Tapping into SC’s offshore energy has potential — but Democrats are blocking progress

Last month I had the privilege of testifying before U.S. Rep. Joe Cunningham, who represents South Carolina’s 1st Congressional District, and other members of the U.S House’s Committee on Natural Resources. The hearing focused on proposed legislation that would ban new oil and gas leases for several years. This would be damaging since a substantial amount of our oil and natural gas is developed through leasing programs on federal land and water.

As the president of Reaching America I work to solve social issues impacting African American communities. One of the issues I work on is reducing “energy poverty,” which happens when families and individuals can’t afford basic heating and electric needs. The type of energy ban that’s now being pushed by many Democrats in Congress would further exacerbate the issue of energy poverty; in short, it would be devastating to African American and other minority and at-risk communities.

A 2015 Department of Energy report estimated that 25 million American households had scaled back buying food and medicine in order to pay for energy costs. With the amount of affordable natural resources we have in our country, these are sacrifices and choices that no American should have to make.

This energy pinch is felt even more acutely in communities of color: on average individuals in low-income African American communities spend a much higher share of their monthly expenditures toward energy purchases than non-African Americans who live in poverty. In states like South Carolina, where the black unemployment rate is 2.5 times more than the white unemployment rate, this is a recipe for disaster — and economic distress paired with higher energy costs perpetuates an inescapable cycle for many families.

Unfortunately, the Democrats on the Natural Resources committee — much like the Democratic candidates who visited South Carolina during the state’s recent presidential primary — don’t seem to understand the economic hope that American energy production can provide to African American communities.

Sadly, attacking American energy production has reached a fever pitch on the left, and it becomes truly counterproductive when municipalities file nuisance and baseless lawsuits that do nothing to reduce climate change or help these struggling communities.

South Carolina’s elected officials should be demanding access to offshore oil and gas resources instead of seeking to lock them away in shortsighted fashion. While it is unlikely that the energy boom towns of West Texas will pop up in South Carolina, energy access could still provide tremendous benefits for the state; tapping into the available oil and natural gas offshore could unlock thousands of stable, high-paying jobs and hundreds of millions of dollars for South Carolina’s economy.

This is the kind of employment and economic growth that is desperately needed in South Carolina’s minority communities.

South Carolina voters deserve elected officials who are willing to balance energy solvency with quality of life — and pro-American policies that address energy poverty are key to that formula.

Derrick Hollie is the president of Reaching America.

This story was originally published March 10, 2020 at 1:14 PM.