Rewiring American Energy: Unpacking President Trump’s Energy Executive Orders

On April 8, President Trump issued three executive orders aimed at boosting traditional energy industries and tackling state overreach on climate policies, signaling a historic effort to cut through regulatory barriers and unleash American energy.

Two of the executive orders are meant to boost traditional energy sources—such as coal, natural gas, and nuclear power. Crucially, one executive order allows power plants that are slated for retirement to continue producing electricity to meet rising demand. Federal agencies are also directed to unlock coal resources on federal lands by removing barriers and prioritizing coal leasing. These actions fall in line with ALEC’s Electric Generation Facility Closures and Reliability Act—which prevents closing traditional power plants before new ones are operational.

President Trump’s third executive order aims to remove top-down climate regulations that stymie crucial energy production. Certain states, such as Vermont and New York, have used “climate superfund” laws to force fossil fuel companies to contribute to state funds based on previous greenhouse gas emissions, essentially imposing a carbon tax on energy companies at a time when electricity costs and demand are already skyrocketing. Massachusetts and Maryland are considering implementing similar “climate superfund” laws, which would further increase the price of energy for consumers across the Northeast. Demand is high and only going up, and unilateral initiatives by individual states only hurt residents’ pocketbooks.

California, New York, and Vermont are specifically highlighted in the executive order as the states with some of the most burdensome top-down climate mandates.

As expected, ALEC’s new Energy Affordability Report shows that these states have among the highest cost of electricity in the nation. All three have policies that prioritize expensive renewables, while consumers are paying for these restrictive energy policies with their own hard-earned money—and getting less reliable energy in return.

The path to dependable and affordable energy is to remove barriers to free market innovation in energy technologies, while practically meeting energy demand with all available resources. For states looking to further unleash American energy, ALEC offers two model policies: the Safeguarding Greenhouse Gas Regulatory Authority Act (which protects against agencies adopting greenhouse gas regulatory programs without specific legislative authorization) and the Electric Reliability Act (which ensures that grids always have reliable, available power to meet demand).

ALEC’s policy framework is a great place to start for any state looking to secure the future of American energy.