{"id":13606,"date":"2026-06-16T01:07:08","date_gmt":"2026-06-16T05:07:08","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.trendinginpropane.com\/?p=13606"},"modified":"2026-06-16T22:31:16","modified_gmt":"2026-06-17T02:31:16","slug":"finding-common-ground-in-an-era-of-energy-policy-whiplash","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.trendinginpropane.com\/finding-common-ground-in-an-era-of-energy-policy-whiplash\/","title":{"rendered":"FINDING COMMON GROUND IN AN ERA OF ENERGY POLICY WHIPLASH"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>By Tucker Perkins, President &#038; CEO, Propane Education &#038; Research Council<br \/>\n<img decoding=\"async\" src=\"data:image\/gif;base64,R0lGODlhAQABAIAAAAAAAP\/\/\/yH5BAEAAAAALAAAAAABAAEAAAIBRAA7\" data-src=\"https:\/\/www.trendinginpropane.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/06\/tucker-w-Bill-Shireman-300x169.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"300\" height=\"169\" class=\"alignright size-medium wp-image-13607 lazyload\" \/><noscript><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/www.trendinginpropane.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/06\/tucker-w-Bill-Shireman-300x169.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"300\" height=\"169\" class=\"alignright size-medium wp-image-13607 lazyload\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.trendinginpropane.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/06\/tucker-w-Bill-Shireman-300x169.jpg 300w, https:\/\/www.trendinginpropane.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/06\/tucker-w-Bill-Shireman-1024x576.jpg 1024w, https:\/\/www.trendinginpropane.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/06\/tucker-w-Bill-Shireman-768x432.jpg 768w, https:\/\/www.trendinginpropane.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/06\/tucker-w-Bill-Shireman.jpg 1279w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 300px) 100vw, 300px\" \/><\/noscript><br \/>\nOne of the most thought-provoking moments from my recent <a href=\"https:\/\/propane.com\/environment\/podcast\/7-3-energys-policy-whiplash-problem-and-how-to-fix-it-with-bill-shireman\/\">Path to Zero conversation with Bill Shireman<\/a> centered on something we don&#8217;t often discuss enough in energy: certainty.<\/p>\n<p>Bill Shireman, founder of Future 500, policy innovator, and conflict mediator who has spent decades helping diverse stakeholders find common ground, offered an observation that stuck with me.<\/p>\n<p>Despite what we often see in headlines and social media, he believes that roughly 70% of Americans can find common ground if they&#8217;re willing to talk and listen to one another.<\/p>\n<p>That idea matters when it comes to energy.<\/p>\n<p>While political debates often frame our choices as \u201call oil and gas\u201d or \u201call renewables,\u201d most Americans simply want access to energy options that are affordable, reliable, cleaner, and diverse. The challenge is that energy innovation operates on a much longer timeline than politics.<\/p>\n<p>In the propane industry, and across the broader energy sector, we work with innovators who are developing technologies that can take years\u2014sometimes a decade or more\u2014to move from concept to commercial deployment. Companies making those investments have to make decisions today based on what they believe the market, regulations, and policy environment will look like years from now.<\/p>\n<p><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"data:image\/gif;base64,R0lGODlhAQABAIAAAAAAAP\/\/\/yH5BAEAAAAALAAAAAABAAEAAAIBRAA7\" data-src=\"https:\/\/www.trendinginpropane.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/05\/tucker2.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"247\" height=\"247\" class=\"alignright size-full wp-image-13477 lazyload\" \/><noscript><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/www.trendinginpropane.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/05\/tucker2.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"247\" height=\"247\" class=\"alignright size-full wp-image-13477 lazyload\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.trendinginpropane.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/05\/tucker2.jpg 247w, https:\/\/www.trendinginpropane.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/05\/tucker2-150x150.jpg 150w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 247px) 100vw, 247px\" \/><\/noscript>Yet over the last several years, we\u2019ve seen dramatic shifts in energy priorities from one administration to the next. That kind of policy whiplash makes it difficult to plan, invest, and bring new solutions to market. <\/p>\n<p>Innovation remains one of our most important tools for reducing emissions, strengthening energy security, bolstering the economy, and improving lives. But innovation thrives when there is confidence and stability.<\/p>\n<p>The best path forward shouldn\u2019t be about choosing one energy solution over another. By recognizing the common ground that already exists among the vast majority of Americans, we can create the certainty innovators need to turn good ideas into real-world solutions.<\/p>\n<p>The energy industry is teeming with innovators, scientists, and thought leaders bringing countless cutting-edge ideas to the table. The U.S. must stabilize our policy approach if we\u2019re going to convert these ideas into real solutions to our most pressing energy needs.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>By Tucker Perkins, President &#038; CEO, Propane Education &#038; Research Council One of the most thought-provoking moments from my recent Path to Zero conversation with Bill Shireman centered on something we don&#8217;t often discuss enough in energy: certainty. Bill Shireman, founder of Future 500, policy innovator, and conflict mediator who has spent decades helping diverse [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":13477,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[3],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-13606","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-article"],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v27.7 - https:\/\/yoast.com\/product\/yoast-seo-wordpress\/ -->\n<title>FINDING COMMON GROUND IN AN ERA OF ENERGY POLICY WHIPLASH | Trending in Propane<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/www.trendinginpropane.com\/finding-common-ground-in-an-era-of-energy-policy-whiplash\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"FINDING COMMON GROUND IN AN ERA OF ENERGY POLICY WHIPLASH | Trending in Propane\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"By Tucker Perkins, President &#038; CEO, Propane Education &#038; Research Council One of the most thought-provoking moments from my recent Path to Zero conversation with Bill Shireman centered on something we don&#8217;t often discuss enough in energy: certainty. 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