With the incoming Trump administration sure to impact the energy world, the U.S. oil and gas industry is working to put forward policy roadmaps to encourage a robust, competitive American energy sector.
New comments and policy plans from the Independent Petroleum Association of America, the American Petroleum Institute, the National Ocean Industries Association, and the American Exploration and Production Council clearly outline leading energy trade associations’ policy priorities for American energy in the next four years and beyond.
As IPAA said in its memo to the incoming administration:
“The choices our nation makes regarding energy policy will have an enormous impact on America’s economy and our position in the world. We urge the administration to take positive actions to support America’s small oil and natural gas producers and develop a robust energy policy that will unleash American entrepreneurs, expand our economy, and make the United States an energy superpower once again. This will not only benefit the United States, but nations around the globe.”
Bolster U.S. Energy Production
One of the major priorities put forward by the trade associations is the need to rectify damaging actions from the previous administration and use every opportunity to ensure American energy security. As API President and CEO Mike Sommers said in an open letter to President-Elect Trump and the transition team:
“It has never been more vital that America control its energy future. Yet our continued success is far from guaranteed, and we have been heading down a path of extreme regulations threatening everything from our choice of home appliances to the cars we drive.”
To ensure the full potential of U.S. energy, IPAA, API, and AXPC urge the incoming administration end the Department of Energy’s LNG export permitting pause and repeal the Environmental Protection Agency’s methane fee. These policies increase the costs to produce American energy, driving up consumer costs – and, in the case of the LNG pause, restrict American producers’ ability to supply critical fuel supplies to allies.
API’s policy roadmap specifically emphasizes the geopolitical benefits of increasing U.S. LNG exports, detailing that the exports are critical for the United States to maintain a competitive edge in the trade world. API also advocates for changes to other current rules, such as the EPA tailpipe rule, which it believes places unnecessary burdens on American consumers.
On methane regulation, IPAA requests the Trump administration to work with Congress and the Environmental Protection Agency to develop a cost-effective regulatory program concerning methane and repeal the existing “unworkable” program which tasks EPA – an organization unfamiliar with collecting tax-like revenue from companies – with charging a per-ton fee on methane emissions. AXPC echoed this sentiment in its 2025 Energy Policy Blueprint, calling for “smart, workable regulations, especially when it comes to methane.”
Permitting Reform
One of the key concerns for the associations is the cumbersome permitting process for building energy infrastructure. The current patchwork introduces numerous junctures for delays and frivolous legal challenges, dragging out the timeline and increasing the costs associated with any energy project, including renewables.
In recognition of that challenge, IPAA, API, AXPC, and NOIA all expressed a need to reform the U.S. permitting system. IPAA focused in particular on modernizing the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA):
“Since its enactment, requirements involving NEPA have grown considerably and place a heavy burden on independent oil and gas producers operating on federal lands. While the law itself remains unchanged over the past 50 years, the courts, Presidential directives, and significant regulatory modifications have made NEPA unworkable and far more complicated than the original intent of the law.”
API’s Sommers further describes the challenges from NEPA delays:
“Infrastructure development faces similar challenges. The current federal permitting system has become a maze of delays and uncertainty, making it nearly impossible to build essential projects – from roads and bridges to pipelines. Reform of the National Environmental Protection Act is needed, as is ensuring the Clean Water Act cannot be weaponized to block critical infrastructure projects.”
According to recent reporting from E&E News, there may be renewed appetite for taking up bipartisan permitting reform during the lame duck session, even before the next administration is sworn in.
Onshore and Offshore Lease Sales
In light of the Biden administration’s impediment of resource development, including an exceptionally weak offshore leasing program, IPAA, API, AXPC, and NOIA all emphasize that the Administration should offer federal leases at a robust rate, both to comply with Congressional mandates and to keep up with national and global demand.
As IPAA explains in its memo:
“Oil and natural gas production on federal lands and waters provides huge economic benefits to the United States in terms of jobs, royalties to the U.S. Treasury and economic benefits to states and local communities…IPAA encourages the Trump Administration to take these actions on the following regulations and orders governing onshore and offshore federal lands.”
Specifically, API and IPAA encourage the incoming administration to revise and reissue a new Bureau of Ocean Energy Management (BOEM) Five-Year Plan that ensures America can meet its domestic energy needs through leasing in federal waters, including the Gulf of Mexico. Under the Biden Administration, BOEM has consistently placed illegal restrictions on the Congressionally-mandated offshore leasing schedule.
Congratulating President-Elect Trump on his election, NOIA President Erik Milito attested to environmental and energy security benefits of offshore oil produced in the Gulf of Mexico, writing:
“By championing innovative offshore energy policies that foster continued development, we can drive meaningful energy progress that benefits all Americans, regardless of political party.”
AXPC focused primarily on reform of the federal lands leasing system, noting that the Biden administration oversaw significantly fewer federal oil and gas leases than past administrations of both parties.
The association took aim at the Bureau of Land Management’s Conservation Rule – a policy that has met widespread criticism from IPAA, the Western Energy Alliance, the American Farm Bureau Federation, the National Cattlemen’s Beef Association, and more – for its attempt to bypass Congress and limit development on rural lands regardless of local communities’ priorities.
Sound Tax Policy
In order for the U.S. oil and gas industry to continue to support nearly 11 million jobs and invest in domestic projects, U.S. tax policy must be competitive with other countries. In their policy priorities, IPAA, API, and AXPC each clearly outline how the incoming administration can work with Congress to maintain investment in the oil and natural gas industry and ensure that tax policy encourages, not inhibits, domestic energy production.
Bottom line: The incoming Trump administration is expected to pursue major energy policy changes, and major trade associations are working to ensure their priorities are clearly outlined to the president-elect and the incoming Congress. Representatives of the American energy industry all agree that it is time to unleash the full potential of U.S. energy and that changes in the regulatory space are necessary to achieve such a goal.
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