Friday, April 10, 2026 |
Photo – US Representative from Wyoming Harriet Hageman speaking at Jeffrey Center in Rawlins – Bigfoot99 file photo
Wyoming Congresswoman Harriet Hageman met with constituents in Rawlins to discuss her work in Washington D.C., including her push to increase the state’s coal production.
On Tuesday, April 7th, Congresswoman Harriet Hageman held a town hall meeting in the Jeffery Memorial Center in Rawlins. Among other topics, the congresswoman discussed her efforts to remove illegal commercial truckers from the nation’s highways, her opposition to the Clinton‑era roadless rules, and her campaign to increase access to Wyoming coal.
Hageman said the Natural Resources Committee, on which she serves, is focused on meeting the nation’s growing demand for critical minerals. The congresswoman pointed to three sites in Wyoming that are working to help satisfy that demand.
Congresswoman Hageman said she introduced the Domestic Ore Act to ensure mineral extraction companies can continue exploring for additional resources, including coal.
The congresswoman said existing regulations make it difficult for companies to pursue new mineral deposits. Under her proposed bill, exploration boundaries would increase fivefold.
Congresswoman Hageman also said she’s working on the Coal Bid Bonus Reform Bill. The congresswoman said the measure doubles the amount of time coal producers are given to pay for federal coal lease bids.
On the subject of coal, Congresswoman Hageman said Wyoming produces 40 percent of the nation’s supply. However, because of federal regulations, the congresswoman said no new coal mines have opened in the state in 12 years.
The majority of the country’s coal comes from the Powder River Basin in northeast Wyoming and southeast Montana.
Congresswoman Hageman said new mining leases must be put on the fast‑track or the nation could quickly face a coal shortage.
Both the Obama and Biden Administrations placed moratoriums on new federal coal leases, with President Biden’s action specifically targeting the Powder River Basin. Congresswoman Hageman said Congress eliminated those regulations through her Buffalo Bureau of Land Management Congressional Review Act, allowing new coal leases to proceed. Hageman added that federal agencies are also prohibited from reintroducing similar limitations.
A meeting attendee said most coal mined in the United States is shipped overseas as the country moves away from coal use, adding that China purchases a significant share of the world’s supply. The attendee asked Congresswoman Hageman how she is addressing the sale of coal that, in his view, supports the Chinese Communist Party.
The congresswoman replied that she believes most U.S. coal exports go to Japan and South Korea. Hageman said the biggest challenge for expanding production is shipping coal through West Coast ports. The Millennium Port, a proposed coal export facility in Longview, Washington, failed to overcome its legal hurdles. The congresswoman said she has been in talks with suppliers about transporting coal to the Gulf of California for shipment through Mexico. Hageman said the Oakland Bulk and Oversized Terminal is preparing to begin exporting coal, though the facility will only be able to handle roughly half of Wyoming’s coal output.
Hageman said she had been told coal is dead, but demand remains high. The congresswoman argued that increased coal production is the only way to meet the nation’s growing energy needs.
Hageman said people are now discussing a new coal‑fired power plant near Gillette, something that would have been unthinkable five years ago.
The congresswoman added that Lee Zeldin, the current Environmental Protection Agency Administrator, is working to roll back the EPA’s anti-coal regulations to allow for more energy independence.
