Press Releases
Full February Hearing Schedule Announced – Thursday Hearing in Water, Oceans, and Wildlife Panel Will Focus on Climate Change and Ocean Health
Washington, D.C. - The Water, Oceans, and Wildlife Subcommittee will hold a hearing on Thurs., Feb. 7, at 2:00 p.m. Eastern time in Longworth 1324 on climate change and ocean health. A full witness list is available below. As with all Committee hearings, the event is open to press and the public. Thursday's hearing is the second in a monthlong series of Committee hearings on climate change impacts in our jurisdiction. The remaining hearing schedule is included at the end of this press release.… Continue Reading
02.04.19
Chair Grijalva Statement on Nomination of David Bernhardt to Serve as Secretary of the Interior
Washington, D.C. - Chair Raúl M. Grijalva (D-Ariz.) released the following statement on the nomination of David Bernhardt to serve as the next Secretary of the Interior. "David Bernhardt spent much of his career lobbying for fossil fuel and agricultural interests, and the president putting him in charge of regulating his former clients is a perfect example of everything wrong with this administration. We intend to conduct vigorous oversight of Mr. Bernhardt's industry ties and how they m… Continue Reading
01.31.19
Chair Grijalva, Leading Committee Democrats Challenge Administration’s Decision to Lease Sensitive Tribal Land in New Mexico
Washington, D.C. - Chair Raúl M. Grijalva (D-Ariz.) and key Democratic leaders of the House Committee on Natural Resources today challenged the Trump administration's decision to advance an oil and gas lease sale on culturally significant tribal land in New Mexico. The Bureau of Land Management (BLM) worked behind the scenes to advance the leasing process during the 35-day government shutdown while tribes lacked access to food, health care and other basic resources. The leased area would… Continue Reading
01.30.19
Natural Resources Committee Approves Rules Package With Amendments, Subcommittee Membership For the 116th Congress
Washington D.C. - The Natural Resources Committee today approved the Committee rules package and subcommittee membership for the 116th Congress. The organizing meeting was led by Chair Raúl M. Grijalva (D-Ariz.). Click here to view Chair Grijalva's full opening statement. Click here for a Medium explainer on the Natural Resources Committee's operations and jurisdiction. Click here for a list of Committee membership and Subcommittee chairs and ranking members. Click here to view the Co… Continue Reading
01.29.19
Chair Raúl M. Grijalva Announces Natural Resources Committee Democratic Leadership Team
Washington D.C. - Chair Raúl M. Grijalva (D-Ariz.) today announced the Democratic leadership team and subcommittee memberships of the Natural Resources Committee for the 116th Congress. Photo highlights of the recently concluded Democratic organizing meeting are available at http://bit.ly/2HLIPBE. "Protecting our environment, taking climate change seriously, and putting the public interest first are not optional on this Committee, and that's what Democrats are going to do every day for t… Continue Reading
01.25.19
VIDEO HIGHLIGHTS: Democratic Forum Exposes Trump Admin Oil and Gas Favoritism During Shutdown, Raises New Questions
Washington, D.C. - A Democratic forum yesterday led by Rep. Alan Lowenthal (D-Calif.) and Chairman Raúl M. Grijalva (D-Ariz.) revealed severe shutdown impacts across the country, from renewable energy to tourism to tribal consultation, and underscored the Trump administration's brazen favoritism toward the oil and gas industry throughout the shutdown. Shortly after the forum concluded, Acting Interior Secretary David Bernhardt tweeted that the Bureau of Ocean Energy Management had sudden… Continue Reading
01.18.19
Chairman Grijalva, Velázquez, Thompson Call for Investigation into HUD Departure, Interference in Puerto Rico Disbursements
Washington, DC - Today, Chairman Raul Grijalva (D-Ariz.), Rep. Nydia M. Velázquez (D-NY), and Rep. Bennie Thompson (D-MS) wrote the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) calling for an investigation into a Washington Post report that a top official at HUD left the agency due to disagreements with other members of the Trump Administration. The letter requests an investigation into the claim that President Trump had instructed cabinet members not to disburse funds for Puer… Continue Reading
