09.09.22

LIVESTREAMS NEXT WEEK: Fossil Fuel PR Firms, Tribal Cultural Resource Protection Bills, and Tribal Lands Bills on Wednesday, Full Committee Markup on Thursday

Washington, D.C. – The Natural Resources Committee is holding four livestreamed events next week.

SUBCOMMITTEE ON OVERSIGHT AND INVESTIGATIONS

The Subcommittee on Oversight and Investigations, led by Chair Katie Porter (D-Calif.), will hold an oversight hearing titled, The Role of Public Relations Firms in Preventing Action on Climate Change.

For decades, the fossil fuel industry publicly denied climate change, despite privately acknowledging the scientific evidence and knowing the harm their operations caused. As the reality of the climate crisis has become more widely accepted, the industry’s disinformation messaging and tactics have become more subtle and sophisticated. Fossil fuel companies now outsource much of this work to public relations (PR) firms, who use a wide array of meticulously designed strategies to delay or prevent action and change public perceptions of the issue. Viewed collectively, evidence strongly suggests industry’s advertising, lobbying, and other influence work has played a significant role in hindering legislative action to address climate change.

The Natural Resources Committee is investigating this critical—yet often overlooked—role that PR firms play in helping industry spread climate disinformation and obstruct solutions to the crisis. The Committee’s investigation on the topic is ongoing; this hearing will examine some of the Committee’s findings thus far. Of note, PR firms Singer Associates, Story Partners, and Pac/West Communications were invited but refused to attend.

Witnesses

  • Ms. Anne Lee Foster, Former Director of Communication and Community Engagement, Colorado Rising (Testifying on her own behalf)
  • Ms. Christine Arena, Founder and CEO, Generous Ventures, Inc.
  • Dr. Melissa Aronczyk, Associate Professor, School of Communications & Information, Rutgers University
  • Minority Witness TBA

When: Wednesday, Sept. 14, 2022, 10:00 a.m. Eastern time

Watch Live: https://youtu.be/pUvGjHTZ5yc 

 

 

SUBCOMMITTEE ON NATIONAL PARKS, FORESTS, AND PUBLIC LANDS

The Subcommittee on National Parks, Forests, and Public Lands, led by Chair Joe Neguse (D-Colo.), will hold a legislative hearing on the following bills:

  • H.R. 8108 (Grijalva), To protect Native cultural sites located on Federal land, to improve consultation with Indian Tribes, to bring parity to Indian Tribes with regard to Federal public land management laws, and for other purposes. Advancing Tribal Parity on Public Land Act.
  • H.R. 8109 (Grijalva), To establish the Tribal Cultural Areas System, and for other purposes. Tribal Cultural Areas Protection Act.
  • H.R. 8719 (Grijalva), To establish the Great Bend of the Gila National Conservation Area in the State of Arizona, and for other purposes. Great Bend of the Gila Conservation Act.

The hearing for these three bills was recently announced in conjunction with a letter that Chair Grijalva and 42 other members of Congress sent to President Joe Biden asking him to seek opportunities to expand tribal co-management of U.S. public lands, waters, and resources.

Chair Grijalva introduced the Advancing Tribal Parity on Public Land Act and the Tribal Cultural Areas Protection Act on June 16, alongside Sen. Martin Heinrich (D-N.M.), who introduced companion legislation in the Senate. Together, these bills will update current public land management laws to improve protections for tribal sacred sites and other cultural areas. The Great Bend of the Gila Conservation Act, introduced on Aug. 16, will protect one of the most culturally significant and ecologically fragile landscapes in the southwestern United States.

Witnesses

Panel I: Congressional Panel

  • Rep. Raúl Grijalva, Arizona, 3rd District

Panel II: Administration Panel

  • Witness TBA

Panel III: Expert Witness Panel

  • Ms. Tina Marie Osceola (All bills), Director, Tribal Historic Preservation Office, Seminole Tribe of Florida
  • Hon. Fawn Sharp (All bills), President, National Congress of American Indians
  • Gov. Stephen Roe Lewis (All bills), Governor, Gila River Indian Community
  • Minority Witness TBA

When: Wednesday, Sept. 14, 2022, 10:00 a.m. Eastern time

Watch Live: https://youtu.be/iF3j9tSkahM

 

 

