House Natural Resources Water and Power Subcommittee Chairman Tom McClintock recently introduced H.R. 2915, the American Taxpayer and Western Area Power Administration Customer Protection Act of 2011. The legislation repeals the 2009 Stimulus Act’s new $3.25 billion Western Area Power Administration (WAPA) loan authority, including the taxpayer bailout provision for failed renewable… Read more »

The House Natural Resources Committee will hold a hearing next week on a draft proposal to address the expiration of the Secure Rural Schools (SRS) program. The draft proposal, the National Forest County Revenue, Schools and Jobs Act of 2011, is a long-term solution that would provide rural counties with a stable revenue stream, create jobs, grow rural economies, and restore active,… Read more »

On Sunday, September 18th, House Natural Resources Committee Chairman Doc Hastings will host Department of the Interior Secretary Ken Salazar in a visit to Central Washington’s Fourth Congressional District for a discussion on Yakima River Basin water and a tour of Hanford’s historic B Reactor. “Secretary Salazar and I discussed his visiting Central Washington in one of our first… Read more »

The Subcommittee on Water and Power today held a legislative hearing on H.R. 2842, the “Bureau of Reclamation Small Conduit Hydropower Development and Rural Jobs Act of 2011,” introduced by Rep. Scott Tipton (CO-03). The legislation streamlines burdensome red tape and reduces administrative costs for the installation of increased small canal and pipeline hydropower development projects.… Read more »

On Friday, September 23rd, the Natural Resources Committee will hold a Full Committee oversight hearing on the final report of the BOEMRE/U.S. Coast Guard Joint Investigation Team. “After repeated delays, the federal government is finally releasing the findings of its investigation into the tragic Deepwater Horizon incident,” Chairman Hastings said. “This is another significant report on… Read more »

Today, the Subcommittee on National Parks, Forests, and Public Lands held a legislative hearing on six bills that would limit the President’s authority to use the Antiquities Act to unilaterally designate new National Monuments within certain states. Last year, an internal document from the Interior Department revealed 14 areas of federal land that the Obama Administration has identified… Read more »

On Wednesday, September 21st, the Natural Resources Committee will hold a Full Committee oversight hearing on “ANWR: Jobs, Energy and Deficit Reduction.” Last week, Chairman Doc Hastings announced plans to recommend increased offshore and onshore drilling – including in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge (ANWR) in Alaska - to the Joint Select Committee as a way to help reach their… Read more »

The Subcommittee on Energy and Mineral Resources today held an oversight hearing on “Impacts to Onshore Jobs, Revenue and Energy: Review and Status of Sec 390 Categorical Exclusions of the Energy Policy Act of 2005.” Categorical exclusions are a common sense way to streamline the government process of approving energy production, while at the same time ensuring protection of the… Read more »

House Natural Resources Committee Chairman Doc Hastings (WA-04) released the following statement regarding President Obama’s speech to a Joint Session of Congress: “While I believe there are areas where Congressional Republicans can work with the President to create new jobs, I was disappointed that the President missed this opportunity to address the need for increased American energy… Read more »

On Monday, September 19, 2011 the House Natural Resources Subcommittee on National Parks, Forests and Public Lands will hold an Oversight Field Hearing in Sacramento, California on “Restoring Public Access to the Public’s Lands: Issues Impacting Multiple-use on Our National Forests.” The Forest Service manages 193 million acres of land, totaling 8 percent of the United States’ total land… Read more »