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Letter from 31 Members of Congress to Secretary Vilsack and Director Zients Regarding Secure Rural Schools Funding

| Posted in Letters

Dear Secretary Vilsack and Director Zients, We have been informed that the Forest Service has recently proclaimed that funds already distributed under the most recent extension of the Secure Rural Schools and Community Self-Determination Act (SRS) or payments based on revenue generated in fiscal year 2012 are subject to the fiscal year 2013 sequester, and the agency will be requesting…

Chairman Hastings Disappointed in Lack of Transparency at DOI, Renews Request for Info on Job Destroying Coal Regulation

| Posted in Press Release

House Natural Resources Committee Chairman Doc Hastings (WA-04) today sent a letter to Department of the Interior Secretary Ken Salazar expressing disappointment at the Department’s lack of transparency and failure to respond to the Committee’s legitimate oversight questions surrounding OSM’s bizarre decision to rewrite a carefully crafted 2008 coal regulation.  The letter reiterates…

Chairman Hastings Letter to Secretary Salazar Regarding Stream Buffer Zone Rule Rewrite

| Posted in Letters

Dear Secretary Salazar: As you know, for more than two years the Committee on Natural Resources ("Committee") has been conducting oversight on issues regarding the Department of the Interior's and the Office of Surface Mining, Reclamation and Enforcement's ("OSM") handling of the decision to toss aside and ultimately rewrite the 2008 Stream Buffer Zone Rule.…

VIDEO: Rep. Scott Tipton's Hydropower Bill Heads to House Floor

| Posted in Blog

H.R. 678, the “Bureau of Reclamation Small Conduit Hydropower Development and Rural Jobs Act,” passed through the House Committee on Natural Resources last week. Sponsored by Rep. Scott Tipton (CO-03), the legislation creates new American jobs and expands production of clean, renewable hydropower by cutting duplicative, bureaucratic red tape. Watch the video below to find out more.

Chairman Hastings Joins Calls for Obama Administration to Fully Delist Gray Wolf

| Posted in Press Release

House Natural Resources Committee Chairman Doc Hastings (WA-04), Senator Orin Hatch (UT), Senator John Barrasso and Rep. Cynthia Lummis (WY) today, along with 68 other Members of Congress, sent a bipartisan, bicameral letter to U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS) Director Dan Ashe urging support for the delisting of the gray wolf under the Endangered Species Act (ESA) in all lower 48…

Meet our Members: Rep. Doug LaMalfa (CA-01)

| Posted in Blog

Representing California's 1st District, located in the Northeast corner of the state, Congressman LaMalfa discusses his background in Agriculture and the variety of natural resources in his district. This year, in fact, Rep. LaMalfa's family celebrates 82 years in the rice farming business. See what Rep. LaMalfa has to say about forest management, hydropower and how Northern California's…

Chairman Hastings’ Statement on President Obama’s Plan to Use Antiquities Act to Unilaterally Designate Five New National Monuments

| Posted in Press Release

House Natural Resources Committee Chairman Doc Hastings (WA-04) released the following statement after President Obama announced his intentions to unilaterally designate five new National Monuments using presidential powers granted under the 1906 Antiquities Act. “The Obama Administration not only sees the sequester as an opportunity to make automatic spending reductions as painful as…

Chairman Hastings’ Statement on Obama Administration’s New Regulations to Discourage U.S. Oil Shale Production

| Posted in Press Release

House Natural Resources Committee Chairman Doc Hastings (WA-04) released the following statement after Department of the Interior Secretary Ken Salazar announced onerous new government red tape that will discourage production of 1.5 trillion barrels of American oil shale. “Since taking office, President Obama has stalled, delayed and hindered oil shale research and development projects…

Letter from 72 Members of Congress to Fish and Wildlife Service Director Ashe Supporting Gray Wolf Delisting

| Posted in Letters

Dear Director Ashe: We understand the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS) is in the process of reviewing the Endangered Species Act (ESA) recovery status of the gray wolf in the lower 48 States and is preparing to announce the delisting of the species. We support the nationwide delisting of wolves and urge you to move as quickly as possible on making this a real ity.…