Congresswoman Claudia Tenney has reintroduced the Freedom to Frack Act, a bill aimed at penalizing states that implement bans on hydraulic fracturing by withholding certain federal grants.
The legislation directly targets New York’s fracking ban, which was enacted by the state’s Department of Environmental Conservation in 2015 and later codified into law in 2020. Tenney represents New York’s 24th District, a region sitting atop vast natural gas reserves within the Marcellus and Utica shale formations.
“Albany’s baseless, anti-American energy policies have blocked access to valuable local resources for too long,” Tenney said. “I introduced the Freedom to Frack Act to push back against Albany’s anti-science, politically motivated ban on hydraulic fracturing.”
Tenney argues that New York’s fracking ban has hurt the economy and driven up energy costs, while nearby Pennsylvania has capitalized on its shale deposits to become the nation’s second-largest natural gas producer. “By lifting these restrictions, we can stimulate economic growth, create thousands of good-paying jobs, and fully unlock the potential of American energy,” she said.
The proposed legislation would strip certain federal funding from states that refuse to align with federal energy directives regarding fracking. Tenney framed the bill as consistent with the energy priorities advanced under President Trump’s administration, calling on states to “follow suit” in expanding domestic energy production.
Tenney criticized the state ban as a move that ignores both environmental science and economic opportunity. “American natural gas is the cleanest in the world,” she said, citing its role in reducing global CO2 emissions.
The Freedom to Frack Act is now under consideration in the House of Representatives.
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