Press Releases
Chair Grijalva Celebrates Bipartisan House Passage of Recovering America’s Wildlife Act
Washington, D.C. - Today, the U.S. House of Representatives passed H.R. 2773, the Recovering America's Wildlife Act (RAWA), by a bipartisan vote of 231-190. This legislation, introduced by Natural Resources Committee member Rep. Debbie Dingell (D-Mich.), will provide nearly $1.4 billion per year to states, territories, and Tribes to conserve, restore, and protect wildlife species of greatest conservation need and their habitats. The funding includes a $97.5 million annual noncompetitive Tribal W… Continue Reading
06.13.22
Chair Grijalva, Rep. Porter Request Oil and Gas Public Relations Campaign Materials
Washington, D.C. - Natural Resources Committee Chair Raúl M. Grijalva (D-Ariz.) and Oversight and Investigations Subcommittee Chair Katie Porter (D-Calif.) sent letters to five public relations (PR) firms-FTI Consulting, Story Partners, DDC Advocacy, Blue Advertising, and Singer Associates-that conduct PR campaigns on behalf of fossil fuel industry clients. The lawmakers also sent a letter to the American Petroleum Institute, a major oil and gas industry trade group that plays a major, ac… Continue Reading
06.09.22
ICYMI: What Environmental Justice Looks Like (And Why It Matters)
New Opinion Piece in Newsweek by Natural Resources Committee Chair Raúl M. Grijalva (D-Ariz.) and Vermont State Senator Kesha Ram Hinsdale What Environmental Justice Looks Like (And Why It Matters) - June 9, 2022 The Biden administration's recent announcement of a Justice Department effort to hold industrial polluters accountable for damage done to communities of color, Indigenous and low-income communities is an important step forward. For too long, these communities have suffered disp… Continue Reading
06.08.22
Chair Grijalva Cheers Interior Department Ban on Single-Use Plastics, Other Biden Administration World Ocean Day Announcements
Washington, D.C. - Today, on World Ocean Day, Chair Raúl M. Grijalva (D-Ariz.) released the following statement on the announcement from U.S. Department of the Interior (DOI) Secretary Deb Haaland to phase out single-use plastics on all DOI-managed public lands and waters, including National Park Service (NPS) units, by 2032. DOI's phase-out plan will apply to all single-use plastics, including plastic bottles, bags, straws, and disposable utensils. "Single-use plastic pollution is a ser… Continue Reading
05.31.22
Chair Grijalva to Hold Public Input Forum on Puerto Rico Status Act Discussion Draft
WASHINGTON - House Committee on Natural Resources Chair Raúl M. Grijalva (D-Ariz.) will hold a public input forum on the Puerto Rico Status Act discussion draft to seek input from members of the public on Saturday, June 4 from 3 to 8:30 PM Eastern at the Puerto Rico Convention Center in San Juan. The Discussion Draft was recently announced at a May 19 press conference with House Majority Leader Steny H. Hoyer (D-Md.) and Governor of Puerto Rico Pedro R. Pierluisi. Members of the public w… Continue Reading
05.31.22
Chair Grijalva Applauds HHS on Establishment of Office of Environmental Justice
WASHINGTON - House Natural Resources Committee Chair Raúl M. Grijalva (D-Ariz.) applauded the recent announcement by the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) of plans to establish an Office of Environmental Justice and issued the following statement: "Public health is at the center of the environmental and climate justice movements because they are inextricably linked. I applaud the launch of the Office of Environmental Justice at HHS and the Biden administration's continued al… Continue Reading
05.26.22
Chair Grijalva, Reps. Velázquez, González-Colón, and Other Members to Visit Puerto Rico, Seek Public Input on Historic Puerto Rico Status Act
Washington, D.C. - Next week, from Thursday, June 2, 2022 through Saturday, June 4, 2022, Natural Resources Committee Chair Raúl M. Grijalva (D-Ariz.) and a bipartisan group of Members of Congress, including Rep. Rep. Nydia Velázquez (D-N.Y.) and Resident Commissioner Jenniffer González-Colón (R-Puerto Rico), will visit Puerto Rico to seek input from members of the public and local elected officials on the Puerto Rico Status Act Discussion Draft. The Discussion Draft … Continue Reading
