President-elect Donald Trump is set to declare a national energy emergency as soon as he is sworn into office Monday in an effort to meet his campaign promise of lowering energy costs for Americans and reversing the climate policies of President Joe Biden.
“Lowering prices for all Americans is a key priority of the Trump administration,” an incoming White House official told reporters Monday. “The President is taking these actions as soon as possible here on day one, so that we can lower prices as soon as possible for the American people.”
Trump promised to boost domestic oil and gas production to lower energy prices. He also pledged to undo rules and regulations imposed by the Biden administration to curb carbon emissions and boost clean energy.
The official said the declaration is meant to help pursue “energy dominance,” adding that the United States is in a race with China to develop artificial intelligence and that generating enough power for the emerging technology is crucial.
It is unclear how the declaration will be implemented, but the official said it will unlock various authorities that will allow the U.S. to produce more natural resources, create jobs, and strengthen national security.
“We’re going to be using our emergency powers to allow countries and entrepreneurs and people with a lot of money build big plants, AI plants,” Trump told a rally at Capital One Arena on Sunday. “We need double the energy that we already have, and it’s going to end up being more than that.”
Along with declaring a national energy emergency, Trump is also set to sign a slew of energy-related executive orders to end certain Biden rules, including ones meant to promote the adoption of electric vehicles and to implement efficiency rules for appliances such as gas stoves.
The Trump administration plans to eliminate the $7,500 consumer tax credit for EV purchases as part of tax reform legislation. The tax credits were expanded and reformed by the Biden administration’s Inflation Reduction Act. It is unclear what parts of the legislation would be repealed by Republicans, who will control both chambers of Congress.
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In addition, Trump is expected to sign around 100 executive orders on Day One and more in the weeks to come.
Trump will likely look to reverse certain regulations placed on the use of fossil fuels, such as the Biden administration’s power plant rule, its methane rule, and its fuel economy standards. He will also lift the pause the Biden Energy Department instituted for approvals of new facilities to export liquefied natural gas. The incoming administration will also look to withdraw the U.S. from the Paris climate agreement for the second time.