Articles

WASHINGTON, D.C. –Today, Senate Western Caucus Chairman John Barrasso (R-WY) and Congressional Western Caucus co-chairs Stevan Pearce (R-NM) and Cynthia Lummis (R-WY) joined 43 other Caucus Members in sending a letter to Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) Administrator Gina McCarthy. Read more »

WASHINGTON, D.C. - Today, the House Committee on Natural Resources held an oversight hearing on “Keeping the Lights On and Reducing Catastrophic Forest Fire Risk: Proper Management of Electricity Rights of Way on Federal Lands.” The hearing examined the need for improved management and better communication with electric utilities on electricity rights of way on federal lands so that falling, dead, insect-infested or even growing trees do not hit power lines. Such contact can cause electricity blackouts and catastrophic fires. Read more »

WASHINGTON, D.C. - Today, Senate Western Caucus Chairman John Barrasso (R-WY) and Congressional Western Caucus Co-Chairs Stevan Pearce (R-NM) and Cynthia Lummis (R-WY), released a new report entitled: “Washington Gets It Wrong, States Get It Right: A New Report on State Environmental Stewardship.” Read more »

Washington, D.C. – Today, the House Energy & Commerce Committee approved H.R. 6, Congressman Cory Gardner’s (CO-04) legislation on liquefied natural gas (LNG) exports. H.R. 6, the Domestic Prosperity and Global Freedom Act, will expedite the approval of U.S. LNG export applications. This legislation passed with a bipartisan vote of 33-18. Read more »

Washington, D.C. - U.S. Representative Kristi Noem today joined 231 Members of Congress from both sides of the aisle in a letter to Environmental Protection Agency Administrator Gina McCarthy and Secretary of the Army John McHugh, urging their agencies to withdraw a proposed navigable waters rule. The rule of concern would expand the federal government’s control over small and seasonal bodies of water throughout South Dakota. Read more »

WASHINGTON, D.C. - Today, the House Natural Resources Committee approved four targeted bills that would improve and modernize the Endangered Species Act (ESA). The primary focus of these four bills is to promote data and cost transparency and species recovery. Read more »

WASHINGTON, D.C. – The House Natural Resources Committee will hold a Full Committee markup on Wednesday, April 30th on four bills. These four bills, introduced in March, focus on common-sense, limited improvements and updates to the Endangered Species Act including transparency and species recovery. Read more »

WASHINGTON, D.C. - House Natural Resources Committee Chairman Doc Hastings (WA-04) delivered the following speech today at the Western Regional Forest Resources Association Spring Meeting in Pasco, WA. In the speech, Chairman Hastings talked about the House bill (H.R. 1526) that would put tens of thousands of Americans back to work, provide stable funding for counties to use for education and infrastructure, improve local management of our federal forests, and help reduce the risk of catastrophic wildfires, and called on the Senate to act (see bold text below). Read more »

WASHINGTON, D.C.- The Government Accountability Office (GAO) today released a comprehensive audit of the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA). The audit found that the federal government does not have a system to track data and costs associated with performing NEPA reviews, NEPA delays are lengthy and vary agency to agency, and that litigation is a major driver in the environmental review process. Read more »

WASHINGTON, D.C.- At a Full Committee hearing today on “Tribal Forest Management: A Model for Promoting Healthy Forests and Rural Jobs,” House Natural Resources Committee Chairman Doc Hastings (WA-04) in his opening statement stressed the need for the Senate to take action on House-passed legislation to restore active forest management. Read more »