Republicans in the Colorado Legislature introduced a joint resolution on March 16 asking Gov. Jared Polis and their Democratic colleagues to reverse restrictive energy policies and address our national crisis by unleashing domestic production – in Colorado and across the country.

It came a week after the Colorado Oil and Gas Conservation Commission denied Kerr-McGee new drilling permits near Firestone that are desperately needed to supply more energy.

Expressing concern over the record-breaking costs of gas, House Minority Leader Hugh McKean (R-Loveland) said, “The families of Colorado cannot afford this. Adjusting these policies and allowing Colorado to lead the nation in energy production is one way to address the cost of living in Colorado. Producing and exporting our energy will bring stability and increased capital to Colorado’s economy.”

Inflation reached 7.9% this month, a 40-year high, costing Americans in the western region $500 a month in additional household costs. Coloradans cannot afford these prices.

Raising the cost of transportation means everything consumers purchase in a store or at a restaurant or even online costs more to produce and deliver.

While the Biden administration and many media sources across the nation spent recent weeks blaming Russia’s invasion of Ukraine for gas prices, Americans are not fooled. Prices have risen every month since Biden’s inauguration.

Gas prices have been rising because, as Republican Rep. Richard Holtorf explained, harmful policies have damaged the energy industry. While the United States was on the verge of sustainable energy independent, recent policies have stopped that progress and made us dependent on foreign oil.

The Colorado General Assembly passed Senate Bill 181 in 2019, imposing sweeping regulations that crippled Colorado’s oil and gas industry. Within six months of the bill’s enactment, approval permits for oil wells plummeted by 57%; approved well-drilling permits dropped 58%.

According to data from the Colorado Oil and Gas Conservation Commission, approved permits have continued to plummet since 2019 falling to only five location permits approved for the entire year. Previously, the commission approved nearly 30 permits each month.

While the rest of Colorado’s economy is recovering from the pandemic, our oil and natural gas production has not recovered. Colorado’s oil and gas employment level remains at a 15-year low.

Some might cheer at this, but concerns about the increasing price of gas are consuming many Coloradans. Upon Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, the conversation on energy has shifted to one of affordability and the United States’ national security.

Fossil fuels play a role in nearly everything we do. Many areas of our country are years from adequate “clean” energy infrastructure – and we are one of the most developed nations in the world. Unfortunately, a large percentage of the world doesn’t even have reliable electricity.

If our oil and gas demands are not met by domestic production, countries with far fewer environmental protections will happily supply us without the burden of best interests. The United States has the unique ability to minimize the environmental harm from irresponsible energy production, which benefits humanity around the globe.

We will either face harmful health impacts from poor foreign production practices, or we can lead the world on clean energy production. That requires the oil and natural gas that Colorado, the country’s fifth-largest supplier of oil and gas.

In Colorado, the oil and natural gas industries have long led the nation in environmentally friendly production standards. According to Coloradans for Responsible Energy Development, “for over a decade, Colorado’s oil and natural gas industry has used state-of-the-art technology to help reduce 95% of greenhouse gas emissions…” Additionally, “oil and natural gas have reduced emissions by 50% in the last 10 years.”

Colorado should lead the nation in energy production while protecting the world’s environment. Doing so would cause more affordability and economic stability for the entire country. Republican legislators are ready and willing to act. We hope their Democrat colleagues join them to alter the harmful regulations holding back our energy potential.

Colorado Springs Gazette editorial board