Today, the House Committee on Natural Resources held a markup on four bills including H.R. 5032 (Rep. Dave Brat, R-VA). The bill removes a federal land-use restriction on a piece of land in the town of Louisa, Virginia so that it may be repurposed to provide residents with a safe supply of drinking water.
Louisa has spent millions of dollars studying ways to comply with… Read more »
Today, H.R. 4245 sponsored by Rep. Bruce Poliquin (R-ME) and Rep. Chellie Pingree (D-ME) passed on suspension by voice vote. H.R. 4245 exempts sea urchins, sea cucumbers and other seafood exports from duplicative federal requirements imposed on buyers and sellers of related products by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS).
“This is a big win for Maine jobs,” Rep. Poliquin said. “Our… Read more »
Today, the U.S. House of Representatives passed H.R. 5577, the “Innovation in Offshore Leasing Act,” by voice vote. Introduced by Reps. Garret Graves (R-LA) and Alan Lowenthal (D-CA), it provides the Interior Secretary with the authority to conduct internet-based oil and natural gas lease sales for the U.S. Outer Continental Shelf.
“This bill brings much needed modernization to our… Read more »
Tonight, the U.S. House of Representatives passed H.R. 3881 (Rep. Glenn ‘GT’ Thompson), the Cooperative Management of Mineral Rights Act of 2016, by a vote of 395-3.
In the Allegheny National Forest (ANF) the federal government owns the surface rights, but the subsurface mineral rights have always been privately owned. Through a liberal interpretation of an antiquated statute and a… Read more »
Washington, D.C. – Today, the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) released seven memos on its land use plans for the sage grouse, covering 10 Western states. Chairman Rob Bishop (R-UT) issued the following statement:
“The Administration’s decision not to list the sage grouse last year was a cynical ploy all along. These plans, written as if the sage grouse were listed, are proof it was an… Read more »
OP-ED: Legal protection for Good Samaritans who want to clean up mines
By: Chairman Rob Bishop
The biblical story of the Good Samaritan is a familiar one to virtually all young children. A man is robbed, brutally beaten, and left for dead. Two men pass him turning a blind eye to his predicament. A third man, however, a Samaritan, takes pity on him. He tends his wounds and pays for… Read more »
House Committee on Natural Resources Chairman Rob Bishop (R-UT) issued the following statement on President Obama’s appointments to the Financial Management and Oversight Board (Oversight Board) established through the Puerto Rico Oversight, Management, and Economic Stability Act (Public Law No. 114-187).
“We applaud the President’s swift action on these appointments so that the… Read more »
TO: The Honorable Suzette Kimball
FROM: Subcommittee on Oversight and Investigations Chairman Louie Gohmert
Dear Director Kimball:
In June 2016, the Office of Inspector General (OIG) for the Department of the Interior (DOI) released a report entitled "Scientific Integrity Incident at USGS Energy Geochemistry Laboratory."
Read the entire letter HERE. Read more »
TO: The Honorable Sally Jewell
FROM: Natural Resources Committee Chairman Rob Bishop
Dear Secretary Jewell:
In April 2016, the National Park Service (NPS) drafted an after action review titled, “Strengthening Cultural Resources Stewardship in the National Park Service.”
Read the entire letter HERE. Read more »
Today, President Barack Obama expanded the Papahānaumokuākea Marine National Monument off the coast of Hawaii by 442,781 square miles. Natural Resources Committee Chairman Rob Bishop (R-UT) and Congresswoman Aumua Amata (American Samoa) issued the following statements:
“The sweeping size of this expansion is unjustified,” Bishop stated. “It will impose great harm to a critical local… Read more »
