Issue Position: Energy

Issue Position

We must continue to increase the development of domestic energy sources to ensure greater economic security for Washington State and the U.S. In order to maintain access to affordable energy for Central Washington's residents, it is essential that the U.S. continue to develop a safe, domestic, all-of-the-above energy strategy.

Renewable energy plays a critically-important role in our nation's energy portfolio and is a key source of energy in Central Washington and in the 4th Congressional District. We are blessed to have a diverse mix of renewable energy sources in the region--from hydropower and nuclear energy to natural gas, biomass, wind, and solar power -- making Central Washington a great example of an "all-of-the-above" energy strategy. Much of the clean, renewable energy produced in the Pacific Northwest comes from hydropower, and I support protecting dams that provide this affordable, renewable energy source. I led efforts in the House to prohibit any federal funds from being used to remove federal dams -- a vital component of water infrastructure in the west -- and directed the Environmental Protection Agency to recognize hydropower as a renewable, carbon-neutral energy source.

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