Executive viewpoint

The American energy industry, and the millions of Americans that it employs, are the movers and makers, the lighters of lights, the heaters of homes, and the creators of American prosperity.

As a U.S. Senator from Texas, the state that is the leading producer of American energy, I have dedicated my efforts to what Texans hold dear in their hearts: jobs, economic opportunity, and greater prosperity for all Americans, from every walk of life.

Impressive numbers. The shale revolution has transformed the American energy industry and ushered in nothing short of an energy renaissance, and Texas is at the heart of this American energy boom. In September 2018, just last year, the Department of Energy announced that the U.S. is now the largest crude oil producer, surpassing Russia and Saudi Arabia. And U.S. crude production is now expected to reach a record of 13.3 MMbpd in 2020, up from 11.0 MMbpd in 2018.

Much of this growth is fueled by increased production in the Permian basin and Eagle Ford shale regions of Texas, with the Permian, alone, expected to produce 5.4 MMbbl of crude oil per day by 2020. As of today, the Permian is already the largest producing oil region in the U.S., and it produces more oil than any of the OPEC member countries except Saudi Arabia and Iraq. All of this translates to Texas being the leading U.S. producer of crude oil and natural gas.

The boom in U.S. oil and natural gas production will make the U.S. a net energy exporter in 2020 for the first time in nearly 70 years. In August 2018, the Department of Energy announced that ports along the Texas Gulf Coast “recently began exporting more crude oil than they imported for the first time on record.” Today, almost three out of every four barrels of oil exported from the United States is from a port in Texas.

Contributions to prosperity. But barrels of oil, percentages, and profits aren’t the real reason to celebrate this great success. Rather, those are indicators of the success of our economy, our communities, and the many hard-working families who call those communities home. Over 10 million jobs are supported by the U.S. oil and natural gas industry, with average pay almost $50,000 higher than the national average. In Texas, alone, the energy industry supports one in six jobs and generates a gross product of over $198 billion.

Because of these jobs and energy industry growth, last year the oil and gas industry paid over $14 billion in state and local taxes, and state royalties. In terms of taxes and fees, $1.24 billion went to school districts in Texas, while counties received $366.5 million. This amounts to the Texas oil and natural gas industry paying the equivalent of $38 million per day to fund schools, roads, universities, and first responders across the state. That is why I continue to fight for American energy—its primary beneficiaries are the American people.

Keeping the bureaucracy out of it. But the fight to develop more of our energy resources for America and the world, and at less expense for our families and businesses, is far from over. In the last two years, we have made monumental progress in scaling back burdensome regulations on energy explorers, producers and refiners. Despite this progress, there still exists a culture of deep bureaucracy and capricious over-regulation on the federal level.

This needs to end, and I continue to urge my colleagues in Congress to get back to their primary responsibility—legislating. Instead of standing on the sidelines while unelected bureaucrats at government agencies develop rules that harm the economy and livelihoods of millions of Americans, Congress needs to use its lawmaking and oversight power to protect the best interests of the American people. A great first step in doing that would be to pass the REINS Act, which would require all federal regulations that would impose a cost of $100 million, or more, on our economy, and subject them to an up or down vote in Congress.

Overall, our government must take its cues from the vast majority of our fellow Americans, who support an “all of the above” approach to energy—whoever can get the job done safely, cheaply and efficiently deserves the chance for success.

The future of American energy is a bright one. It is illuminated by the headlamps of explorers and surveyors, and by the glow of countless offices across the country, where the dedicated and hard-working strive to build a better tomorrow. In the Senate, I remain committed to doing everything I can to make sure that the future of American energy keeps getting brighter and brighter. WO