American Oil and Gas Reporter - December 2020 - 21

Industry And Its Backers
Preparing For A New Chapter
With Myriad Challenges
" George Washington is the only President who didn't
blame the previous administration for his troubles. "
-Unknown
The 2020 elections are over and now the tough job of
picking up the pieces and moving the country forward begins.
There is no doubt that America's oil and natural gas producers,
and the energy renaissance they created, have come under
heavy attack during the last several months. With the election
of Joe Biden, issues such as the " Green New Deal, " taxes on
carbon, pipeline infrastructure, and the future of oil and natural
gas exploration on federal lands and waters are in play. The
list of challenges facing the industry is long and the battles
will be tough.
However, it is also important to remember that running a
campaign and governing the country are two different propositions. President-elect Biden and the Democrats have made it
clear that they want to move America's energy policy in a different direction. Their list of proposed actions is long, from
immediately rejoining the Paris Climate Agreement to proposing
civil and criminal charges against " climate violators, " the
Biden/Harris Administration certainly will have our industry
in the crosshairs.
Nevertheless, every election also brings new opportunities.
As we know, so much of the campaign rhetoric we heard was
nonsense with no basis in the reality of America's current
energy picture. In a few short months, Biden's attempts to
blame his troubles on the previous administration will lose
potency. He will be in charge of leading a country that faces
countless challenges here and around the globe.
America's energy position is certainly not one of those problems. During the past two decades, American oil and natural
gas producers have somehow defied the odds, conventional
wisdom and historical trends to achieve something unprecedented
for our nation. Hydraulic fracturing and the shale revolution
changed the lives of millions of Americans and improved the
future for people around the world. The world benefits when
the United States is an energy superpower.
Our industry has a great story to tell. The oil and natural gas
industry is far from static. By partnering with the best minds to
innovate and apply technology solutions, we are shrinking the
industry's emissions and environmental footprint, and continually
looking for ways to learn and innovate. Independent oil and
natural gas producers are helping meet the world's everincreasing need for low-cost, reliable and cleaner energy that
will advance living standards now and into the future.
This is not to sugarcoat the fights that are surely on the
horizon. America's oil and natural gas industry faces new battles
from a determined opposition that is set on eliminating
hydrocarbon production and use despite the ruinous impacts
that such a development threatens to have on jobs, local
businesses and communities across the country. Industry
detractors show no interest in America's energy independence

" The list of challenges facing the industry is
long and the battles will be tough. However, it
is also important to remember that running a
campaign and governing the country are two
different propositions.

or security and demonstrate only a dogged dedication to 'keep
it in the ground' and eliminate fossil fuels.
The Independent Petroleum Association of America remains
at the forefront of representing independent oil and natural gas
producers in Washington. Our government relations and communications teams are working tirelessly to represent the
industry in congressional offices, regulatory agencies and the
media. We have a long history of working with both political
parties and searching for solutions to address issues facing our
industry. Even so, never have our members faced such an
arduous challenge from politicians, the media and academia,
and so this next chapter will be particularly tough.
The first day I joined the IPAA staff, one producer told me,
" Nothing is ever easy in the oil and gas business. " He was
certainly right, but I have faith in our industry to develop
solutions, be honest about what we do and succeed in the
difficult fights coming in the years ahead.
❒

MALLORI MILLER is vice pres-

ident of government relations
for the Independent Petroleum
Association of America, focused
primarily on federal land development. She maintains friendly
communications with legislators
and key Department of Interior
officials and policymakers, advisers, journalists and others.
DECEMBER 2020 21

American Oil and Gas Reporter - December 2020

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of American Oil and Gas Reporter - December 2020