Oversight

Chairman Hastings and Ranking Member Lisa Murkowski Send Letters to BSEE Director Watson and NOAA Administrator Lubchenco on Greenpeace Protests in Arctic
Letters
Jul 13, 2012 - Dear Mr. Watson: Greenpeace is pledging to impede planned exploratory drilling operations in arctic waters off the north coast of Alaska this summer. A protest fleet, including a 216-foot ice class ship, two large rigid hull and four small inflatables, two submarines, and a drone is reportedly en route to participate i... More

Chairman Hastings Letter to Secretary Salazar Stating Intent to Call Officials to Testify at Full Committee Gulf Drilling Moratorium Oversight Hearing
Letters
Jul 13, 2012 - Dear Mr. Secretary: In a July 6, 2012, letter, the Department of the Interior (“Department”) was provided a final opportunity to establish by the close of business on July 12, 2012 a mutually agreed upon schedule for transcribed interviews of five Department officials by Committee on Natural Resources (“Committee”) maj... More

Chairman Hastings Invitation Letter to Secretary Salazar and Director Pizarchik to Testify on Status of Coal Regulation Rewrite and Complying With Subpoenas for Documents
Letters
Jul 10, 2012 - Dear Secretary Salazar and Director Pizarchik: The Committee will hold an oversight hearing on July 19, 2012 to examine 1) the status of the proposed Stream Protection Rule rewrite and the lawsuit settlement agreement entered into on March 19, 2010 by the Department of the Interior (“Department”) and the Office of Surf... More

INVESTIGATION: Deadline Set on Request to Interview Interior Department Officials Involved in Drilling Moratorium Report
Press Release
Jul 6, 2012 - Today, as part of a more than yearlong investigation into the Obama Administration decision to impose a drilling moratorium in the Gulf of Mexico through a report that was edited in a manner that misrepresented that the moratorium was supported by a panel of engineering experts, Natural Resources Committee Chairman Doc... More

Chairman Hastings Follow-up Letter to Secretary Salazar Regarding Committee's Investigation on Drilling Moratorium Documents and Setting Deadline to Interview Officials
Letters
Jul 6, 2012 - Dear Mr. Secretary: For more than a year, the Department of the Interior ("Department") has consistently refused to provide documents and information that would allow Congress to conduct a thorough and independent review of the Obama Administration's decision imposing a Gulf of Mexico drilling moratorium and its drafti... More

Committee Report on the Legislative and Oversight Activities of the Committee on Natural Resources One Hundred Twelfth Congress (Third Quarter)
Committee Reports
Jun 29, 2012 - H. Rept. 112-572 More

Chairman Hastings Follow-up Letter to National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration Administrator Jane Lubchenco Regarding the Mismanagement of the Asset Forfeiture Fund
Letters
Jun 28, 2012 - Dear Administrator Lubchenco: I am writing to follow up on my April 2, 2012 request for information about the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration's ("NOAA") response to the mismanagement of the Asset Forfeiture Fund that was recently identified by the Department of Commerce's Office of Inspector General's (... More

Hastings Holds Hearing on Federal Regulations and Costs Impacting Hydropower Development
Press Release
Jun 27, 2012 - The House Natural Resources Committee, chaired by Congressman Doc Hastings, today held an oversight hearing on mandatory costs and requirements that federal agencies within the Departments of the Interior, Commerce and Agriculture are imposing on non-federal hydropower producing dams when they are up for licensing or r... More

Litigation Drives Endangered Species Act to the Detriment of Species and People
Press Release
Jun 19, 2012 - Today, the House Committee on Natural Resources continued its series of full committee oversight hearings on how to improve and update the Endangered Species Act (ESA). Today’s hearing focused on ESA litigation and how attorneys’ fees are being used by certain organizations to continue endless lawsuits. Witnesses at th... More

Millions of Taxpayer Dollars Spent on Endangered Species Act Litigation and Attorney Fees
Resourceful Information
Jun 19, 2012 - According to data recently obtained from the Department of Justice (DOJ) in response to document requests, the federal government has defended more than 570 Endangered Species Act (ESA)-related lawsuits costing U.S. taxpayers more than $15 million in attorney fees – in just the past four years. This data provides furth... More

166 Congressmen and Senators Send Bipartisan Letter to Secretary Chu Expressing Concern Over PMA Rate Increases
Press Release
Jun 11, 2012 - Spearheaded by Natural Resources Committee Member Rep. Paul Gosar (AZ-01), as well as Rep. Jim Matheson (UT-02) and Sens. Orrin Hatch (R-UT) and Tim Johnson (D-SD), 166 Congressmen and Senators recently sent a bipartisan, bicameral letter to Department of Energy Secretary Steven Chu expressing concerns over his memoran... More

House Votes to Prohibit Federal Government from Mailing Out Cash for Surveys
Press Release
Jun 6, 2012 - The House of Representatives today passed, in a bipartisan vote of 355 to 51, an amendment by Congressman Scott Tipton (CO-03) to the FY 2013 Energy and Water Development and Related Agencies Appropriations Act to prohibit the federal agencies under the bill from mailing out cash as an incentive to complete government ... More

