Executives with the American Petroleum Institute and American Fuel & Petrochemical Manufacturers have repeatedly publicly spoken out against any export freeze. And while administration officials have said in the past it wasn’t considered, some industry officials aren’t convinced. 

“There’s an all-hands-on-deck from industry and inside the administration to stave it off,” an energy industry executive who recently spoke with Politico on the condition of anonymity.

While the White House has not formally drafted an export freeze, the executive said, “everyone knows Trump’s gonna Trump.” 

WHAT TO WATCH WHEN CONGRESS RETURNS: 

The Senate is just hours away from breaking for its August recess, while the House has been out for about two weeks already. If they haven’t traveled home yet, most lawmakers are headed back to their home states to work in their districts and prepare for the upcoming midterm elections. 

The House will be back in session on Aug. 31 for one week, before breaking for another seven days for Labor Day. Meanwhile, the Senate will be out of session for a full five weeks, before returning on Sept. 14. 

Once they’re back in D.C., members face a tight timeline and several key items on their agenda. 

Permitting reform: If you’ve been reading Daily on Energy for a while now, you know one of the top legislative priorities we’ve been tracking is permitting reform. Earlier in the week, key negotiators in the Senate revealed that they weren’t able to strike a deal before breaking for recess, punting negotiations until September. 

Republicans are seeking to overhaul and simplify environmental laws like the National Environmental Policy Act and Clean Water Act, reducing judicial review for traditional fossil fuel projects such as pipelines and natural gas power plants. Meanwhile, Democrats are hoping to accelerate the permitting process for advanced transmission infrastructure to connect more renewable energy to the grid. 

Some have suggested that the Senate might punt the issue to after the midterm elections, during a lame-duck session (if Democrats take back one of the chambers, as expected.) Though there is internal debate over whether Democrats will be willing to advance a Republican-driven bill or attempt to change language to push their own priorities.

E15: We also reported yesterday that year-round sale of ethanol remains stuck in the Senate Agriculture Committee. Republicans and Democrats on the panel held a markup hearing on the farm bill, but lawmakers failed to reach an agreement over the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program. 

Committee Chairman Sen. John Boozman of Arkansas plans to reconvene the committee the first week lawmakers return next month. 

Fix Our Forests Act: As wildfire season continues to intensify, we are keeping our eye on Republican Sen. John Curtis of Utah’s Fix our Forests Act. The bill advanced through the Senate Agriculture Committee last October, but it has yet to receive a final vote. 

Curtis told the Deseret News earlier this week that, “I think if we can (fix) all the concerns, we can get this quickly to the floor.”

He added, “It’s got priorities of (Senate Majority Leader John) Thune and other leadership, and I think the bipartisan nature of the bill would make this just an easy win for everybody. I think it’s not so much making it a priority among other priorities as it is just clearing all the hurdles.”

It’s important to note that all three of these legislative priorities could be derailed. Congress will be racing to pass temporary government funding before the fiscal year ends on Sept. 30. And tensions over Trump’s insistence on passing the SAVE Act and another scheduled recess for the month of October may push any non-essential bills to a lame-duck session after the election.  

TRUMP ANNOUNCES $180 MILLION FOR MINING EDUCATION: 

Trump announced over $180 million in grants for mining education at a roundtable event with some of the world’s largest mining companies in attendance.

The administration held the event at the State Department this afternoon. It included Secretary of State Marco Rubio, Secretary of the Interior Doug Burgum and Secretary of Commerce Howard Lutnick. 

As part of the announcement, the Department of Energy will offer up to $100 million to grow the critical mineral workforce over the next two years for universities, community colleges, trade schools, and industry groups. 

The military will also offer more than $80 million for three universities, including the Colorado School of Mines, the South Dakota School of Mines, and Johns Hopkins University. 

Stay tuned for more by Maydeen. 

All the rest

EPA PLANS TO TAKE CLEAN ENERGY GRANT FIGHT TO SCOTUS: The Environmental Protection Agency has asked a federal court to pause its recent ruling over clean energy grants while it prepares a petition asking the Supreme Court to review the case.

