Biden administration stoking higher energy prices with oil and gas crackdown, JEC analysis shows

EXCLUSIVE: The Biden administration is exacerbating soaring energy prices by cracking down on the oil and gas industry with new regulations that limit production and discourage investments in traditional energy infrastructure, according to a new analysis published Wednesday by the Joint Economic Committee Republicans.

For months, the prices of all kinds of energy – gasoline, diesel fuel, natural gas, oil and more – have been a major driver behind inflation, which surged 7% in December, the highest level since 1982. Energy costs have climbed more than 29% over the past year, in part due to lopsided supply and demand. Consumers are traveling more, but the supply side has not kept up with the demand.

But it's more complicated than that: The JEC study, shared exclusively with FOX Business, shows how President Biden's policies have stoked higher energy prices by "imposing new barriers to accessing American oil and gas reserves, and by discouraging investment in these historically reliable and inexpensive sources of energy." Rep. Mike Lee, R-Utah, is the ranking member of the Joint Economic Committee.

"Washington is sending conflicting messages," the report, authored by economist Hugo Dante and data analyst Kole Nichols, said. "Policymakers seem simultaneously concerned about high prices reflecting the weak supply of oil and gas, while aggressively pursuing an agenda designed to entirely phase-out oil and gas from domestic energy production."