President Joe Biden is desperately trying to get his multi-trillion dollar spending package passed on Capitol Hill before Christmas, but according to the Wall Street Journal, Build Back Better includes a significant tax on natural gas.
"It could be a rough winter for energy prices across the U.S., and the Democratic spending plan will make it worse. The House passed what it calls a 'fee' on methane that amounts to a stealth tax on natural gas and everyone who uses it," the Editorial Board writes. "The bill slaps an escalating tax on methane emissions by oil and gas producers that will reach $1,500 per ton by 2025. The fee is meant to be President Biden’s contribution to the recent Glasgow vow to reduce global methane emissions 30% by 2030. The tax is estimated to raise $8 billion over 10 years."
"Producers will naturally pass the cost of the tax along to customers. Some 180 million Americans use natural gas to heat homes and run appliances, while some 5.5 million businesses use it to run their workplaces and manufacturing facilities," they continue.
As I wrote in my VIP column last week, the pain of Biden's energy plan is the point. The administration is punishing Americans for using traditional energy sources in order to transition the country to a Green New Deal utopia of wind and solar.
Biden Energy Secretary Jennifer Granholm: "We're working through an energy transition. And we’ve got to start by adding energy, and the reality is, we have to take some time to get off of oil and gas, we recognize this. This is a transition."
— Breaking911 (@Breaking911) November 22, 2021
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Meanwhile, the Congressional Budget Office has scored the bill and shows it will add $3 trillion to the deficit.
The Congressional Budget Office says the Build Back Better bill would add $3 trillion to the deficit over 10 years if its programs are made permanent. https://t.co/W6JYN2XsLF
— Wall Street Journal Opinion (@WSJopinion) December 13, 2021