01.17.19
Chair Grijalva, Reps. Huffman & Lowenthal to BLM: Protect the National Petroleum Reserve in Alaska
Washington, D.C.- Chair Raúl M. Grijalva (D-Ariz.) and Reps. Jared Huffman (D-Calif.) and Alan Lowenthal (D-Calif.) wrote to Bureau of Land Management (BLM) Deputy Director Brian Steed today urging him to protect Special Areas and the remarkable ecological values in the National Petroleum Reserve in Alaska. The National Petroleum Reserve contains extraordinary wildlife, habitat, and subsistence resources, including the Teshekpuk Lake, the most ecologically rich wetlands in the circumpola… Continue Reading
01.17.19
Chairman Grijalva, Sen. Sanders Introduce Bills to Prevent Mining Activities on Sacred Apache Tribal Land Given Away in 2015 Defense Bill
Washington, D.C. - Chairman Raúl M. Grijalva (D-Ariz.) today introduced the Save Oak Flat Act, which cancels a mandated land swap that threatens the sacred Apache Leap site in central Arizona with environmental damage from nearby high-risk copper mining. Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) is introducing a Senate companion. The House version is available online at https://democrats-naturalresources.house.gov/legislation/bills/save-oak-flat-act-. The bills reverse a provision in the National Defe… Continue Reading
01.16.19
Grijalva, Democrats Highlight Destructive Border Wall Impacts on Indian Country, Southwestern Communities at Committee Forum
Washington, D.C. - Chairman Raúl M. Grijalva (D-Ariz.) and a group of House Democrats today highlighted the destructive impacts of the wall and associated infrastructure along the U.S.-Mexico border at a forum this morning hosted by the House Natural Resources Committee. The hearing was livestreamed and can be watched at https://bit.ly/2QRrPsT. Brief video highlights are available here. More comprehensive highlights, including quotes, facts and supporting video materials, are available b… Continue Reading
01.15.19
Chairman Grijalva, Democratic Leaders Highlight Dramatic Shutdown Impacts on Indian Country, Natural Resources at Capitol Hill Hearing
The quote from Rep. Deb Haaland (D-N.M.) was added online after this press release was initially publicized. Washington, D.C. - Chairman Raúl M. Grijalva (D-Ariz.) and House Democratic leaders today highlighted the dramatic impacts of the government shutdown on Indian Country and on our natural resources and public lands at a recently concluded hearing of the Democratic Steering and Policy Committee. The event, which featured two panels of witnesses and a broad cross section of the House… Continue Reading
01.14.19
Chairman Grijalva, Democratic Steering and Policy Leaders Holding Hearing Jan. 15 on Shutdown Impacts
Washington, D.C. - Chairman Raúl M. Grijalva and leaders of the Democratic Steering and Policy Committee will hold a hearing on Jan. 15 at 11:00 a.m. on the impacts of the ongoing government shutdown on Native American communities and on the country's natural resources. The hearing will include two witness panels. Full details are available below. The event is open to the press and the public, although seating is limited. Visitors should be aware that anyone seeking entrance to the Capit… Continue Reading
01.10.19
Chairman Grijalva Calls On Trump To End Shutdown, Asks American Public To Share Trump Shutdown Stories
Washington, D.C. - Chairman Raúl M. Grijalva today launched a new online tool for Americans to share personal stories of how ongoing government shutdown is impacting their lives. The online platform will enable people across the country to take action and share their experiences of being furloughed, forced to work without pay, turned away from visiting public lands, and how the shutdown has affected them and their communities. Grijalva called on President Trump to end the shutdown, now e… Continue Reading
01.09.19
Chairman Grijalva: Trump Withholding California Wildfire Money Shows the White House Now Only Governs by Threat
