Today, President Obama gave a speech at the U.S.-Mexico border in Texas touting the Administration’s improvements in border security and commitment to immigration reform. However, during the speech Obama failed to mention the continued security and safety issues on federal lands along the U.S. border. Despite the President’s claims of increased security, environmental restrictions on… Read more »

Today, the House of Representatives passed H.R. 1230, the Restarting American Offshore Leasing Now Act, with a bipartisan vote of 266 to 149. Introduced by Natural Resources Committee Chairman Doc Hastings, H.R. 1230 requires the Secretary of the Interior to conduct oil and natural gas lease sales in the Gulf of Mexico and offshore Virginia that have been delayed or cancelled by the Obama… Read more »

House Natural Resources Committee Chairman Doc Hastings issued the following statement on the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (FWS) announcement to delist biologically recovered gray wolf populations in the Western Great Lakes and the Northern Rocky Mountains. The areas affected by the Western Great Lakes proposal are Minnesota, Michigan and Wisconsin, and portions of adjoining states. The… Read more »

Continuing House Republicans’ efforts to advance the American Energy Initiative, the House Natural Resources Subcommittee on Water and Power held an oversight hearing today on “Protecting the Federal Hydropower Investment: A Stakeholder’s Perspective.” At the hearing, Members examined the challenges facing hydropower generation and stressed the need for increased hydropower as part of an… Read more »

Today, the House Committee on Natural Resources and the House Committee on Agriculture held a joint oversight hearing titled, “At Risk: American Jobs, Agriculture, Health and Species--the Costs of Federal Regulatory Dysfunction.” The hearing focused on the job, health, and economic repercussions of federal regulations that restrict the use of crop protection and pest control products… Read more »

As Americans continue to experience pain at the pump from skyrocketing gasoline prices, House Republicans are preparing to vote next week on two bills to expand offshore energy production. As part of House Republicans’ American Energy Initiative, H.R. 1230, the Restarting American Offshore Leasing Now Act, and H.R. 1229, the Putting the Gulf Back to Work Act, will create American jobs,… Read more »

Today, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (FWS) agreed, following a letter from House Natural Resources Committee Chairman Doc Hastings and Reps. Greg Walden, Cathy McMorris Rodgers, Jaime Herrera Beutler, Tom McClintock and Wally Herger, to re-open for an additional 30 days public comment on the controversial proposed habitat modeling related to the Northern Spotted Owl. The announcement… Read more »

House Natural Resources Committee Chairman Doc Hastings (WA-04) released the following statement after the Bureau of Ocean Energy Management, Regulation and Enforcement (BOEMRE) announced the completion of the draft supplemental environmental impact statement (SEIS) for oil and gas lease sale 218 in the Western Planning Area in the Gulf of Mexico. The announcement comes on the heels of… Read more »

House Natural Resources Committee Chairman Doc Hastings (WA-04) released the following statement on the one-year anniversary of the Deepwater Horizon explosion and subsequent oil spill: “This is a time to remember the eleven men who tragically lost their lives and the families who lost their loved ones. This week, the Committee travelled to Louisiana to examine the status of recovery… Read more »

Today, the House Natural Resources Committee held a field hearing in Houma, LA entitled “Gulf of Mexico: A Focus on Community Recovery and New Response Technology. At the hearing, Members heard first hand from local citizens and businesses about the status of recovery efforts, the impacts of the Administration’s de facto moratorium and the deployment of new technology to improve the… Read more »