Election 2020 Issues Comparison: Fracking and Fossil Fuels

With just under seven weeks left before the 2020 elections we continue to examine where President Donald Trump and former Vice President Joe Biden stand on some of the most critical issues to the vinyl industry. You can read previous issues comparisons here.

This week, we will explore the candidates’ positions on fracking and fossil fuels. Once again, Biden and Trump are on the opposite sides of the spectrums on this issue. As with the previous topics we have already covered, the candidates standing on fossil fuels are very connected and shaped by their climate change positions.

President Trump’s Position

President Trump campaigned in 2016 on easing regulations on oil and gas extraction. His administration initiated over 100 rollbacks of environmental rules as of May 2020 and withdrew the U.S from the Paris Accord, emphasizing the detrimental impact of green policies on U.S. industry, labor, and economy. Trump replaced the Clean Power Plan with the less burdensome, more coal-friendly Affordable Clean Energy (ACE) rule. His administration introduced a plan that opened millions of public and private lands in California to fracking and approved the Keystone XL Pipeline and Dakota Access Pipeline.

The Administration has also put forth proposals to ease limits on methane emissions at oil and gas operations; has expanded offshore drilling in the Arctic Wildlife Refuge and Atlantic oceans; and has rolled back offshore drilling safety measures. President Trump aggressively advocates for the oil and gas industry hit hard by the COVID-19 pandemic. So far, the sector has supported his reelection campaign three times more in 2020 than during his 2016 election, according to campaign finance records.

Joe Biden’s Stance

Joe Biden has been a strong climate advocate during his career, introducing one of Congress’s first climate change-related pieces of legislation: the 1986 Global Climate Protection Act. He has refused to commit to the Green New Deal, but his new climate change and environmental justice plan aims to achieve a 100% clean energy economy that reaches net-zero emissions by 2050. His plan will be paid for by ending GOP tax cuts for corporations and eliminating fossil fuel subsidies.

Though President Trump repeatedly claims that Biden wants to ban fracking, his position does not include banning fracking but rather limiting and regulating it. Biden wants to eliminate new fracking and new oil and gas leases on federal lands. He has supported legislative measures that regulate the oil and gas industry including, removing exploration subsidies and banning drilling in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge. According to Biden’s Climate Plan, “The Biden Administration will take action against fossil fuel companies and other polluters who put profit over people and knowingly harm our environment and poison our communities’ air, land, and water, or conceal information regarding potential environmental and health risks.”

By the way, visit the Vinyl Institute Voter Information Center, a nonpartisan resource that has information to help you prepare for the General Election.

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