Press Releases
Members of Congress, Civil Rights Groups, and Other Allies Call on Justice Department to Denounce Insular Cases
WASHINGTON - At a press conference today, House Natural Resources Committee Ranking Member Raúl M. Grijalva (D-Ariz.; represented by staff) and Congresswoman Stacey E. Plaskett (D-V.I.) were joined by civil rights groups and other allies to call on the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) to condemn and cease its reliance on the Insular Cases, a series of racist U.S. Supreme Court decisions that broke from prior precedent to justify colonial governance in the U.S. Territories. The Members also anno… Continue Reading
04.15.24
Grijalva Statement on Biden Administration Action to Hold Big Oil Accountable for Offshore Drilling Cleanup Costs
WASHINGTON - House Natural Resources Committee Ranking Member Raúl M. Grijalva (D-Ariz.) today issued the following statement commending the Bureau of Land Management’s (BLM) final rule to strengthen financial assurance requirements for offshore drilling. “For too long, insufficient financial protections have allowed Big Oil to let their equipment sit idle off our coasts — or worse, let them walk away from their cleanup responsibilities altogether — creating untold risks for coastal communiti… Continue Reading
04.12.24
Grijalva, Committee Democrats Applaud Biden Administration’s Oil and Gas Rule to Ensure a Fairer Return for American Taxpayers
WASHINGTON - House Natural Resources Committee Ranking Member Raúl M. Grijalva (D-Ariz.), Water, Wildlife, and Fisheries Subcommittee Ranking Member Jared Huffman (D-Calif.), Rep. Katie Porter (D-Calif.), Rep. Susie Lee (D-Nev.), and Mike Levin (D-Calif.) today issued the following statements applauding the Bureau of Land Management’s (BLM) final rule for onshore oil and gas leasing on public lands. The rule reflects long overdue fiscal reforms that were passed in the Inflation Reduction Act (IR… Continue Reading
04.11.24
Grijalva Cheers Biden Administration Action to Boost Clean Energy Development on Public Lands
WASHINGTON - House Natural Resources Committee Ranking Member Raúl M. Grijalva (D-Ariz.) today issued the following statement applauding the Biden administration’s announcement of a final rule for renewable energy development on public lands managed by the Bureau of Land Management (BLM). The Biden administration also announced that it has permitted nearly 29 gigawatts of renewable energy projects, far surpassing President Biden’s ambitious goal of 25 gigawatts by 2025. “Our public lands must… Continue Reading
04.09.24
Grijalva, Norton Request Comprehensive Review of Native American Graves Protection and Repatriation Act Implementation
WASHINGTON - U.S. House Natural Resources Committee Ranking Member Raúl M. Grijalva (D-Ariz.) and Congresswoman Eleanor Holmes Norton (D-D.C.) today sent a letter to the U.S. Government Accountability Office (GAO) requesting a comprehensive review of the federal government’s implementation of the Native American Graves Protection and Repatriation Act (NAGPRA), including the identification of potential best practices for improving repatriation. The lawmakers’ letter draws attention to a range of… Continue Reading
03.28.24
Grijalva Statement on Biden Administration Action to Finalize Endangered Species Act Rules
WASHINGTON - House Natural Resources Committee Ranking Member Raúl M. Grijalva (D-Ariz.) today issued the following statement on three finalized rules from the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (FWS) and the National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS) to improve critical protections for imperiled species and their habitats under the Endangered Species Act (ESA). “I applaud the Biden administration for closing the book on the most egregious pro-polluter, Trump-era regulations that undermined the End… Continue Reading
03.27.24
Grijalva Applauds Biden Administration Action to Curb Harmful Methane Waste
WASHINGTON - House Natural Resources Committee Ranking Member Raúl M. Grijalva (D-Ariz.) today issued the following statement on the U.S. Department of the Interior’s issuance of a final rule at the Bureau of Land Management to reduce methane waste from oil and gas production on public lands and provide American taxpayers a fairer return on those resources. “With nearly a quarter of the country’s carbon pollution coming from our public lands, this rule is a much-needed step towards fighting t… Continue Reading
03.22.24
Opinion | As Big Oil’s Mess in Our Oceans Grows, Their Bonding Requirements Should Too
House Natural Resources Committee Ranking Member Raúl M. Grijalva (D-Ariz.), Rep. Katie Porter (D-Calif.), and Rep. Mike Levin (D-Calif.) authored a new opinion piece for The Hill on a new U.S. Government Accountability report, which found that Big Oil is neglecting their responsibilities to properly decommission their offshore oil and gas infrastructure in a timely manner. The authors recommend that the U.S. Department of the Interior implement a stronger financial assurance rule to hold Big Oi… Continue Reading