05.19.22
Leader Hoyer, Bipartisan Group of Members of Congress Announce Consensus Bill on Puerto Rico Political Status, Launch Public Input Phase of Historic Collaborative Effort
Washington, D.C. – At a press conference today, U.S. House Majority Leader Steny H. Hoyer (D-Md.), Natural Resources Committee Chair Raúl M. Grijalva (D-Ariz.), Small Business Committee Chair Rep. Nydia Velázquez (D-N.Y.), Resident Commissioner Jenniffer González-Colón (R-Puerto Rico), Rep. Darren Soto (D-Fla.), Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-N.Y.), and Governor of Puerto Rico Pedro R. Pierluisi announced consensus among key members of Congress on a Discussion Draft o… Continue Reading
05.19.22
Chair Grijalva Statement on Interior Secretary Haaland Announcement on Offshore Oil and Gas Leasing
Washington, D.C. - Natural Resources Committee Chair Raúl M. Grijalva (D-Ariz.) today issued the following statement after U.S. Department of the Interior (DOI) Secretary Deb Haaland announced before the Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee that the proposed program for the National Outer Continental Shelf Offshore Oil and Gas Leasing Program would be released by June 30, 2022. "I'm glad the Biden administration is making progress in finalizing a new five-year offshore leasing… Continue Reading
05.12.22
Chair Grijalva Applauds 9th Circuit Decision to Halt Rosemont Mine
Washington, D.C. - Today, the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals upheld a decision to block the Rosemont Mine's construction in the Coronado National Forest. Chair Raúl M. Grijalva (D-Ariz.) issued the following statement: "Congress, federal agencies and the American public have given mining companies carte blanche and access to our public lands to profit and pollute for too long. This decision will prevent bad faith mining companies from dumping toxic waste and protect tribal sacred site… Continue Reading
05.11.22
Natural Resources Committee to Hold First Congressional Hearing on the Indian Boarding School Era
Washington, D.C. - Tomorrow, May 12, at 1:00 p.m. Eastern, the Subcommittee for Indigenous Peoples of the United States will hold the first congressional hearing in history to examine the "Indian Boarding School Era," the time period from 1819 to 1969 in which the U.S. government forcibly removed Indigenous children from their communities and placed them into government-run boarding schools to assimilate them into Euro-American society. At these schools, American Indian, Alaska Native, and Nativ… Continue Reading
05.11.22
Chair Grijalva, Rep. Porter Refer Former Interior Secretary Bernhardt, Villages at Vigneto Developer to Justice Department, Alleging Criminal Bribery
Washington, D.C. - Natural Resources Committee Chair Raúl M. Grijalva (D-Ariz.) and Oversight and Investigations Subcommittee Chair Katie Porter (D-Calif.) today made a criminal referral to the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) outlining evidence of a likely criminal quid pro quo between Trump administration officials, including former U.S. Department of the Interior (DOI) Secretary David Bernhardt, and real estate developer Mike Ingram. Ingram is the owner of El Dorado Holdings, which p… Continue Reading
05.10.22
On Anniversary of 150-Year-Old Mining Law, Lawmakers Call For Reform with Newly Introduced Legislation
Washington, D.C. - Today, on the 150th anniversary of President Ulysses S. Grant signing the General Mining Act of 1872 into law, Natural Resources Committee Chair Raúl M. Grijalva (D-Ariz.), U.S. Senator Martin Heinrich (D-N.M.), and Rep. Alan Lowenthal (D-Calif.) held a press conference outside the U.S. Capitol calling for modernization of this antiquated mining law. Chair Grijalva and Sen. Heinrich, a member of the Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee, introduced their House … Continue Reading
05.05.22
Chair Grijalva Statement on Missing and Murdered Indigenous Persons Awareness Day