Washington, D.C. - Chairman Raúl M. Grijalva today said that President Trump's announcement on Twitter this morning that he will instruct the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) to withhold any wildfire recovery money from the state of California until it changes its "Forrest Management" (sic) policies is a sign that Trump knows how to govern only by threats and cannot be treated as a rational actor at this point. Trump said in the tweet, which was subsequently deleted, that Califo… Continue Reading
01.08.19
Chairman Grijalva Praises House Environmental Leaders For New Legislation to Protect Americans From the Harms of Offshore Drilling
Washington, D.C. - Chairman Raúl M. Grijalva (D-Ariz.) today praised a coalition of House Democrats on their newly introduced suite of bills to protect America's coastal communities from offshore drilling. The bills are being introduced on the same day that similar state-level legislative announcements took place at 1:00 p.m. Eastern time by the National Caucus of Environmental Legislators. The efforts come as the Trump administration prepares to release the Bureau of Ocean Energy Manage… Continue Reading
01.03.19
Grijalva: Shutdown Has Damaged Public Lands, Indian Country, U.S. Economy – Dem Funding Plan to End Shutdown is Best Step Forward
Washington, D.C. - Rep. Raúl M. Grijalva (D-Ariz.), who is expected to chair the House Natural Resources Committee during the 116th Congress, said today that President Trump's ongoing government shutdown has significantly damaged the economy and our national parks and public lands, and that he will support the package of House Democratic bills to fund the government and end the shutdown. The House is expected to vote on that package this evening. "This is not self-inflicted damage, this … Continue Reading
12.17.18
Ranking Member Grijalva Statement on Interior Deputy Secretary David Bernhardt
Deputy Secretary Bernhardt's conflicts of interest are well known. His years of lobbying on behalf of clients who stand to profit from Interior policy decisions are cause for serious concern. We intend to continue conducting vigorous oversight of how Interior political appointees arrive at major policy decisions, who they consult, who they ignore, and who stands to benefit financially. Deputy Secretary Bernhardt should be prepared to answer those questions early in the new Congress, and so shoul… Continue Reading
12.07.18
Grijalva, Udall Highlight Trump Admin Efforts to Muzzle Congress on Utah Monuments in New Denver Post Op-Ed
Washington, D.C. - In a new op-ed in the Denver Post, Ranking Member Raúl M. Grijalva (D-Ariz.) and Sen. Tom Udall (D-N.M.) highlight the Trump administration's unusual efforts to block a congressional legal filing objecting to the 2017 destruction of Bears Ears National Monument and Grand Staircase-Escalante National Monument. President Trump signed an executive order last year, supported by Interior Secretary Ryan Zinke, illegally eliminating monument status for major portions of both s… Continue Reading
12.06.18
Grijalva: Newly Announced Attack on Sage-Grouse Habitat Protections Especially Ironic Given Latest News on Public Lands Climate Emissions
Washington, D.C. - The Department of the Interior today released new land management plans for the greater-sage grouse that pave the way for more oil and gas development on sensitive public lands habitats. The plans significantly reduce protections for essential sage-grouse habitat across the western United States and eliminate requirements for industry to compensate for habitat loss. The move, being undertaken at the request of the oil and gas industry, undermines decades of bipartisan, collab… Continue Reading
12.03.18
In New “Watchdog” Series Installment, Committee Democrats Expose the Damage Done by Secretary Zinke’s Climate Denial
Washington, D.C. - In today's new installment of their ongoing Medium series Watchdog, Natural Resources Committee Democrats examine the real-world consequences of Interior Secretary Ryan Zinke's climate change denial. The article tracks Zinke's lockstep support for the timber industry as a member of Congress and examines his unwillingness to discuss climate change's implications for wildfires or other increasingly common environmental and public health hazards. The new post comes days after Ra… Continue Reading