Press Releases
Chair Grijalva, Reps. Lowenthal & Levin Press Interior Dept. for Explanation of Sudden Pro-Industry Changes to Oil and Gas Royalty Payments on Public Land
Washington, D.C. - Chair Raúl M. Grijalva (D-Ariz.), Rep. Alan Lowenthal (D-Calif.), Chair of the Subcommittee on Energy and Mineral Resources, and Rep. Mike Levin (D-Calif.) wrote to Interior Secretary David Bernhardt today seeking an explanation for the Bureau of Land Management's (BLM) recently released guidance making it easier for companies to pay less in public royalties for producing oil and gas on public lands. The revised guidance, the authors write, deprives taxpayers of a fair… Continue Reading
06.05.20
Chair Grijalva: Trump Illegal Rollback of Marine Monument Protections Shows He’s in “Recreational Destruction Mode” as He Clings to Power
Washington, D.C. - Chair Raúl M. Grijalva today released the following statement on President Trump's decision to end restrictions on commercial fishing in Northeast Canyons and Seamounts Marine National Monument. The move comes just one day after he signed an executive order waiving the National Environmental Policy Act, Endangered Species Act and Clean Water Act in some circumstances, falsely describing the giveaway long sought by polluters as a targeted response to the current economic… Continue Reading
06.04.20
Chair Grijalva Introduces Bills to Expand Saguaro National Park, Allow Land Exchange to Support University of Arizona and U.S. Forest Service
Washington, D.C. - Natural Resources Committee Chair Raúl M. Grijalva (D-Ariz.) today introduced two bills to support national parks and public education in Arizona. The Saguaro National Park Boundary Expansion and Study Act, available online at https://bit.ly/3gXuDCK, adds 1,150 total acres to the eastern and western portions of the beloved national park. The expansions protect wildlife habitats, improve trail access and better connect the park with nearby state and local public lands. … Continue Reading
06.04.20
Chair Grijalva, Vice Chair Haaland Push for Explanation of Park Police Walling Off President’s Park, Historic Site of Decades of Civil Rights Activism
Washington, D.C. - Chair Raúl M. Grijalva (D-Ariz.) and Vice Chair Deb Haaland (D-N.M.) wrote to Interior Secretary David Bernhardt today pushing for an explanation of why U.S. Park Police have walled off public access to President's Park, a normally open area across the street from the White House that is managed by the National Park Service (NPS). Among other questions, the lawmakers ask Bernhardt what credible threat the closure is based on, and whether White House perimeter security … Continue Reading
06.04.20
Chair Grijalva: President Trump’s Environmental Rollbacks are Another Attack on Black Communities
Washington D.C. - U.S. House Natural Resources Chair Raúl M. Grijalva (D-Ariz.) released the following statement today on President Trump's new executive order that waives bedrock environmental laws including the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) and Endangered Species Act. "President Trump seeks to make awful situations worse. Instead of creating unity and providing the leadership our nation needs, he has created chaos and fueled hatred following the murder of George Floyd and th… Continue Reading
06.03.20
Nadler, Grijalva, Smith and Thompson Call for Answers on Trump Administration's Use of Force Against Peaceful DC Protestors
Washington, D.C. - House Judiciary Committee Chairman Jerrold Nadler (D-N.Y.), Natural Resources Committee Chair Raúl M. Grijalva (D-Ariz.), Armed Services Committee Chairman Adam Smith (D-Wash.), and Homeland Security Committee Chairman Bennie G. Thompson (D-Miss.) sent a letter today seeking answers on the Trump Administration's use of tear gas, pepper spray, smoke canisters, stun grenades, and rubber bullets to forcibly remove peaceful protesters gathered in Lafayette Square. The lette… Continue Reading
05.29.20
Chair Grijalva: Interior Secretary Bernhardt Should Fire Assistant Secretary Domenech After Second Watchdog Finding of Wrongdoing in Six Months
This press release has been updated from its original version. Mr. Domenech used tickets from Secretary Zinke, not Secretary Bernhardt, to hold his initial meeting with a senior EPA official. Tucson, Ariz. - Chair Raúl M. Grijalva (D-Ariz.) called on Interior Secretary David Bernhardt to fire Assistant Secretary for Insular and International Affairs Doug Domenech after the release of a new Department of the Interior (DOI) Office of Inspector General (OIG) report finding that Domenech im… Continue Reading
