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After Interior Department Fails to Agree to Transcribed Interviews, Hastings States Intent to Call Officials to Testify at Drilling Moratorium Hearing

| Posted in Press Release

House Natural Resources Committee Chairman Doc Hastings (WA-04) on Friday, July 13 sent a letter to Department of the Interior Secretary Ken Salazar regarding the Committee’s request for transcribed interviews with five Department officials who were personally involved in developing the May 2010 Interior Department report that falsely stated independent engineers had peer reviewed and…

President Obama Takes No-New-Energy, No-New-Jobs Tour of Virginia

| Posted in Hot Air Alert

Just two weeks ago, President Obama released his five year offshore no-new-energy plan that closes 85 percent of America’s offshore areas to new energy production, opens no new areas to drilling and sidelines over a million jobs. Today, the President is making multiple campaign stops throughout the Commonwealth of Virginia—a state he denied the ability to create over 2,000 jobs and help…

Murkowski, Hastings Press NOAA, BSEE About Arctic Protests

| Posted in Press Release

U.S. Sen. Lisa Murkowski, R-Alaska and Rep. Doc Hastings, R-Washington, sent a letter to Dr. Jane Lubchenco, the Under Secretary for Oceans and Atmosphere and Administrator at National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), and James Watson, Director of the Bureau of Safety and Environmental Enforcement (BSEE), asking what measures NOAA and BSEE have taken to ensure that the…

Chairman Hastings and Ranking Member Lisa Murkowski Send Letters to BSEE Director Watson and NOAA Administrator Lubchenco on Greenpeace Protests in Arctic

| Posted in Letters

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 in these activities. Allowing intrusions by any group to disrupt or…

Chairman Hastings Letter to Secretary Salazar Stating Intent to Call Officials to Testify at Full Committee Gulf Drilling Moratorium Oversight Hearing

| Posted in Letters

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”) majority oversight staff. These interviews were to be conducted the week…

House Passes Bipartisan Strategic and Critical Minerals Bill to Create U.S. Jobs and Strengthen National Security

| Posted in Press Release

The House of Representatives today passed H.R. 4402, the National Strategic and Critical Minerals Production Act, sponsored by Rep. Mark Amodei (NV-02), by a bipartisan vote of 256-160. The bill would streamline government red tape to allow the U.S. to more efficiently develop our Nation's strategic and critical minerals, such as rare earth elements, that are vital to job creation,…

Chairman Hastings' Floor Statement on Bill to Cut Red-tape to Develop Rare Earth and Critical Minerals in U.S.

| Posted in Floor Statements

House Natural Resources Committee Chairman Doc Hastings (WA-04) delivered the following statement, as prepared for delivery, on the House floor today in support of H.R. 4402, The National Strategic and Critical Minerals Production Act: “The United States of America is rarely last at anything. Unfortunately, that is not the case when it comes to permitting mining projects. In 2012, the…

Committee Approves Bipartisan Bill to Establish Manhattan Project National Historical Park

| Posted in Press Release

The House Natural Resources Committee today approved by unanimous consent H.R. 5987, a bipartisan bill introduced by Natural Resources Chairman Doc Hastings (WA-04), Congressman Chuck Fleischmann (TN-03) and Congressman Ben Lujan (NM-03) to establish a Manhattan Project National Historical Park that will include facilities at Hanford, Washington, Oak Ridge, Tennessee, and Los Alamos, New…

Interior Department Called to Testify on Status of Coal Regulation Rewrite and Complying With Subpoenas for Documents

| Posted in Press Release

Today, as part of a more than yearlong investigation into the Obama Administration’s rewrite of a 2008 coal regulation, the Stream Buffer Zone Rule, that could cost thousands of jobs, negatively impact the economies of 22 states and significantly harm American energy production, Natural Resources Committee Chairman Doc Hastings (WA-04) sent a letter to Department of the Interior Secretary…