Press Releases
Grijalva on House Vote Rejecting Effort to Block Arizona Tribe From Building Casino: “Courts and Congress Agree – Let’s Move On”
Washington, D.C. - House Natural Resources Committee Ranking Member Raúl M. Grijalva (D-Ariz.) released the following statement after the House failed to pass H.R. 308, a bill blocking the Tohono O'odham tribe from building a court-approved casino in Glendale, Ariz., under suspension of the rules. "Courts have consistently found this casino is legal and the Tohono O'odham have acted appropriately in developing it. It has already created construction jobs and is on the threshold of signif… Continue Reading
11.06.15
Ranking Member Grijalva on President Obama’s Keystone Rejection: “A Testament to Years of Public Action on a Critical Issue”
Washington, D.C. - House Natural Resources Committee Ranking Member Raúl M. Grijalva (D-Ariz.), a leading House critic of the Keystone XL pipeline proposal, hailed today's announcement that President Obama will formally reject Keystone as not being in the national interest. Grijalva cited the tremendous effort of Americans around the country who organized and campaigned for years against the pipeline. "This is a testament to years of public action on a critical issue," said Grijalva, who… Continue Reading
11.05.15
Grijalva on New GOP Bill to Undermine Land and Water Conservation Fund: “There Wasn’t a Problem Until They Let the Fund Expire”
Washington, D.C. - House Natural Resources Committee Ranking Member Raúl M. Grijalva (D-Ariz.) released the following statement on the release of Chairman Rob Bishop's (R-Utah) new bill to weaken the Land and Water Conservation Fund (LWCF), which the House Republican majority allowed to expire in September for the first time in its 50-year history. Bishop has refused to hold a hearing on Grijalva's bill (H.R. 1814) to reauthorize the program, which currently has 195 bipartisan cosponsors.… Continue Reading
11.05.15
Abandoned Mine Lands Hearing Wrap-up: Speakers Agree More Funding Needed to Clean Up Abandoned Mines
Hearing Wrap-up: Nov. 4 Legislative Hearing on Energy and Mineral Resources on Abandoned Mine Lands Democrats, Witnesses Agree: Additional Funding Needed to Clean up Abandoned Mines Bills H.R. 3843, Rep. Doug Lamborn (R-Colo.): To authorize for a 7-year period the collection of claim location and maintenance fees, and for other purposes. ''Locatable Minerals Claim Location and Maintenance Fees Act of 2015.'' H.R. 3844, Rep. Jody Hice (R-Ga.): To establish the Energy and Minerals Reclamatio… Continue Reading
11.04.15
Grijalva Applauds Voter Approval of Washington State-Level Ivory Ban, Decries Republican Efforts in Congress to Block Federal Rule
Washington, D.C. - House Natural Resources Committee Ranking Member Raúl M. Grijalva (D-Ariz.) released the following statement today on the overwhelming passage of Initiative Measure 1401 in Washington State: "The voters of Washington State made it clear today that they do not want to be a part of the global wildlife poaching and trafficking crisis. While they took the initiative to ban most sales of elephant ivory, House Republicans continue to push their extinction agenda by trying to… Continue Reading
11.04.15
Grijalva Hosts Tribal Sovereignty Roundtable Today, Will Accept More Than 1 Million Petition Signatures on Protecting Sacred Land
Washington, D.C. - Rep. Raúl M. Grijalva, the Ranking Member of the House Natural Resources Committee, will accept more than 1 million petition signatures from a broad coalition of activists at a roundtable today in favor of protecting the Oak Flat area of Arizona sacred to the Apaches, the Yavapai and other Native Americans. Because of a last-minute Republican addition to the 2014 National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) forcing a federal land trade - which the House had failed to pass … Continue Reading
11.03.15
Leading Congressional Keystone Critic Grijalva Calls on Administration to Reject Keystone in Light of Parent Company’s Delay Request
Washington, D.C. - House Natural Resources Committee Ranking Member Raúl M. Grijalva (D-Ariz.), a leading critic of the Keystone XL pipeline proposal who published a Feb. 26, 2014, New York Times op-ed urging President Obama to reject it, today hailed the announcement that Keystone's parent company is now seeking to delay the final federal approval decision. Grijalva said TransCanada should withdraw its application altogether in the face of overwhelming evidence that Canadian tar sands wi… Continue Reading
11.03.15
Grijalva Introduces Landmark Bill to Create Grand Canyon-Area National Monument to Honor Area Tribal History, Protect Watershed
Washington, D.C. - House Natural Resources Committee Ranking Member Raúl M. Grijalva (D-Ariz.) introduced a landmark bill this morning to create a new national monument to protect the Grand Canyon watershed and honor the region's rich Native American history and culture. The Greater Grand Canyon Heritage National Monument Act - developed with extensive input from the Grand Canyon-Associated Tribes and enthusiastically endorsed by the Navajo Nation, the Hopi Tribe, the Havasupai Tribe, and… Continue Reading
11.02.15
Roundtable on Protecting Tribal Land Chaired by Ranking Member Grijalva on Nov. 4 in Washington, D.C.
