A methane fee has been overturned in both the U.S. House and Senate, sending the rollback measure to Trump’s desk.
A measure to repeal a Biden-era methane emissions fee for oil and gas producers cleared its final congressional hurdle on Thursday, with the U.S. Senate voting to overturn one of the previous White House’s signature climate-related regulations.
The Senate’s resolution was passed largely along party lines on Feb. 27, aside from one Republican not voting, after the House passed a similar measure on Wednesday. It now heads to President Donald Trump for his signature.
The House vote was 220–206–1, with six Democrats voting with nearly every Republican in favor of the measure, as one Republican voted against it. One Democrat also voted present.
The methane fee, originally mandated in the 2022 Inflation Reduction Act, was designed to encourage companies to curb emissions of methane, a potent greenhouse gas that traps heat in the atmosphere at a rate significantly higher than carbon dioxide over short timescales.
Under the Environmental Protection Agency plan, which was finalized in November, facilities emitting more than 25,000 tons of carbon dioxide equivalent per year would have been required to pay a charge for their methane leaks. The fee began at $900 per metric ton in 2024, increased to $1,200 in 2025, and was set to reach $1,500 in 2026 and beyond.
The Senate resolution nullifies that plan, drawing praise from some in the oil and gas industry, who have argued that it would act as a punitive tax on producers already under federal oversight.
“The Biden Administration and Democrats in Congress passed the methane tax to single out and punish the oil and natural gas industry despite its already burdensome [Environmental Protection Agency] regulatory framework,” Independent Petroleum Association of America President Jeff Eshelman said in a statement.
“The tax was passed without appropriate understanding of its impact or industry safeguards. IPAA has always opposed the methane tax and believes it is simply a tax designed to hamper American oil and gas production. With the passage of H.J.Res.35 in both the House and Senate, IPAA urges quick action by President Trump to sign this resolution and will work with his Administration to eliminate this unnecessary tax on American oil and natural gas producers as soon as possible.”
By Chase Smith
