H.R. 6851

[Congressional Bills 119th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 6851 Introduced in House (IH)]

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119th CONGRESS
1st Session
H. R. 6851

To amend the Energy Policy and Conservation Act to ban the export of 
natural gas produced in the United States, and for other purposes.

_______________________________________________________________________

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

December 18, 2025

Mr. Espaillat (for himself, Ms. Clarke of New York, Ms. Tlaib, and Ms. 
Norton) introduced the following bill; which was referred to the 
Committee on Energy and Commerce

_______________________________________________________________________

A BILL

To amend the Energy Policy and Conservation Act to ban the export of 
natural gas produced in the United States, and for other purposes.

Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the 
United States of America in Congress assembled,

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

This Act may be cited as the ``Lowering American Energy Costs Act 
of 2025''.

SEC. 2. FINDINGS.

Congress finds that--
(1) the Federal Government has repeatedly found that 
natural gas exports lead to increased domestic gas and 
electricity prices, as evidenced by--
(A) a November 2025 analysis by the Energy 
Information Administration, which predicts that natural 
gas prices in 2026 will be 16 percent higher than in 
2025 due to increased liquefied natural gas (referred 
to in this section as ``LNG'') exports;
(B) a December 2024 study by the Department of 
Energy, which determined that--
(i) unconstrained exports of United States 
LNG are projected to increase wholesale 
domestic natural gas prices by 31 percent by 
2050, not accounting for the additional price 
impact of LNG exports on natural gas price 
volatility;
(ii) volatility in the global natural gas 
market will further increase costs on domestic 
consumers and industry as United States natural 
gas exports increase;
(iii) United States households will pay up 
to an additional $122 per year on average in 
higher natural gas and electricity costs by 
2050; and
(iv) the United States industrial sector 
will pay an additional $125,000,000,000 in 
higher energy costs by 2050 as a result of 
rising United States LNG exports;
(C) a January 2024 report from the Energy 
Information Administration, which found that, in the 
United States, the price of natural gas is the most 
important driver of wholesale electricity prices 
because natural gas is often the highest-cost fuel for 
electricity generation;
(D) a 2018 study by the Department of Energy, which 
found that ``producing incremental natural gas volumes 
to support natural gas exports will increase the 
marginal cost of supplying natural gas and therefore 
raise domestic natural gas prices.''; and
(E) a 2012 study by the Energy Information 
Administration, which found that ``increased natural 
gas exports lead to increased natural gas prices.'' and 
that ``larger export levels lead to larger domestic 
price increases, while rapid increases in export levels 
lead to large initial price increases.'';
(2) according to research by Public Citizen, from January 
2025 through September 2025, households in the United States 
paid $12,000,000,000 more for natural gas than from the same 
period in 2024, a 22 percent price increase that translates to 
a roughly $124 price hike for the average household;
(3) according to the Institute for Energy Economics and 
Financial Analysis, surging United States LNG exports from 
September 2021 to December 2022 led to the sharpest rise of 
wholesale gas prices in over a decade, costing domestic 
consumers $111,000,000,000 in higher energy bills;
(4) the United States is already the largest producer of 
natural gas and largest exporter of LNG in the world, and 
continues to set records for LNG exports, including that--
(A) in 2025, the United States had multiple record-
setting months for LNG exports; and
(B) in October 2025, the United States became the 
first country in the world to surpass 10,000,000 metric 
tons worth of LNG exports in a single month;
(5) natural gas is primarily composed of methane, which is 
a dangerous greenhouse gas and the second-largest contributor 
to atmospheric warming; and
(6) natural gas infrastructure, including pipelines and LNG 
terminals, lead to significant negative health outcomes for 
communities surrounding the pipelines and terminals, which is 
compounded by the fact that new natural gas infrastructure is 
disproportionately sited in communities that already have 
polluting infrastructure.

SEC. 3. DOMESTIC USE OF ENERGY SUPPLIES AND RELATED MATERIALS AND 
EQUIPMENT.

(a) In General.--The Energy Policy and Conservation Act (42 U.S.C. 
6201 et seq.) is amended by inserting after section 101 the following:

``SEC. 102. DOMESTIC USE OF ENERGY SUPPLIES AND RELATED MATERIALS AND 
EQUIPMENT.

``(a) Export Restrictions.--The President, by rule, under such 
terms and conditions as the President determines to be appropriate and 
necessary to carry out the purposes of this Act, shall restrict exports 
of natural gas for the purpose of keeping domestic energy costs low.
``(b) Prohibition of Export of Natural Gas.--
``(1) Rule.--Subject to paragraph (2), the President shall 
exercise the authority provided under subsection (a) to 
promulgate a rule prohibiting the export of natural gas 
produced in the United States.
``(2) Exemptions.--
``(A) In general.--In accordance with subparagraph 
(A), the President may exempt from a prohibition on the 
export of natural gas under paragraph (1) any natural 
gas exports that the President determines--
``(i) to be consistent with the national 
interest and will not unreasonably raise costs 
for residential consumers; or
``(ii) to be critical for the national 
security of--
``(I) the United States; or
``(II) a country that is a 
strategic international partner or ally 
of the United States.
``(B) Congressional approval.--Before any exemption 
issued by the President may go into effect, the 
exemption must be approved by a joint resolution of 
Congress.''.
(b) Clerical and Conforming Amendments.--
(1) Clerical amendment.--The table of contents for the 
Energy Policy and Conservation Act (42 U.S.C. prec. 6201) is 
amended by inserting after the item relating to section 101 the 
following:

``102. Domestic use of energy supplies and related materials and 
equipment.''.
(2) Conforming amendment.--Section 101 of division O of the 
Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2016 (42 U.S.C. 6212a), is 
amended by striking subsections (b) through (d).
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