Washington, D.C. - Rep. Raúl M. Grijalva, the Ranking Member of the House Natural Resources Committee, is hosting a roundtable with Native American leaders this Wednesday in Washington, D.C., to discuss federal efforts to protect sacred tribal land. The roundtable will focus on the dangerous precedent being set in Arizona at a location called Oak Flat, which is sacred to the San Carlos Apache Tribe, by a mining company called Resolution Copper. A Republican-sponsored bill became law late… Continue Reading
10.29.15
New NOAA Report States Sustainable Fisheries Management Policies are Making U.S. Fisheries Profitable and Sustainable; Grijalva Says, “The Magnuson-Stevens Act is Working”
Sustainable fisheries management policies have allowed America's commercial and recreational fisheries to be powerful economic contributors, according to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) annual Fisheries of the United States report released today. The report also states that the value of fishery landings held steady in 2014 and match those of the past decade. NOAA estimates that rebuilding stocks, which remain overfished, would add $31 billion and 500,000 new jobs to th… Continue Reading
10.16.15
Ranking Member Grijalva Supports the Interior Department’s Cancellation of Arctic Offshore Lease Sales
Washington, D.C. - Natural Resources Committee Ranking Member Raúl M. Grijalva (D-Ariz.) released the following statement today on the Department of the Interior's announcement that they will, in light of current market conditions and low industry interest, cancel two potential Arctic offshore lease sales scheduled under the current five-year offshore oil and gas leasing program for 2012-2017. This decision follows Shell's announcement of its exploration results at the Burger prospect in … Continue Reading
10.09.15
Grijalva Joins Tribes Monday in Flagstaff to Unveil Bill Creating Grand Canyon National Monument Honoring Tribal History, Culture
Washington, D.C. - Ranking Member Raúl M. Grijalva and tribal leaders from across Northern Arizona will hold a press conference Monday at 2:00 p.m. Arizona time in Flagstaff to introduce the Greater Grand Canyon Heritage National Monument Act, a bill establishing a new national monument that reflects the long history and deep cultural roots of the region's Native American tribes. The event will feature speakers from the Havasupai, Hualapai, Navajo and Hopi communities supportive of the n… Continue Reading
10.08.15
As Committee Republicans Filibuster Land and Water Conservation Fund, Democrats Send Letter to Bishop Setting the Record Straight
Washington, D.C. - In response to Chairman Rob Bishop's (R-Utah) intentionally confrontational Oct. 7 letter to Interior Secretary Sally Jewell and Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack demanding publicly available information on the Land and Water Conservation Fund - a popular, bipartisan program Bishop let expire on Sept. 30 - Ranking Member Raúl M. Grijalva (D-Ariz.) and Democratic members of the House Natural Resources Committee sent the chairman a letter today answering his questions and… Continue Reading
10.08.15
Grijalva Statement on DOJ Settlement with Lumber Liquidators: “If Republicans Had Their Way, They Could Cut Any Tree They Liked”
Washington, D.C. - Natural Resources Committee Ranking Member Raúl M. Grijalva (D-Ariz.) released this statement on today's announcement that Lumber Liquidators has pled guilty to violations of the Lacey Act. The company illegally imported Russian timber into the United States and has agreed to pay fines totaling $10 million. "This is why we amended the Lacey Act in 2008 to include plant products. Illegal logging is one of the world's biggest environmental and economic problems, and toda… Continue Reading
10.07.15
