With Energy Costs Already Rising Under Trump And Americans Bracing For An 18% Increase On Their Electricity Bills, Leader Schumer Spearheads Senate Dem Bill To Reverse GOP Energy Tax Hike And Cut Americans’ Electricity Costs

Washington, D.C. – RealEstateRama – Senate Democratic Leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY) and Senate Finance Committee Ranking Member Ron Wyden (D-OR) led Senate Democrats in introducing legislation to reverse the tax hikes on clean energy Republicans passed in their “Big, Ugly Betrayal,” which would raise energy costs for Americans by hundreds of dollars, kill almost a million jobs, and shrink GPD by $1.1 trillion.

Today, Senate Democratic Leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY) and Ranking Member of the Finance Committee, Ron Wyden (D-OR), led Senate Democrats in introducing the Lowering Electric Bills Act, which would repeal the Trump and Senate Republicans’ extreme energy tax and restore the domestic energy incentives that were on track to keep electricity affordable, create millions of good-paying jobs, and position America as a global leader in fast-growing industries.

Energy Innovation estimates that the Republicans’ tax hikes will cost American families and small businesses over $33 billion over the next ten years. Trump’s extreme budget stripped away support for wind and solar, the most affordable energy sources – which will drive up electricity bills for American small businesses and families by as much as 18% over the next decade. This is not theoretical – it is already happening. In fact, thanks to Trump and Republicans’ attacks on clean energy, utilities have requested $29 billion in electricity rate hikes in the first half of 2025 alone. According to CNN and Energy Innovation, Republican states, including Missouri, Kentucky and South Carolina, could see 13% to 14% increase in energy costs over the next decade. In Missouri and Kentucky, energy costs could increase by $640 and $630 a year, respectively. Additionally, by increasing taxes on solar and wind projects, the Republicans’ “Big, Ugly Betrayal” increased taxes on more than 90% of new electricity projects set to come online in the next five years. Experts predict this will result in the U.S. losing out on 340 gigawatts of power, equivalent to more than 3 times the current U.S. nuclear power fleet, at a time when we need more power not less.

For months, Senate Democrats have been sounding the alarm on Republicans’ new taxes on clean energy, which will do nothing more than raise prices on families, cede American energy dominance to China, and ship American jobs overseas. Now, they are taking action and working to reverse the harm that Senate Republicans are placing on American families.

“Americans are already struggling to pay to power their homes and businesses every month. But instead of helping, Republicans handed a massive tax break to the wealthy and Big Oil—then paid for it by jacking up your energy bills,” said Leader Schumer. “Senate Democrats are fighting back. Our bill would stop these energy hikes in their tracks and lower costs for working families across the country. We need more energy in America, not higher prices—and the fastest, cheapest way to get there is clean energy, like solar and wind. But instead of investing in our future, Senate Republicans bowed to Big Oil and slapped a tax on nearly every new power project in the country. That’s bad for families, bad for jobs, and a gift to China. Senate Democrats are here to fix it.”

“Donald Trump doesn’t like the sight of wind turbines near his resorts and he’s sold out the federal government to Big Oil lobbyists and executives, so maybe it shouldn’t come as a surprise that he and Republicans are nuking the wind and solar industries in America and forcing Americans to pay higher energy bills,” said Senator Wyden. “ At a time when data centers are gobbling up huge amounts of energy, we need every electron we can get on the grid, and the cheapest and fastest way to produce energy is solar. What Trump and Republicans are doing to clean energy in America is a level of economic self-sabotage we’ve never seen in modern times, and American families and small businesses will suffer for it.”

The legislation is co-sponsored by Patty Murray (D-WA), Ron Wyden (D-OR), Dick Durbin (D-IL), Jack Reed (D-RI), Maria Cantwell (D-WA), Amy Klobuchar (D-MN), Jeanne Shaheen (D-NH), Sheldon Whitehouse (D-RI), Jeff Merkley (D-OR), Ed Markey (D-MA), Mark Warner (D-VA), Michael Bennet (D-CO), Kirsten Gillibrand (D-NY), Richard Blumenthal (D-CT), Chris Coons (D-DE), Brian Schatz (D-HI), Mazie Hirono (D-HI), Angus King (I-ME), Elizabeth Warren (D-MA), Cory Booker (D-NJ), Chris Van Hollen (D-MD), Tammy Duckworth (D-IL), Tina Smith (D-MN), Jacky Rosen (D-NV), Jon Ossoff (D-GA), Mark Kelly (D-AZ), John Hickenlooper (D-CO), Alex Padilla (D-CA), Lisa Blunt Rochester (D-DE), Andy Kim (D-NJ), Ruben Gallego (D-AZ), Elissa Slotkin (D-MI), and Angela Alsobrooks (D-MD).

The full text of the legislation can be seen here.

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