Today, the House Subcommittee on Fisheries, Wildlife, Oceans and Insular Affairs held a hearing titled “Buying More Land When We Can’t Maintain What We Already Own: The National Wildlife Refuge System’s Operations and Maintenance Backlog Story.” Members heard from the Administration and associated parties on the current state of the System, the affects of the maintenance and operations… Read more »

As part of House Republicans’ American Energy Initiative, the House Natural Resources Committee today held the first in a series of oversight hearings on “Identifying Roadblocks to Wind and Solar Energy on Public Lands and Waters.” House Republicans are committed to advancing an all-of-the-above energy approach, which includes renewable energy, in order to create jobs, lower energy costs… Read more »

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 Subcommittee on National Parks, Forests and Public Lands and the Security, Homeland Defense, and Foreign Operations Subcommittee held a joint oversight hearing on the impacts of environmental laws and federal regulations on border security and the environment. Members heard from former Border Patrol Officers and affected citizens who discussed how these regulations are impeding… Read more »

House Natural Resources Committee Chairman Doc Hastings (WA-04) released the following statement today regarding passage of H.R. 1473, the Continuing Resolution that funds the federal government through FY2011 and cuts spending by nearly $40 billion: “This bill is the first step in getting our Nation’s fiscal house in order and sends a strong signal to the American people that Congress… Read more »

Today, House National Parks, Forests and Public Lands Subcommittee Chairman Rob Bishop (R-UT), House Natural Resources Committee Chairman Doc Hastings (R-WA), Homeland Security Committee Chairman Peter T. King (R-NY), Judiciary Committee Chairman Lamar Smith (R-TX), and House Republican Conference Secretary John Carter (R-TX) introduced H.R. 1505, the National Security and Federal Lands… Read more »

Dear Secretary Vilsack: In the Fall 2010 Unified Agenda of Regulatory and Deregulatory Actions, the U.S. Forest Service indicated its intention to promulgate new regulations on the "Management of National Forest System Surface Resources with Privately Held Mineral Estates." We are concerned that this rulemaking will dramatically increase the regulatory burden on oil and natural gas… Read more »

Today, the House Natural Resources Committee held an oversight hearing on how to harness American resources to create jobs and address rising gasoline prices. The Committee heard from several energy experts who discussed America’s vast energy reserves on federal lands. According to a recently released Congressional Research Service (CRS) report, the United States combined recoverable… Read more »

As prices at the pump climb towards the $4 mark, the Obama Administration has turned its SPIN machine to HIGH in an effort to deflect mounting public anger over the high cost of gasoline. The Administration is spinning numbers on U.S. oil and natural gas production to make the public believe their anti-energy policies have actually spurred energy development. In reality, the… Read more »

The White House won’t let facts stand in the way when it comes to American energy production as they continue to piggyback on predecessors’ pro-energy policies. Yesterday, the White House turned their SPIN machine to HIGH in their second attempt in as many days (see White House blog) to deflect mounting public anger over high gasoline prices. Today, the Administration is spinning numbers… Read more »