Witnesses: Obama Administration Actions and Regulations Threaten Jobs, Drive Up Costs of Water and Power, Burden Local Economies
Press Release
Jun 4, 2012 - Today, the House Subcommittee on Water and Power held an oversight field hearing in Phoenix, Arizona entitled, “Evaporating Prosperity: How Federal Actions Are Driving Up Water and Power Costs, Threatening Jobs and Leaving Arizonans High and Dry.” At the hearing, Subcommittee Chairman Tom McClintock (CA-04) and Arizona... More

Obama Administration Skips Hearing to Explain Unprecedented Action Against Coal Mining that Costs Jobs, American Energy Production
Press Release
Jun 1, 2012 - The Subcommittee on Energy and Mineral Resources today held an oversight hearing on the "Obama Administration’s Actions Against the Spruce Coal Mine: Canceled Permits, Lawsuits and Lost Jobs." The hearing focused on the Obama Administration’s Environmental Protection Agency’s unprecedented move to revoke a previously i... More

Witnesses Discuss Importance of Thorough, Judicious Planning Process to Preserve Integrity, Dignity of National Mall
Press Release
Jun 1, 2012 - Today, the House Subcommittee on National Parks, Forests and Public Lands held an oversight hearing on the “Future of the National Mall.” Witnesses at the hearing discussed a broad prospective on the future of the National Mall including the need for cautious deliberation and Congressional consideration of potential ch... More

Further Details Sought on Costs of Hundreds of Endangered Species Act Lawsuits and Settlements
Press Release
May 31, 2012 - Today, House Natural Resources Committee Chairman Doc Hastings (WA-04) sent a series of letters to the Obama Administration requesting further information on how much the federal government spends on Endangered Species Act (ESA)-related litigation and settlement costs. The ESA has become increasingly driven by litigati... More

Chairman Hastings Letters to Obama Administration Officials Requesting Further Information on Endangered Species Act Lawsuits and Settlements
Letters
May 31, 2012 - Dear Secretary Salazar and Director Ashe: The Committee on Natural Resources (“Committee”) has jurisdiction over matters involving fisheries and wildlife, including the Endangered Species Act of 1973 (“ESA”), 16 U.S.C. §§ 1531-1599. The goal of the ESA was to preserve, protect and recover key domestic species. However,... More

Chairman Hastings Letter to Acting Inspector General Mary Kendall on the Department of the Interior's Renewable Energy Programs
Letters
May 30, 2012 - Dear Ms. Kendall: According to the Inspector General Act of 1978 ("IG Act"), each Inspector General is responsible for conducting, supervising, and coordinating audits and investigations relating to the programs and operations of their respective agency or department. Although intended to be an independent watchdog aga... More

Acting Inspector General for Interior Department Questioned on Role in Producing Report that Recommended Gulf Drilling Moratorium
Press Release
May 23, 2012 - House Natural Resources Committee Chairman Doc Hastings (WA-04) yesterday sent a letter to the Department of the Interior’s Acting Inspector General (IG) Mary Kendall to question her about discrepancies between her testimony before the Subcommittee on Energy and Mineral Resources and documents recently provided to the ... More

USA Today: Interior inspector defends impartiality in report probe
In Case You Missed It
May 23, 2012 - Interior inspector defends impartiality in report probe By: Gregory Korte USA Today May 23, 2012 When questions came up about how the White House edited an Interior Department report to justify a moratorium on offshore drilling, acting Inspector General Mary Kendall investigated and reported back to Congress only that... More

Chairman Hastings Letter to Acting Inspector General Mary Kendall Regarding Role in Producing the Gulf Drilling Moratorium Report
Letters
May 22, 2012 - Dear Ms. Kendall: As you know, the Committee on Natural Resources ("Committee") has for almost two years been seeking information about how a May 27, 2010 Department of the Interior ("Department") report entitled "Increased Safety Measures for Energy Development on the Outer Continental Shelf" ("Drilling Moratorium Rep... More

Special Report Highlights Committee's Investigation into Obama Administration's Rewrite of Coal Regulation That Could Cost Thousands of Jobs
In Case You Missed It
May 21, 2012 - Click here to watch video. ### Printable PDF of this document More

Northwest Federal Forest Regulations Have Devastated Forest Health, Local Economies With Little Benefit to Northern Spotted Owl
Press Release
May 21, 2012 - Today, the Subcommittee on National Parks, Forests and Public Lands held an oversight field hearing in Longview, Washington on, “Failed Federal Forest Policies: Endangering Jobs, Forests and Species.” The hearing examined how federal implementation of the Northwest Forest Plan and Endangered Species Act has affected lo... More

Documents and Audio Recordings Kept Secret by Interior Department Raise Further Questions into Obama Administration's Rewrite of Coal Production Regulation
Press Release
May 18, 2012 - House Natural Resources Committee Chairman Doc Hastings (WA-04) today released internal documents and audio recordings obtained by the Committee through outside sources, which raise further questions into the highly unusual manner in which the Obama Administration is rewriting a coal production regulation, the 2008 Str... More

EPA Threatened with Subpoena for Documents on Obama Coal Reg. Rewrite that Could Cost Thousands of Jobs
Press Release
May 15, 2012 - As part of the more than year-long investigation into the Obama Administration’s rewrite of a 2008 coal regulation, House Natural Resources Committee Chairman Doc Hastings (WA-04) today sent a final request letter to the Obama Administration’s Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and threatened a subpoena for informat... More

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NATURAL RESOURCES COMMITTEE

Oversight