Below are Westerman's full remarks, as prepared.

Thank you for the opportunity to testify today on the House Committee on Natural Resources’ Reconciliation Title, which far exceeds our committee’s instructions by kickstarting a golden age of American energy and wisely stewarding our natural resources.

According to preliminary estimates provided by the Congressional Budget Office, the House Committee on Natural Resources’ Reconciliation Title generates over $20 billion in savings and new revenue for the federal government by putting the wealth of our natural resources to work, cleanly, safely, and responsibly, and reining in wasteful spending.

But that’s only part of the story.We have received outside scoring from the Energy Policy Research Foundation projects that our Title could generate as much as $91.5 billion in new savings and revenue.

An economic study by the Energy & Industrial Advisory Partners examined the economic impact of holding two offshore oil and natural gas lease sales in the Gulf of America per year and semi-annual lease sales in Alaska’s Cook Inlet, a plan similar to provisions included in our legislation. They project that these sales alone could increase revenues by $230 million annually, boost our GDP by $1.3 billion each year, and create nearly 16,000 jobs.

We’ve worked closely with our dais, fellow members of Congress, state and local leaders, stakeholders, and our colleagues in the Senate to create new revenue and savings for the federal government by answering President Trump’s call to unleash American energy dominance.

Global demand for affordable, reliable energy continues to grow.This presents a fiscal opportunity for the United States to generate immense wealth for our nation by being an energy provider to the world. President Trump has made it clear that America will rise to meet the occasion.

By reinstating onshore and offshore oil and gas lease sales, incentivizing responsible development in Alaska, holding annual geothermal lease sales, and ensuring a fair process for critical mineral development nationwide, we generate billions of dollars in new revenue and savings for the federal government. Increasing production right here at home will create American jobs and drive economic growth.

Demand for energy resources is increasing exponentially, and the United States can develop its energy and mineral resources responsibly, rather than relying on foreign nations that lack meaningful environmental safeguards.

Our committee’s legislation also creates new revenue sources for the federal government. It establishes a process for project sponsors to pay a significant fee to ensure delivery of environmental reviews in under a year and guard themselves against frivolous lawsuits. In addition to raising nearly $1 billion in new revenue for the federal government, this provision will restore common sense to federal permitting processes that often lag for years, costing taxpayers billions of dollars and delaying much-needed development and innovation.

Additionally, we are investing $2.5 billion in water storage and conveyance infrastructure projects across the West.

We’ve also directed the Forest Service and Bureau of Land Management to utilize long-term timber-sale contracts and mandated a 25% increase in timber production. All told, CBO has estimated our forestry provisions would generate more than $157 million in new revenue and savings for the United States. Properly managing our forests improves their health, increasing their resilience and saving billions of dollars on future wildfire suppression costs.

We are also reining in bureaucratic slush funds and executive actions that have wasted taxpayer dollars and locked up natural resources, generating over $700 million in savings and new revenue. This is precisely the kind of government waste President Trump and his administration have committed to rooting out within the federal budget, and the Resources Committee is doing its part.

The House Committee on Natural Resources is unlocking the full potential of American energy, American resources, and American ingenuity to save over $20 billion for the federal government, create jobs and grow our economy.

I urge the Committee to report an appropriate rule so our Reconciliation legislation may be considered in the House. Thank you, and I yield back.

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