05.28.20
Ahead Of The Upcoming Hurricane Season In The Caribbean, Chair Grijalva Joins Sen. Schumer, Rep. Velázquez and Democratic Lawmakers In Seeking Answers on How FEMA Is Preparing To Respond To Storms That Hit Puerto Rico And The U.S. Virgin Islands
Washington, D.C. – House Natural Resources Chair Raúl M. Grijalva joined United States Senate Democratic Leader Charles E. Schumer (D-N.Y.) and Rep. Nydia M. Velázquez (D-N.Y.), in sending a letter with 39 Members of Congress to the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) ahead of the upcoming hurricane season in the Caribbean, seeking answers to how FEMA is preparing to respond to a storm that hits Puerto Rico and the Virgin Islands amidst the numerous other ongoing disa… Continue Reading
05.27.20
Chair Grijalva Joins NM, AZ Lawmakers In Demanding Answers to Reports that Former Trump White House Official Supplied Indian Health Service with Potentially Substandard Personal Protective Equipment
Washington D.C. —Today, House Natural Resources Committee Chair Raúl M. Grijalva (D-Ariz.) joined U.S. Senators Tom Udall (D-N.M.), vice chairman of the Senate Committee on Indian Affairs, Martin Heinrich (D-N.M.) and Kyrsten Sinema (D-Ariz.) and U.S. Representatives Ben Ray Luján (D-N.M.), Deb Haaland (D-N.M.), Xochitl Torres Small (D-N.M.), Tom O’Halleran (D-Ariz.), and Ruben Gallego (D-Ariz.) in sending a bicameral letter to the Director of the Indian Health Service (IHS) Rear Admiral Michael… Continue Reading
05.27.20
Chair Grijalva Spotlights Trump Administration’s “Beyond the Pale” Economic Favoritism for Fossil Fuel Companies Over Proposed Royalty Payment Delays
Tucson, Ariz. - Chair Raúl M. Grijalva today wrote to White House Office of Management and Budget Acting Director Russell Vought urging him to reject the Department of the Interior (DOI) Office of Natural Resources Revenue (ONRR) proposed rule allowing oil and gas companies to delay paying royalties for drilling on public lands. The letter is available online at https://bit.ly/3db1jGW. The Trump administration proposal, which has not yet been finalized, would hurt multiple states whose b… Continue Reading
05.22.20
Chair Grijalva Criticizes Trump Admin for Botched Coronavirus Response in Indian Country, Calls for Immediate Release of Tribal Education Funding Passed in CARES Act
Washington, D.C. - Today Natural Resources Committee Chair Raúl M. Grijalva released the following statement calling on the Department of Education and the Department of the Interior to release the education funding for the Bureau of Indian Education (BIE) that was included in H.R. 748, the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) Act and signed into law on March 27, 2020. "Every day, children and families in Indian Country are suffering at the hands of the Trump administr… Continue Reading
05.22.20
Chair Grijalva Leads Introduction of “Amendments to PROMESA Act” to Stabilize Puerto Rican Economy, Stop Austerity Cuts, Guarantee Services Funding
This press release has been updated from the original published version to include additional endorsing organizations and to correct a name. Washington, D.C. - Chair Raúl M. Grijalva (D-Ariz.) today introduced the Amendments to PROMESA Act, which prioritizes funding for public health care, education, safety, pensions and the University of Puerto Rico, creates a publicly funded commission to audit Puerto Rico’s debt, and gives the Puerto Rican government the option to discharge unsecured debt if… Continue Reading
05.20.20
Chair Grijalva Leads Bicameral Amicus Brief Urging District Court to Halt Dakota Access Pipeline Operation Until Tribal, Environmental Impacts Assessed
Washington, D.C. - Chair Raúl M. Grijalva (D-Ariz.) today led the filing of an amicus brief with 36 House and Senate colleagues in the Federal District Court for the District of Columbia urging the court to halt operation of the nearly 1,200-mile Dakota Access Pipeline (DAPL). As detailed in the amicus, available online at https://bit.ly/3bPBDhB, the lawmakers believe the pipeline must not be allowed to continue operations until the government analyzes the potentially disastrous effects o… Continue Reading
05.19.20
HIGHLIGHTS: Chair Grijalva and Local Leaders on Communities Protecting Public Health, the Environment from Trump in the Pandemic Era
