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Chairman Hastings: It’s Time to Expand American Energy Production

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House Natural Resources Committee Chairman Doc Hastings (WA-04) delivered the following statement on the House floor today in support of H.R. 2, the American Energy Solutions for Lower Costs and More American Jobs Act.   “Mr. Speaker – I stand here on the House Floor, only a few hundred yards away from the Senate, and it feels like we are worlds apart.  In the…

Witnesses, Members Stress the Importance of Data Sharing in Natural Resources Production & Infrastructure Projects

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Today, the House Natural Resources Subcommittee on Energy and Mineral Resources held a legislative hearing on H.R. 5066, the Data Preservation Act of 2014, authored by Natural Resources Committee Member Rep. Dan Benishek, M.D. (MI-01). This legislation would help create jobs and improve the safety of construction projects and natural resources production by ensuring that these projects…

Hastings’ Water Storage Legislation Needed to Combat Western Water Supply Issues by Facilitating More Surface Water Storage

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Today, the House Natural Resources Subcommittee on Water and Power held a legislative hearing on H.R. 5412, the Bureau of Reclamation Surface Water Storage Streamlining Act.  The legislation, introduced by House Natural Resources Committee Chairman Doc Hastings (WA 04), streamlines the Bureau of Reclamation’s environmental planning and study process for new surface water storage…

Hastings: Admin’s Response to Oversight Requests Shameful

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House Natural Resources Committee Chairman Doc Hastings (WA-04) delivered the following opening statement at today’s Full Committee oversight hearing entitled “The Status of the Fish and Wildlife Service’s Responses to Committee Subpoenas and the Continued Lack of Transparency about Its Implementation and Enforcement of American Wildlife Laws, and Oversight of the Department of the…

Committee Report Identifies Weaknesses in DOI’S Ethics Program

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An investigative report entitled “Ethics Under Review: An Oversight Investigation into the Department of the Interior’s Ethics Program and How Recusals are Managed for Senior Officials” was released today by the House Natural Resources Committee’s majority oversight staff.  The report is the result of more than two years of investigation by Committee staff that identified weaknesses…

Transparency, Sound Science, & Inclusion of States and Localities Needed in ESA Listing Decisions NOT Federal Edicts Driven by Litigation and Settlement Deadlines

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Today, the House Natural Resources Committee held a Full Committee legislative hearing on six pieces of legislation aimed at updating and improving the Endangered Species Act (ESA), a law that has not been reauthorized since 1988. This hearing is the latest in the Committee’s efforts to review the ESA to make sure that this important law is working in the best interests of species and…

Agriculture, Timber, & Energy Production Would Suffer If Northern Long-Eared Bat is Listed as Endangered

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Today, the House Natural Resources Committee held a field oversight hearing on “The Northern Long Eared Bat: The Federal Endangered Species Act and the Impacts of a Listing on Pennsylvania and 37 Other States.”  This hearing examined questions regarding bat data and non-human-caused disease, as well as the likely negative impacts that a federal endangered listing of the Northern Long…

Committee to Hold Pennsylvania Field Hearing on the Impacts of the Northern Long Eared Bat’s Federal Endangered Species Act Listing

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The House Natural Resources Committee will hold a Full Committee field hearing in Harrisburg, Pennsylvania on September 8, 2014 on “The Northern Long Eared Bat: The Federal Endangered Species Act and the Impacts of a Listing on Pennsylvania and 37 Other States.” This hearing will examine questions regarding bat data and non-human-caused disease, as well as the likely negative impacts that…

Hastings Demands Army Corps Explain Its Settlement to Expand EPA’s Regulatory Authority over Columbia & Snake River Dams

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Today, Natural Resources Committee Chairman Doc Hastings (WA-04) sent a letter to the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers voicing strong concerns over the Corps’ settlement this week with Columbia Riverkeeper, a group that for years has sued the federal government and favors removal of Northwest dams. The settlement, which involves payment of over $140,000 in taxpayer-funded attorneys’ fees to…

Hastings: First Helium Auction is Realization of Bipartisan, Bicameral Helium Stewardship Act

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House Natural Resources Committee Chairman Doc Hastings (WA-04) released the following statement regarding the first helium auction at the Federal Helium Reserve near Amarillo, TX. “Today’s helium auction is the realization of the promise of the Helium Stewardship Act which for the first time establishes a public, transparent, and open process for the sale of helium from the Federal…