Trump Executive Orders Impact on the Liquid Fuels Industry

The Second Trump Administration kicked off quickly with President Trump signing nearly 40 Day One executive actions on topics ranging from energy to immigration to federal hiring policies. Most notably, President Trump signed an Executive Order (EO) Monday evening on “Unleashing American Energy,” which among other things, revokes 13 Biden-era energy policies, directs federal agency heads to expedite and streamline permitting processes, and promotes liquified natural gas (LNG) export projects and domestic mining and processing. The EO also targets electric vehicles (EVs) and the Green New Deal, pausing funding under the Inflation Reduction Act (IRA) and Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act (IIJA) for EV-related programs. Additionally, President Trump ordered EPA to “consider issuing emergency fuel waivers to allow the year-round sales of E15 gasoline to meet any projected temporary shortfalls in the supply of gasoline across the nation.” The federal spending bill back in December would have allowed year-round E15 without the waivers, but that language was stripped out of the bill before lawmakers voted.

While the long-term impacts on clean energy and EV programs remain unclear, this move signals a clear federal pivot toward traditional energy sectors. Additional EOs issued last week include requiring federal employees to return to in-office work, withdrawing from the Paris Climate Agreement, eliminating federal DEI offices, and ordering the declassification of files related to the assassinations of John F. Kennedy, Robert F. Kennedy, and Martin Luther King Jr.