Washington, D.C. - Chair Raúl M. Grijalva (D-Ariz.) today issued the following statement on President Joe Biden's proclamation designating May 5, 2022, as Missing and Murdered Indigenous Persons (MMIP) Awareness Day. The U.S. Department of the Interior (DOI) Secretary Deb Haaland also announced members of the newly established Not Invisible Act Commission, which will advise DOI and the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) on best practices for combatting the MMIP epidemic and supporting survi… Continue Reading
04.26.22
Chair Grijalva Hails Passage of Bipartisan Package of Bills, Including Legislation Led by the Late Rep. Young
Washington, D.C. - Chair Raúl M. Grijalva (D-Ariz.) today issued the following statement on the expected House passage of eleven Natural Resources Committee-passed bills, including five that were championed by the late Rep. Don Young (R-Alaska). The bills led by Rep. Young include H.R. 6651, the Alaska Salmon Research Task Force Act, which will establish a task force of fisheries scientists and Alaskan stakeholders to study, address, and prevent salmon fishery disasters in Alaska. A seco… Continue Reading
04.26.22
Chair Grijalva, Sen. Heinrich Introduce Legislation to Modernize Antiquated Mining Law, Protect Taxpayers
Washington D.C. - Chair Raúl M. Grijalva (D-Ariz.) and Sen. Martin Heinrich (D-N.M.) today announced the introduction of House and Senate legislation to modernize the nation's severely antiquated hardrock mining law. The full text of Chair Grijalva's Clean Energy Minerals Reform Act is available at https://bit.ly/3ENEpDU. A fact sheet on the bill is available at https://bit.ly/3vjvs1W. The full text of Sen. Heinrich's Clean Energy Minerals Reform Act is available at https://bit.ly/3v… Continue Reading
04.26.22
Chair Grijalva, Reps. Lowenthal and Porter Send Letter to ConocoPhillips About Ongoing Gas Leak, Proposed Willow Project in Alaska
Washington, D.C. - Chair Raúl M. Grijalva (D-Ariz.), Energy and Mineral Resources Subcommittee Chair Alan Lowenthal (D-Calif.) and Oversight and Investigations Subcommittee Chair Katie Porter (D-Calif.) today sent a letter to ConocoPhillips requesting more information about the ongoing gas leak at the Alpine Oil Field on Alaska's North Slope. The lawmakers are also seeking information about whether the month-long leak has implications for the company's proposed Willow project in the Natio… Continue Reading
04.21.22
Chair Grijalva Slams SCOTUS Decision to Exclude Residents of Puerto Rico from SSI Benefits
Washington, D.C. - Natural Resources Committee Chair Raúl M. Grijalva (D-Ariz.) issued the following statement on today's ruling from Supreme Court of the United States to uphold the exclusion of residents of Puerto Rico from receiving Supplemental Security Income (SSI) benefits issued by the Social Security Administration: "Denying SSI benefits for the hundreds of thousands of Americans living in Puerto Rico and other U.S. Territories is unjust to its core," Chair Grijalva said. "Today'… Continue Reading
04.19.22
Chair Grijalva Statement on Newly Finalized NEPA Regulations
Washington D.C. - Natural Resources Committee Chair Raúl M. Grijalva (D-Ariz.) today issued the following statement on finalization of the White House Council on Environmental Quality's Phase One rulemaking for regulations under the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA). The Phase One rulemaking restores certain regulatory protections that were eliminated by the Trump administration in 2020. Phase Two rulemaking will comprehensively update NEPA regulations to meet climate change and en… Continue Reading
04.15.22
Chair Grijalva Statement on Interior’s New Oil and Gas Lease Sale Reforms and Imminent Sale Notices
Washington, D.C. - Chair Raúl M. Grijalva (D-Ariz.) issued the following statement on the U.S. Department of the Interior's (DOI) announcement that it will institute new reforms for its onshore oil and gas leasing program. DOI also announced that the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) will resume onshore oil and gas lease sales, as mandated by court order, and will issue final sale notices on Monday, April 18. The amount of acreage BLM will offer for sale represents an 80 percent reduction f… Continue Reading