Lawmakers will soon return to Washington D.C. looking to wrap up their policy priorities before the November election. While the 118th Congress has had its share of dysfunction, it has also delivered notable legislative victories, especially in the energy innovation space. 

>>>READ: Rep. Bob Latta Discusses Energy Affordability and Innovation

One congressman who has been leading in this area is Rep. Brett Guthrie (R-KY), who serves on the House Energy and Commerce Committee, Conservative Climate Caucus, and the NATO Parliamentary Assembly. Guthrie recently sat down with co-founder and vice president of C3 Solutions John Hart on Right Voices to talk about his work on conservative energy and climate solutions. 

Guthrie represents one of the more conservative districts in the nation. He joined the Conservative Climate Caucus after seeing the consequences of top-down climate policy in Europe. “I care deeply about environmental stewardship,” Guthrie says. “We don’t need to cede this space to the liberals because they’re wrong on climate change in a lot of ways.” 

Referring to extreme predictions, such as Greta Thunberg’s 2018 claim that climate change would wipe out humanity by 2023, the Congressman noted, “I’ve seen how allowing the misrepresentation of what’s going on in climate change has hurt Europe.” In his time as a member of the NATO Parliamentary Assembly, Guthrie says he has seen firsthand how Europe’s shift away from domestic fossil fuel production emboldened Russia’s President Vladimir Putin and funded Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. 

Understanding the importance of energy affordability and energy security, Guthrie introduced legislation to bolster clean American energy production. Earlier this session, the congressman introduced the Nuclear for Brownfield Site Preparation Act, which directs the Nuclear Regulatory Commission to examine ways to speed up the licensing and permitting process for nuclear power on retiring coal plant sites. The bill was included as part of the ADVANCE Act, signed into law earlier this summer. 

>>>READ: Jeff Duncan Outlines Policies to Unleash American Nuclear Power

The bill is especially significant meaning to Congressman Guthrie. His district includes Paradise in Muhlenberg County, which used to house a coal-fired power plant before the Tennessee Valley Authority shuttered it. 

With existing connections to the grid and a robust workforce, retired and retiring coal plants are ideal locations for nuclear power plants to be built. In fact, a 2022 Department of Energy study found that more than 300 coal power plant sites across the country could be converted to nuclear power plant sites affordably and quickly. 

“If you’re going to have baseload power that’s carbon-free, and I’m for all of the above, but if you’re going to move in that direction…you can’t do it without nuclear power,” Guthrie said.

With only one month left on the Congressional calendar, Guthrie has begun to plan for the 2025 session. Regardless of the outcome of the presidential election in November, the congressman plans to prioritize lifting barriers to domestic energy production, increasing international engagement with our allies, and permitting reform. On permitting reform, Guthrie emphasized that it’s “the biggest thing we can do.”

The views and opinions expressed are those of the author’s and do not necessarily reflect the official policy or position of C3.