News List

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. (May 1, 2014) - This week EPA Administrator Gina McCarthy lashed out against the U.S. Chamber of Commerce and other critics who believe the agency should grant public access to its scientific data. On Monday, McCarthy said to the National Academy of Sciences that EPA’s “Science is real and verifiable.” The EPA has resisted all attempts to publicize the scientific data used to implement its regulations. This “secret science” was used by the EPA to implement 98% of its air regulations between 2002 and 2012, most of which have had devastating economic impacts. 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. (March 20, 2014) – In February, US Forest Service officers and canine units conducted a raid on the Taos Ski Valley. Multiple tickets were issued for various offenses, including driving with a cracked windshield. According to the Taos News, it was part of a “saturation patrol,” due to a demand from the Director of the Forest Service Law Enforcement and Investigations, David Ferrell, that officers reach a quota of 100 citations annually. 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. (April 9, 2014) – This afternoon, the U.S. House of Representatives passed H.Con.Res. 96, the Budget Resolution for fiscal year 2015, with a vote of 219-205. The fiscal year 2015 Budget Resolution balances the budget in ten years by cutting spending by $5.1 trillion, and it ensures greater access to federal lands for energy exploration, better forest management, wildfire suppression, and balanced land management. 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 »