Dear Friend,

Because of the continuing cost of living crisis, many people are going to have a tougher time making ends meet in their household budgets. With winter weather approaching, people are going to see higher household utility bills that will literally force some people to limit how warm they can afford to keep their homes and still be able to afford basics like food and medicine. This is especially true for many Americans living in areas of the nation where it gets very cold and stays cold for long periods of time.

In addition to the higher home heating costs, we are also dealing with diesel fuel shortages that could not only worsen supply chain problems for getting food to stores, but if the shortage lasts into the spring, could also impact farming. Diesel is the “fuel of the farm.” It is essential for the operation of tractors, combines, harvesters, and a host of other farming machinery that plows, plants, fertilizes, harvests, and transports our food supply. To make things worse, there is also a shortage of fertilizer that has caused prices to spike.

The sad fact is these problems exist because of the policy decisions being made by the Biden Administration and Democrats in Congress. As I have stated many times, the United States has virtually inexhaustible reserves of oil and natural gas. According to the U.S. Geological Survey, the Green River formation in Western Colorado, Southern Wyoming, and Northern Utah holds 3 trillion barrels of recoverable oil. While that is just one formation, there are many others in the United States. We clearly have the energy resources we need to not only bring down our high energy costs, but also to enhance our national security by ensuring we are not reliant on foreign energy.

Because high energy costs are a major driver of inflation, opening up our energy resources and promoting the construction of more refineries and liquified natural gas (LNG) facilities will be a major priority of mine in the next Congress. Not only do we need to do this to lower the cost of living, we need to lead the world in the export of energy to create jobs, lower our trade imbalance, and use the potential trillions of dollars to reduce our debt.

In less than two years, President Biden and his Democrat allies in Congress have diminished the quality of life for American families. Having grown up in a low-income family in Hackleburg, Alabama I understand the struggles that many low- to middle-class families are facing right now. They are living paycheck-to-paycheck, trying to feed their families, make their mortgage or rent payments, and cover their other expenses. We can do much, much better.  

It is an honor to serve you in Congress. If I can be of assistance to you on an issue you are having with a federal agency, please contact my office in Washington D.C. or in Birmingham.

Sincerely, 

Gary Palmer

In District

U.S. Service Academy Night

One of my most solemn responsibilities as a member of Congress is to nominate young men and women to Military Service Academies. I recently hosted an informational event at the city hall in Vestavia to highlight the high standards these institutions require for acceptance and impress upon those who attended that the United States needs more like them answering the call to serve. I look forward to working with more of these students in the future as they work through the academy nomination process. 

Coca-Cola UNITED HQ

Coca-Cola UNITED’s corporate headquarters is located right here in Birmingham. However, Coca-Cola’s footprint is all over Alabama and represents nearly 3100 jobs across the state. I enjoyed touring their facility in Birmingham and talking with the Coca-Cola team members including a young man from my hometown of Hackleburg who is training to be a truck driver. The folks at Coca-Cola are the people who help ensure some of our favorite beverages make it to local restaurants and grocery stores. 

Eastern Jefferson County Mayors Breakfast

I was honored to speak at the Eastern Jefferson County Mayors breakfast in mid-October which was hosted by Trussville Mayor Buddy Choat. Local government has some of the biggest impacts on your daily life. From day one as your representative in Congress, I have made it my priority to stay in touch with the mayors in the district and be as helpful to them as possible to find solutions that benefit our communities. 

Mountain Brook Junior High

In a gym full of 7^th graders, you never know what type of questions you are going to get. During my recent visit to Mountain Brook Junior High, I was impressed with the questions from students who are clearly learning important things about the federal government in class. I look forward to this group of future leaders doing great things for the state of Alabama. 

Fultondale High School

As high school students begin to wrap up their time in school, it is important they look ahead to the future. I attended Fultondale High School’s College and Career Fair to encourage the students as they head on to further their education or join the workforce. It was a great event hosted by the City of Fultondale, so congratulations to Mayor Larry Holcomb and the Fultondale City Council.

Gardendale Chamber of Commerce

It is great to see the business community in Gardendale growing and thriving. Their recent chamber of commerce meeting allowed me to give an update on my work in Washington and to hear from people in the Gardendale community about the challenges facing their businesses. 

NCFI

The Sixth District of Alabama is proud to be home to an organization like the National Computer Forensics Institute (NCFI) in Hoover that is providing world-class cyber training for law enforcement officers, investigators, prosecutors, and judges from all over the nation on how to extract and utilize evidence gathered from various devices. I am happy to report that NCFI has just added a much needed additional classroom. This is a joint effort between the United States Secret Service, the State of Alabama, Shelby County, and the City of Hoover. As criminal activity grows across the internet, their newest NCFI classroom will allow them to accommodate more trainees. I was pleased to speak at the ribbon cutting for this new classroom. The city of Hoover has been an excellent host of this important effort to keep our nation safe, and I’m glad to see this state-of-the-art facility growing. There is no other facility like it in the nation.

Birmingham Metro Sertoma Club

It was a pleasure to speak to the Birmingham Sertoma Club and update them about issues related to the federal government. Their club’s commitment to service is a great benefit to our community. 

FRA Convention

Hoover recently played host to the 94^th Fleet Reserve Association National Conference, and I was honored to be invited to speak at this event. This association is made up of brave men and women who have served our nation in the U.S. Navy, Marines, and the Coast Guard. I thanked them for their service on behalf of a grateful nation. 

In the News

The past month was filled with many news items I think you will be interested in. I believe it is important you know where I stand on these critical issues. So, please read and listen to these articles and interviews at your convenience. You can also find them HERE on my website.

Energy Costs: American energy is vital to the economic growth of our country. Procuring and refining more fuel in this country would dramatically decrease the current levels of inflation Americans are experiencing. I joined other members of the Alabama Congressional Delegation urging President Biden to unleash our energy sector. You can read about the coverage below.

Print News – Yellowhammer

Print News – Alabama Today

Print News – Yellowhammer

Our Strategic Petroleum Reserve (SPR) and Renewable Energy: I was given the opportunity to discuss President Biden’s recent decision to drain more oil from our SPR on the Capitol Report with Steve Lance. It appears the President’s decisions surrounding this release were solely focused on artificially reducing the price of gasoline before the November 8^th election. I believe the politically motivated choice that failed to reduce costs in a meaningful way was unwise. Our SPR stockpile is designed to aid the country in a time of national crisis, not bolster the party in power’s electoral prospects. I also stated that such a quick shift to renewable energy is a pipe dream what will ultimately further hurt our economy. You can watch the interview by clicking on the link below.

 Interview with NTD

Inflation and the Economy: I always enjoy opportunities to speak directly to Alabamians. One of those ways is with local talk radio shows who do their best to cover what Congress is doing. Recently I was on two of those shows to discuss inflation and the state of our economy. If you would like to listen to them, they are linked below. 

Radio Interview – The Yaffee Show

Radio Interview – Jeff Poor Show