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Guest Op-Eds

U.S. needs pro-growth policies, beginning with energy

Written by: John Hoeven

Stalled energy projects and impediments to domestic oil production in our own country are costing our nation’s economy billions of dollars and millions of jobs.

Sen. John Hoeven

A study by the U.S. Chamber of Commerce says 351 energy projects, both renewable and traditional, are stalled at a cost of $1.1 trillion to the American economy and nearly two million jobs for the American people.

Our domestic energy market is hobbled by bureaucracy and delays, while our foreign energy sources are constantly threatened by instability. The result is higher energy prices, a sluggish economy and fewer jobs for Americans.

There is a path out of this for America – a path that North Dakota successfully followed a decade ago – by building a comprehensive energy plan we called, Empower North Dakota.

Through Empower ND, we worked to create a business climate that incentivized energy companies across all industry sectors to invest in our state. We created the kind of legal, tax and regulatory certainty that attracted capital, expertise and jobs to North Dakota.

North Dakota’s oil industry is just one example. Ten years ago, oil companies had left or were leaving our state’s oil patch for a variety of reasons – better returns elsewhere, insufficient technology, an aging workforce, lack of transportation infrastructure and inadequate data about our reserves.

The industry had better places to invest shareholder dollars and earn a return. To turn that around, we built a climate for investment. Our measures included:

• Establishing an oil and gas research fund, paid for by the industry.

• Creating tax incentives.

• Updating geological studies of the Bakken formation

• Improving infrastructure.

• Creating a pipeline authority to expand transport capacity; and

• Establishing a Center of Excellence for Petroleum Safety and Technology at Williston State College to train workers.

This improved business environment unlocked the potential of North Dakota’s oil patch.

This year North Dakota will produce more than 120 million barrels of sweet crude oil. Since 2006, we have grown to become the fourth-largest oil-producing state in the nation, surpassing states such as Oklahoma and Louisiana. And we’re projected to surpass third-place California in just a few more years.

We used a similar approach to trigger development of North Dakota’s wind and biofuels industries.

The most notable fact in all of this is that North Dakota’s measures weren’t about government spending. They were about creating an environment for private investment that generated revenues for the state, broadened the economic base and actually enabled us to reduce taxes.

This is not a Republican issue or a Democratic issue. It’s an American issue, and it will take both parties to fix it. That’s my focus in Washington.

I’m co-sponsoring a bill with Sen. Pat Roberts that works with a directive from President Obama. The “Regulatory Responsibility for Our Economy Act” will give the force of law to President Obama’s executive order that calls for reviewing, modifying, streamlining, expanding or repealing rules that may be “outmoded, ineffective, insufficient or excessively burdensome.”

We are all committed to good environmental stewardship and effective consumer protections, but the president’s order acknowledges that federal regulations are hindering the nation’s economic growth.

The law we are proposing, if passed, will make sure that we take a clear-eyed look at our rules and help to bring regulatory and legal certainty to the markets.

We need to signal to world energy markets that the United States is committed to aggressive domestic energy development by creating a strong business environment and a pro-energy agenda, including the legal, tax and regulatory certainty that companies need to make investments that will lessen our dependence on foreign oil.

We are at a moment in our history when we can turn adversity into opportunity. We must seize this opportunity to make America stronger, safer and more financially secure with a comprehensive approach to developing American energy right here at home to meet our needs now and for future generations.

-John Hoeven is a Republican U.S. senator from North Dakota. He was elected to his first term in 2010.

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