep. Evans is the Republican lead of the Problem Solvers Caucus’s Permitting, Energy and Environment Working Group, and has been a strong conservative voice for comprehensive permitting reform.
In December, House Republicans took a significant step to fixing America’s broken permitting system and delivered the certainty entrepreneurs need to get projects built quickly by passing the SPEED Act — a bill Evans proudly co-sponsored.
The Senate now has an opportunity to build on this bipartisan legislation to finally move our permitting system into the 21st century, cut through red-tape, and ensure permit certainty for all types of energy infrastructure so investors have incentive to grow our critical industries.
The power sector isn’t the only opportunity for Republicans to reduce costs for Americans. This year, Congress also needs to reauthorize the highway bill. This legislation is about more than roads; it’s an opportunity to boost American industry and supply chains. Cement, concrete and chemicals innovations are critical to increasing American competitiveness and building the data centers needed to win the AI race against China.
Bottom line, we must double down on increasing domestic production or local utilities will not be able to meet demand. Republicans did their part in 2025 to provide meaningful relief to American families and have both the playbook and strong leadership to do even more. By pursuing commonsense, conservative policy, Republicans stand ready to lower costs for families and businesses and secure American energy dominance for the future.
Gabe Evans serves Colorado’s 8th Congressional District in the U.S. House of Representatives. Jeremy Harrell is the chief executive officer of ClearPath and ClearPath Action, D.C.-based conservative clean energy organizations advancing policies that accelerate innovation to reduce global emissions.
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