HARRISBURG – The Senate Environmental Resources and Energy Committee today approved legislation to establish an Independent Energy Office (IEO) within the Commonwealth, according to Chairman Gene Yaw (R-23), sponsor of the measure.
“Pennsylvania has one of the most diverse energy portfolios in the United States,” Yaw said. “There is no question we can capitalize on our state’s energy richness, but first we must stop apologizing for it. I believe an Independent Energy Office can provide impartial, timely, and data driven analysis to guide our state in determining and meeting future energy needs.”
According to an analysis conducted in November by the U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA):
- Pennsylvania’s marketed natural gas production, primarily from the Marcellus Shale, reached a record 7.6 trillion cubic feet in 2021, and the state is the nation’s second-largest natural gas producer after Texas.
- Pennsylvania is the third-largest coal-producing state in the nation after Wyoming and West Virginia, and it is the second-largest coal exporter to foreign markets after West Virginia.
- In 2021, Pennsylvania ranked second in the nation after Illinois in electricity generation from nuclear power.
- Over half of Pennsylvania households use natural gas as their primary home heating fuel, and the state’s 48 underground gas storage sites–the most for any state–help meet regional heating demand in winter.
- Pennsylvania is the second-largest net supplier of total energy to other states, after Texas.
Yaw noted the IEO would be modeled after Pennsylvania’s Independent Fiscal Office (IFO), which was created by Act 120 of 2010, and Act 100 of 2016. The IFO does not support or oppose any policy it analyzes, and discloses the methodologies, data sources and assumptions used in published reports and estimates.
For more state-related news and information, constituents can visit Senator Yaw’s website at www.SenatorGeneYaw.com or follow him on Facebook and Twitter @SenatorGeneYaw.
CONTACT:
Elizabeth Weitzel
717-787-3280