SUBCOMMITTEE FOR INDIGENOUS PEOPLES OF THE UNITED STATES

The Subcommittee for Indigenous Peoples of the United States, led by Chair Teresa Leger Fernández (D-N.M.), will hold a legislative hearing on the following bills:

  • H.R. 6032 (Huffman), To take certain Federal lands located in Siskiyou County, California, and Humboldt County, California, into trust for the benefit of the Karuk Tribe, and for other purposes. Katimiîn and Ameekyáaraam Sacred Lands Act.
  • H.R. 6964 (Strickland), To authorize leases of up to 99 years for lands held in trust for the Confederated Tribes of the Chehalis Reservation.
  • H.R. 7581 [Discussion Draft ANS] (Huffman), To recognize tribal cooperation in the environmental review of proposed actions affecting the revised Yurok Reservation, and for other purposes. Yurok Lands Act of 2022.
  • H.R. 8115 (LaMalfa), To amend the Recreation and Public Purposes Act to authorize sales and leases of certain Federal land to federally recognized Indian Tribes, and for other purposes. Recreation and Public Purposes Tribal Parity Act.
  • H.R. 8286 (Kilmer), To take certain Federal land in the State of Washington into trust for the Lower Elwha Klallam Tribe, and for other purposes.
  • H.R. 8380 (García), To provide for the settlement of claims relating to the Shab-eh-nay Band Reservation in Illinois, and for other purposes. Prairie Band Potawatomi Nation Shab-eh-nay Band Reservation Settlement Act of 2022.
  • H.R. 8387 (Newhouse), To amend the Indian Law Enforcement Reform Act to provide for advancements in public safety services to Indian communities, and for other purposes. Parity for Tribal Law Enforcement Act.

Witnesses

Panel I: Congressional Panel

  • Rep. Jesús G. “Chuy” García, Illinois, 4th District
  • Rep. Derek Kilmer, Washington, 6th District
  • Rep. Jared Huffman, California, 2nd District
  • Rep. Marilyn Strickland, Washington, 10th District

Panel II: Administration Panel

  • Hon. Wizipan Garriott, Principal Deputy Assistant Secretary for Indian Affairs

Panel III: Tribal Leader Panel

  • Hon. Russell Attebery (H.R. 6032), Chairman, Karuk Tribe
  • Hon. Harry Pickernell, Sr. (H.R. 6964), Chairman, Confederated Tribes of the Chehalis Reservation
  • Hon. Joe James (H.R. 7581), Chairman, Yurok Tribe
  • Hon. Frances Charles (H.R. 8286), Chairwoman, Lower Elwha Klallam Tribe
  • Hon. Joseph Rupnick (H.R. 8380), Chairman, Prairie Band Potawatomi Nation
  • Hon. Arain Hart (H.R. 8115), Chairman, Susanville Indian Rancheria
  • Hon. Jarred-Michael Erickson (H.R. 8387), Chairman, Confederated Tribes of the Colville Reservation

When: Wednesday, Sept. 14, 2022, 1:00 p.m. Eastern time

Watch Live: https://youtu.be/c4wZEd3YRPc

 

 

FULL COMMITTEE

The full Committee, led by Chair Raúl M. Grijalva (D-Ariz.), will hold a markup on the following Resolutions of Inquiry:  

  • H.Res.1247 (Graves) Of inquiry directing the Secretary of the Interior to transmit certain documents to the House of Representatives relating to the 2023-2028 five-year program for offshore oil and gas leasing.
  • H.Res.1248 (Herrell) Of inquiry directing the Secretary of the Interior to transmit certain documents to the House of Representatives relating to the compliance with the obligations of the Mineral Leasing Act.
  • H.Res.1251 (Stauber) Of inquiry directing the Secretary of Agriculture to transmit certain documents to the House of Representatives relating to the mineral withdrawal within the Superior National Forest.
  • H.Res.1252 (Stauber) Of inquiry directing the Secretary of the Interior to transmit certain documents to the House of Representatives relating to the mineral withdrawal within the Superior National Forest. 
  • H.Res.1253 (Westerman) Of inquiry directing the Secretary of the Interior to transmit certain documents to the House of Representatives relating to the actions of the Department of the Interior’s Departmental Ethics Office.

When: Thursday, Sept. 15, 2022, 10:00 a.m. Eastern time

Watch Live: https://youtu.be/v2FRaHsWrEg

Press Contact

Media Contact: Lindsay Gressard

202-225-6065 | cell: 202-740-4715