Washington D.C. - On Wednesday, May 13, Chair Raúl M. Grijalva (D-Ariz.) hosted a virtual roundtable with community leaders around the country who are fighting against polluting industries and the Trump administration’s environmental rollbacks during the coronavirus pandemic. As Grijalva said in opening the event, “Today’s panelists are living proof that we are not powerless at all." The full recording is available at https://bit.ly/2YUIBz0. Key highlights and takeaways from the conversation … Continue Reading
05.19.20
Chair Grijalva, Bipartisan Lawmakers Urge Trump Administration to Prioritize Distribution of Coronavirus Resources to U.S. Territories
Washington, D.C. - Natural Resources Chair Raúl M. Grijalva and 12 bipartisan members of Congress sent a letter to Health and Human Services (HHS) Secretary Alex Azar yesterday urging him to consider the vulnerable economic and public health infrastructure in the U.S. Territories when determining criteria for prioritizing the distribution of coronavirus resources. The full letter, available online at https://bit.ly/3cGJsat, was signed by Committee Vice Chair Gregorio Kilili Camacho Sabla… Continue Reading
05.13.20
Chair Grijalva: I’m Proud to Push for More Tribal Funding Through the Heroes Act – Trump’s Negligence Has Put Lives at Risk, Tribal Assistance is Overdue
Tucson, Ariz. - Chair Raúl M. Grijalva (D-Ariz.) today said he's pleased the Heroes Act, the newly unveiled House Democratic plan to improve public health and support the American people through the coronavirus pandemic, includes $24 billion in funding for tribal governments and tribal organizations. Grijalva is an original cosponsor of the measure and has committed to voting for it later this week. The money, Grijalva said, is long overdue in Indian Country and for urban Native communit… Continue Reading
05.12.20
Chair Grijalva Joins Sanders, Velázquez, Colleagues in Unveiling Legislation to Provide Nutrition Assistance to Puerto Rico, Northern Mariana Islands and American Samoa
Washington D.C. - Today, Natural Resources Committee Chair Raúl M. Grijalva (D-Ariz.) joined Sen. Bernie Sanders (D-Vt.) and Rep. Nydia M. Velázquez (D-N.Y.) introduced the Equitable Nutrition Assistance for the Territories Act of 2020 today to ensure that in the face of the economic, public-health, and food-security crises posed by the coronavirus pandemic, the people of Puerto Rico, the Northern Mariana Islands, and American Samoa receive equal access to the Supplemental Nutritio… Continue Reading
05.08.20
Chair Grijalva Introduces Murder Hornet Eradication Act – Directs Funding to States for Eradication Programs, Impacted Bee Colony Restoration
Washington, D.C. - Chair Raúl M. Grijalva (D-Ariz.) today introduced the Murder Hornet Eradication Act, which directs new funding to states to eradicate the Asian giant hornet and restore bee populations the invasive species has already damaged. Formally, the bill requires the Secretary of the Interior to establish a grant program to provide financial assistance to states to eradicate the hornet. The bill, available online at https://bit.ly/35OmpYD, is modeled on the Nutria Eradication a… Continue Reading
05.01.20
Chair Grijalva, Subcommittee Chairs Request DOI Inspector General Investigate Alaska Native Corporation Eligibility for Tribal Relief Funding
Washington, D.C. - Chair Raúl M. Grijalva (D-Ariz.) and all five subcommittee chairs wrote to Department of the Interior (DOI) Inspector General Mark Greenblatt today requesting an investigation of DOI Assistant Secretary for Indian Affairs Tara Sweeney. Recent news reports describe Sweeney as heavily involved in the decision to declare Alaska Native Corporations (ANCs) eligible for an $8 billion relief fund created by the CARES Act intended solely for Native American tribes. The full le… Continue Reading
05.01.20
Chair Grijalva to Trump, Sec. Bernhardt: May 3 Campaign-Style Event at Lincoln Memorial is Inappropriate, Needs to be Canceled
Note: The original version of this press release incorrectly stated the president's event was scheduled for May 15. It is scheduled for May 3. The correction has been made to the online version of this release. Washington, D.C. - Chair Raúl M. Grijalva (D-Ariz.) wrote to President Trump and Interior Secretary David Bernhardt today urging them to cancel the president's inappropriate campaign-style rally scheduled for May 3 at the Lincoln Memorial, which is supposedly closed for events thr… Continue Reading