Press Releases

Washington, D.C. (May 9th, 2016) – Today the Congressional Western Caucus kicked off a new video series to show the opportunities, challenges, and problems facing the West and the country as a whole when it comes to federal land management and the growing federal footprint. Read more »

Washington, D.C. (April 20th, 2016) –Yesterday, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (FWS) caved to pressure from serial litigants in abandoning a common sense Endangered Species Act (ESA) proposal. This surrender rolled back one of the few positive moves by the Obama Administration to improve the ESA. In May of 2015, the FWS proposed changes to the process under which the FWS… Read more »

Washington, D.C. (March 15, 2016) – Today, U.S. Department of the Interior Secretary Sally Jewell announced that the outer-continental shelf of the Mid-Atlantic coast would be off limits to oil and gas production under its 5-year plan for offshore energy production. Read more »

Washington, D.C. (February 29, 2016)-Late last week, Western Caucus Chairman Cynthia Lummis (WY-At large) and Coal Caucus Chairman David B. McKinley, P.E. (WV-01) co-led 11 fellow Members of the U.S. House in sending a letter to Secretary of the Interior Sally Jewell. The letter demanded the legal justification for the Administration’s recent moratorium on any new leases for coal production on federal land as well as the estimate of jobs that will be lost because of the new lease moratorium. Read more »

Washington, D.C. (February 26, 2016) –Today the U.S. House passed with a bipartisan vote H.R. 2406, the Sportsmen’s Heritage and Recreational Enhancement (SHARE) Act. Read more »

Washington, D.C. (February 12, 2016) – Today President Obama unilaterally locked up nearly 1.8 million acres by designating three new national monuments in California. This action undermines ongoing legislative efforts tailored to the needs and wishes of local communities. Read more »

Washington, D.C. (February 9, 2016) – Today the U.S. Supreme Court ruled in favor of a stay on the Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA) Clean Power Plan until state lawsuits against the plan can be heard. Read more »

Washington, D.C. (January 15, 2016) – Today Secretary of the Interior Sally Jewell announced a moratorium on any new leases for coal production on federal land. Read more »

Washington, D.C. (January 13, 2016) – Today the U.S. House voted with a bipartisan majority to pass S.J. Resolution 22 to repeal the EPA’s Waters of the U.S. (WOTUS) rule using the Congressional Review Act. The bill has already passed the Senate and so will now head to the President’s desk. Read more »

Washington, D.C. (January 12, 2015) – Today the House passed H.R. 1644: the Supporting Transparent Regulatory and Environmental Actions in Mining Act (“STREAM Act”). This legislation requires transparency in the Obama Administration’s proposed regulations on “stream buffer zones” between coal mines and streams. The bill also requires a third party study to evaluate the strength of stream buffer zone rules already in place, and limits the Office of Surface Mining Reclamation and Enforcement (OSM) from exceeding its regulatory authority. Read more »