As a reminder: Earlier this week, the U.S. Court of Appeals ruled that the EPA cannot suspend $20 billion in clean energy grants that were issued to climate groups during the Biden administration. The grants were issued under the Greenhouse Gas Reduction Fund, which was established through the Inflation Reduction Act. 

The EPA is now asking the court to mandate and extend the existing administrative stay until the high court decides whether to hear the case. If the review is granted, the EPA is asking that the stay continues throughout the proceedings. The agency said it would petition to the Supreme Court no later than Nov. 2, 2026. 

WHERE OIL STANDS HEADING INTO THE WEEKEND: As markets wait for news on a deal between the U.S. and Iran on reopening the Strait of Hormuz, oil prices moved slightly higher today. The gains weren’t too sharp, a sign that traders are still hopeful for an agreement. 

Just after 3 p.m. EDT, Brent crude crept upward by 0.98% and was selling at $83.30 a barrel. West Texas Intermediate also rose by 0.91% and was priced at $77.70 a barrel.  

Some analysis: “While the reopening of the Strait of Hormuz is likely to drive a period of short-term market rebalancing and restore some confidence in global oil flows, any sense of stability is likely to be temporary,” Joanne Salih of Baringa said in a note obtained by the Wall Street Journal. “Even in the absence of active conflict, the possibility that Iran could again choose to restrict or close the strait will remain an enduring feature of the market.”

INTERIOR CHIEF BURGUM BLASTED BY FORMER STAFF: Former employees of the Interior Department are lambasting Secretary Doug Burgum in a new report, claiming the former North Dakota governor has led the agency poorly and has implemented a shroud of secrecy. 

At least eight former officials who worked at Interior recently spoke with E&E News, saying that many within the agency were initially hopeful for Burgum’s leadership. However, over the last year, staffers have reportedly been left confused and concerned, according to the report. 

Staffers allege that leadership has attempted to make some operations secret, requiring employees to sign nondisclosure agreements. One individual told the outlet that Burgum has looked into adding a sensitive compartmented information facility (SCIF) at the D.C. headquarters. At least three other staffers have seen officials shredding official documents and using disappearing Signal messages to prevent the preservation of information. 

Others say Burgum appointed toxic individuals to his leadership team, causing some employees to resign, including his former chief of staff.  

“Burgum appears to combine arrogance with an utter lack of curiosity or humility to seek out the advice of people who have dedicated their professional careers to [Interior’s] objectives,” Tony Irish, a career Interior staffer who left last year, told E&E News. “I think it shows his disdain for the rank and file.”

The administration’s response: Interior has hit back at the report, with spokesperson Katie Martin saying the “anonymous and false attacks have been proven to be Fake News,” and accused former staffers of being stricken with Trump Derangement Syndrome. 

ICYMI – TRUMP HIT WITH ANOTHER COURT LOSS ON WIND: In yesterday’s newsletter, we detailed how the Trump administration successfully killed off another three offshore wind projects through its so-called settlement agreements with energy companies. Just hours later, however, the administration suffered yet another loss in federal court over its whole-of-government crackdown on the renewable resource. 

The details: Judge Karin Immergut of the U.S. District Court for the District of Oregon, who was nominated by Trump during his first term, ruled in favor of a group of renewable energy groups that claimed the Pentagon was unlawfully delaying dozens of wind projects and costing states $47 billion by freezing its review of onshore wind projects. 

In April, the War Department halted all military reviews of proposed onshore wind farms. These reviews have long been considered routine and are conducted to determine that new turbines do not interfere with military operations, local radar, or flight paths.

Immergut ruled that the Pentagon violated legal deadlines when it halted the reviews and determined that the groups were likely to prevail if the case moves forward.

Read more from Callie here. 

RUNDOWN

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E&E News DEI dispute delayed wildfire grants for area engulfed in blazes