HR 26 · 119th CongressPassed Chamber

Protecting American Energy Production Act

Latest updateFeb 7, 2025

Passed/agreed to in House: On passage Passed by the Yeas and Nays: 226 - 188 (Roll no. 35).

Energy

Sponsor

August Pfluger

Introduced

January 3, 2025

Latest action

February 10, 2025

Legislative Progress

How far this bill has traveled through Congress

Introduced

Bill filed in chamber

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Passed Both

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President

Sent to White House

Enacted

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Introduced

Bill filed in chamber

Committee

Reviewed & reported

Passed Chamber

House or Senate vote

Passed Both

House & Senate agree

President

Sent to White House

Enacted

Signed into law

Latest Action

Received in the Senate and Read twice and referred to the Committee on Energy and Natural Resources.

Plain-Language Summary

AI Generated

The federal government has broad authority to regulate energy production on federal lands and to restrict or prohibit certain extraction methods through executive action. Presidents have used this authority to impose moratoria on specific energy practices, including hydraulic fracturing—the process of injecting pressurized fluid into rock formations to extract oil and natural gas. While states regulate energy production on state and private lands, federal authority over federal lands has allowed administrations to restrict or pause drilling activities based on environmental, climate, or other policy concerns.

This bill prohibits the President from declaring a moratorium on hydraulic fracturing without explicit authorization from Congress. The legislation removes the executive authority to unilaterally impose such a ban, requiring instead that any federal moratorium on the practice must be enacted through the legislative process. The bill also expresses the sense of Congress that states should retain primary regulatory authority over hydraulic fracturing on state and private lands, though this statement does not change existing law or state regulatory powers.

In practice, the bill immediately restricts presidential action going forward. Any future administration seeking to pause or ban hydraulic fracturing would need to secure congressional approval rather than acting through executive order or agency regulation. The change affects only federal authority and does not alter state regulatory frameworks or existing permits and leases. The bill contains no new funding mechanisms or implementation timeline, as it operates as a procedural constraint on executive power rather than establishing new programs or requirements.

Key Provisions

1Prohibits the President from declaring a moratorium on hydraulic fracturing unless Congress authorizes it through legislation.
2Expresses the sense of Congress that states should maintain primary regulatory authority over hydraulic fracturing on state and private lands.
3Removes unilateral executive authority to restrict or ban hydraulic fracturing as a federal energy policy tool.

★ Why this matters

The bill shifts control over hydraulic fracturing policy from the executive branch to Congress. Future administrations cannot unilaterally pause or ban the practice through executive order, even on federal lands. This locks in current drilling permissions and makes policy changes dependent on legislative action, which typically requires broader consensus. The change affects the pace and scope of federal energy development and environmental protections tied to drilling restrictions.

● Who this affects

Oil and natural gas companies operating on federal lands and those seeking to expand drilling operations; states with significant oil and gas production; environmental organizations and climate advocates who have relied on executive moratoria to restrict drilling; future presidential administrations seeking to implement energy or climate policies through executive action; and communities near federal lands where drilling occurs.

Bill Text

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<DOC>
119th CONGRESS
  1st Session
                                 H. R. 26

                   IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES

                           February 10, 2025

   Received; read twice and referred to the Committee on Energy and 
                           Natural Resources

                                 AN ACT

 
      To prohibit a moratorium on the use of hydraulic fracturing.

    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 ``Protecting American Energy 
Production Act''.

SEC. 2. PROTECTING AMERICAN ENERGY PRODUCTION.

    (a) Sense of Congress.--It is the sense of Congress that States 
should maintain primacy for the regulation of hydraulic fracturing for 
oil and natural gas production on State and private lands.
    (b) Prohibition on Declaration of a Moratorium on Hydraulic 
Fracturing.--Notwithstanding any other provision of law, the President 
may not declare a moratorium on the use of hydraulic fracturing unless 
such moratorium is authorized by an Act of Congress.

            Passed the House of Representatives February 7, 2025.

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103

Angela Alsobrooks

D-Maryland

No position

Protecting American Energy Production Act

Legislative Progress

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● Who this affects

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Protecting American Energy Production Act

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● Who this affects

Bill Text

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