Grijalva, Huffman Call for Overdue Hearing on NOAA Plan to Protect Coastal Economies, Build Climate-Resilient Fisheries
Washington, D.C. - House Natural Resources Committee Ranking Member Raúl M. Grijalva (D-Ariz.) and Water, Power and Oceans Subcommittee Ranking Member Jared Huffman (D-Calif.) sent a letter this morning asking Committee Chairman Rob Bishop (R-Utah) and Water, Power and Oceans Subcommittee Chairman John Fleming (R-Louisiana) to hold a hearing on the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration's (NOAA) recently released Fisheries Climate Science Strategy. The request comes just over a m… Continue Reading
10.05.15
Ranking Member Grijalva Supports White House Marine Conservation Announcement, Urges Senate to Act on Stalled Pirate Fishing Bill
Washington, D.C. - Natural Resources Committee Ranking Member Raúl M. Grijalva (D-Ariz.) released the following statement this morning on President Obama's announcement of two new national marine sanctuaries - the first in 15 years - in Maryland and Lake Michigan. "Our system of National Marine Sanctuaries and Monuments protects our natural and cultural heritage just as much as our National Parks, and I applaud President Obama's establishment of two new Sanctuaries today. I also support … Continue Reading
09.30.15
Ranking Member Grijalva Formally Requests Hearing on Hedge Funds’ Role in Puerto Rico Financial Crisis Following Recent Report
Washington, D.C. - House Natural Resources Committee Ranking Member Raúl M. Grijalva (D-Ariz.) asked Chairman Rob Bishop (R-Utah) in a letter today to hold a hearing on the role of hedge funds in Puerto Rico's ongoing financial crisis. The request comes less than a month after Grijalva and his staff published a Sept. 4 report, "Profit at Any Cost," highlighting some hedge funds' role in damaging the territory's economy. As reported by Bloomberg and other outlets, the report noted multipl… Continue Reading
09.29.15
Rep. Grijalva Highlights Republican Majority’s Misstatements on Land and Water Conservation Fund Ahead of Tomorrow’s Expiration
Washington, D.C. - Ranking Member Raúl M. Grijalva released the following statement today ahead of Wednesday's expected expiration of the Land and Water Conservation Fund (LWCF), one of the nation's most successful public land conservation programs. The program's funding authorization will expire on Wednesday and the Fund will stop collecting the royalties it currently receives from oil drilling in the Outer Continental Shelf. "You can see just how extreme some House Republicans really a… Continue Reading
09.28.15
Grijalva Leads 92-Member Letter to Obama Urging Veto of Defense, Appropriations Bills With Anti-Endangered Species Language
Washington, D.C. - Ranking Member Raúl M. Grijalva (D-Ariz.) and 91 other House Democrats sent a letter to President Obama today urging him to veto any appropriations or defense bill that includes policy riders designed to undermine the Endangered Species Act (ESA). Earlier this year, Grijalva led a similar letter to House and Senate defense authorizers asking them to drop anti-ESA riders during their negotiations. Grijalva and other Democrats recently fought numerous anti-ESA riders on … Continue Reading
09.24.15
Rnk. Mbr. Grijalva, Natural Resources Committee Democrats Hail Pope Francis' Message of a Cleaner Environment and More Sustainable Use of Resources
Washington, D.C. - Ranking Member Raúl M. Grijalva and Democratic members of the House Natural Resources Committee released the following statements today on Pope Francis' message of a cleaner environment and more sustainable use of resources to benefit humanity. "The Pope's message of making the world livable for everyone, not just those who already have power over our economy and our environment, resonates far beyond petty politics and daily headlines," Grijalva said. "I join my collea… Continue Reading