Pa. lawmakers push to move federal energy office to Pittsburgh

A bipartisan group of congressmen say Western Pennsylvania’s status as a growing energy hub justifies moving a key federal office here.

U.S. Reps. Chris Deluzio, D-Fox Chapel, John Joyce, R-Altoona, and Guy Reschenthaler, R-Peters, introduced legislation Tuesday that would relocate the Department of Energy’s Office of Fossil Energy and Carbon Management to Pittsburgh by the end of 2026.

It mimics a bill introduced last month by U.S. Sens. John Fetterman, D-Braddock, and Dave McCormick, R-Pittsburgh.

Lawmakers did not disclose any specific location under consideration.

The Washington, D.C.-based office oversees the development of unconventional oil and gas resources — think fracking — as well as the government’s strategic reserves of crude and heating oil. It also houses the National Energy Technology Laboratory, which already operates out of South Park Township.

Altogether, the office employed about 750 scientists, engineers, technicians and administrative staff as of June, though like many federal agencies, the Department of Energy faces ongoing forced and voluntary departures under the Trump administration.

Lawmakers argue it only makes sense for the office to be based in Pennsylvania, the second-largest natural-gas producing state.

“The fossil-fuel workforce of Southwestern Pennsylvania should be leading and developing our nation’s energy policies, not out-of-touch bureaucrats in Washington, D.C,” Reschenthaler said in a statement.

Deluzio skipped the harsh words for workers in the capital, but issued a statement saying “this region can and should remain at the heart of powering America.”

Expanding the state’s energy production has been a point of bipartisan agreement as of late, even if views vary on the role of renewables.

McCormick and Gov. Josh Shapiro, a Democrat, sat down Tuesday during the Pennsylvania Energy and Innovation Summit at Carnegie Mellon University to discuss how more power is needed to fuel data centers, a must for artificial intelligence programs.

Companies took the event as an opportunity to announce more than $90 billion in energy and tech investments impacting the state, including the Pittsburgh area.