The Energy and Environment Legal Institute, led by Steve Milloy, E&E Legal Senior Policy Fellow, joined The Heartland Institute, C-FACT, American Energy Institute, Consumers Defense, Truth in Energy Coalition, and Life: Powered to form the American Energy Dominance Coalition.  The coalition created a “Top 10 Regulatory & Fiscal Wins under Secretary of Energy Chris Wright,” highlighting the actions the Department of Energy has done in the past nine months to undo the burdensome and economy-killing regulations imposed by the Biden & Obama Administrations.

Top 10 Regulatory & Fiscal Wins under Secretary of Energy Chris Wright

In less than 9 months, under Secretary Chris Wright, the U.S. Department of Energy launched the largest deregulatory effort in history, canceled billions in wasteful subsidies, and restored America’s path toward true energy dominance.

    1. The Department of Energy undertook the “largest deregulatory effort in history,”
      rescinding or blocking 47 specific regulations and standards for a variety of consumer and
      commercial appliances, including Conservation Standards for Automatic Commercial Ice
      Makers, Energy Conservation Standards for Commercial Prerinse Spray Valves, Water Use
      Standards for Faucets, and more.
      See: Energy Department Slashes 47 Burdensome and Costly Regulations (May 12 2025)
    2. DOE delayed, with an eye toward rescinding, energy-efficiency standards for federal
      buildings, saving millions of dollars in unnecessary upgrades.
      See: Clean Energy for New Federal Buildings and Major Renovations – Stay (May 5 2025)
    3. DOE streamlined the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) review process to cut
      Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) requirements by issuing new guidance that limits
      unnecessary analysis of upstream and downstream GHG effects, expands categorical
      exclusions for low-impact projects, and shortens the maximum deadline for EIS completion
      from three years to two.
      See: Revision of National Environmental Policy Act Implementing Procedures (July 3 2025)
    4. DOE canceled billions of dollars in funding for wind and solar projects approved under
      the previous administration.
      See: DOE Announces Termination of 223 Projects Saving Over $7.5 Billion (Energy.gov)
    5. DOE terminated $3.7 billion in carbon-capture and decarbonization grants previously
      approved under Biden, 16 of the 24 projects were signed between Election Day and
      Inauguration Day. These cancellations signal DOE’s shift away from politicized spending
      toward cost-effective energy innovation.
      See: Utility Dive – DOE Cancels $3.7B in Carbon Capture and Decarbonization Awards (Feb
      2025) and WSJ – Energy Department to Slash Nearly $24 Billion in Green Project Funding
      (Mar 2025)
    6. Secretary Wright created the Climate Working Group, which produced A Critical Review of
      Impacts of Greenhouse Gas Emissions on the U.S. Climate.
      See: DOE Climate Working Group Report (July 2025)
    7. Wright ordered the National Petroleum Council to deliver a “Future Energy Systems”
      study focused on bolstering oil and gas development by identifying pipeline needs and
      recommending permitting and regulatory reforms to expand and expedite production
      and delivery.
      See: Powering the Future: Secretary Wright Calls on NPC for Energy Study (Sep 22 2025)
    8. DOE fast-tracked approvals for multiple LNG projects previously sidelined under Biden,
      streamlined permitting requirements, and extended operating authorizations for other LNG
      export facilities.
      See: Secretary Wright Issues First LNG Export Approval (Feb 14 2025) and DOE Issues
      Extension for Delfin LNG Project (Mar 10 2025)
    9. DOE has canceled hundreds of millions in electric-vehicle and battery-manufacturing
      grants, including funds for EV charger networks, battery plants, and start-up manufacturers
      — a broader rollback of politically driven subsidies in favor of market-based investment.
      See: DOE Cancels More Than $700 Million in Battery Manufacturing Projects (E&E News, Oct
      20 2025)
    10. DOE is advancing small modular reactor (SMR) development through partnerships with
      national laboratories and universities, including new funding for research at Idaho National
      Laboratory, Oak Ridge National Laboratory, and Purdue University. In April 2025, DOE
      announced up to $900 million to accelerate U.S.-made SMR deployment.
      See: DOE Announces $900 Million to Unlock Commercial Deployment of American-Made SMRs
      (Apr 2025)