03.21.24
Ranking Members Grijalva, Huffman, Stansbury Seek Whistleblower Documents Demonstrating Human Rights Violations by Major India Shrimp Supplier
WASHINGTON - House Natural Resources Committee Ranking Member Raúl M. Grijalva (D-Ariz.), Water, Wildlife and Fisheries Subcommittee Ranking Member Jared Huffman (D-Calif.), and Oversight and Investigations Subcommittee Ranking Member Melanie Stansbury (D-N.M.) sent a letter requesting documents related to a whistleblower’s account of human rights abuses at a shrimp processing facility operated by one of India’s largest shrimp exporters, Choice Canning. The whistleblower’s account was recently … Continue Reading
03.20.24
Ranking Member Grijalva Blasts House Passage of Republicans’ Polluters Over People 2.0 Bills
WASHINGTON - House Natural Resources Committee Ranking Member Raúl M. Grijalva (D-Ariz.) today issued the following statement on the passage of two Natural Resources bills included in House Republicans’ Energy Week, fittingly dubbed “Polluters Over People 2.0.” These bills will give more handouts to the fossil fuel industry, even though oil companies are still making record-shattering profits by taking billions in taxpayer-funded subsidies, price-gouging working families, and leaving the America… Continue Reading
02.20.24
Government Watchdog Raises Alarm About Inadequate Decommissioning of Oil & Gas Pipelines and Offshore Infrastructure in Two New Reports
WASHINGTON - Today, the U.S. Government Accountability Office (GAO), a nonpartisan government watchdog agency, released two new reports highlighting insufficiencies in the decommissioning of both onshore oil and gas pipelines and offshore drilling infrastructure. Ranking Member Raúl M. Grijalva (D-Ariz.), who requested both reports, and was joined by Rep. Mike Levin (D-Calif.) and Rep. Katie Porter (D-Calif.) on the offshore infrastructure report, issued the following statement on the reports’ r… Continue Reading
02.14.24
Grijalva Statement on North Atlantic Right Whale Found Dead and Entangled in Maine Fishing Gear
Washington, D.C. - House Natural Resources Committee Ranking Member Raúl M. Grijalva (D-Ariz.) today issued the following statement in response to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s (NOAA) announcement that the juvenile North Atlantic right whale found dead off the coast of Martha’s Vineyard in January was entangled in Maine fishing gear. “Today’s announcement is a sobering reminder of the threats to the North Atlantic right whale population from fishing gear entanglement, … Continue Reading
02.08.24
One Day After Republicans Heed Trump’s Wishes and Tank Senate Border Bill, Grijalva Blasts Pointless GOP-Only Border Hearing in Arizona
Washington, D.C. - House Natural Resources Committee Ranking Member Raúl M. Grijalva (D-Ariz.) today issued the following statement on Chairman Bruce Westerman’s (R-Ark.) decision to proceed with today’s border-related field hearing in Sierra Vista, Arizona a day after Senate Republicans voted down legislation that included major changes to border security and immigration. Ranking Member Grijalva called on Chairman Westerman to cancel the hearing last week, following several previous requests to… Continue Reading
02.08.24
Un día después de que los republicanos hicieran caso a los deseos de Trump y hundieran el proyecto de ley fronteriza del Senado, Grijalva arremete contra la inútil audiencia fronteriza solo para el partido republicano en Arizona
Washington, D.C. - El líder demócrata del Comité de Recursos Naturales de la Cámara de Representantes (Comité), Raúl M. Grijalva (D-Ariz.), emitió hoy la siguiente declaración sobre la decisión del presidente del Comité Bruce Westerman (R-Ark.) de proceder con la audiencia local relacionada con la frontera hoy en Sierra Vista, Arizona, esto un día después de que los republicanos del Senado votaran en contra de un proyecto de ley que incluía cambios importantes en la seguridad fronteriza y la inm… Continue Reading
02.07.24
Grijalva Follows Up on Panelist Concerns at Historic and Cultural Preservation Roundtable, Sends Requests to Interior and GAO
Washington, D.C. - Responding to issues and panelist recommendations discussed at House Natural Resources Committee Democrats’ “Strengthening Historic and Cultural Preservation” roundtable this past November, Ranking Member Raúl M. Grijalva (D-Ariz.) today led a letter with five other House Democrats to U.S. Department of the Interior (DOI) Secretary Deb Haaland asking for her to request increased funding for Tribal Historic Preservation Officers (THPOs). Other signers on the letter include Vic… Continue Reading
02.02.24
Grijalva Statement on Fish and Wildlife Service’s Decision on Gray Wolves
Washington, D.C. - House Natural Resources Committee Ranking Member Raúl M. Grijalva (D-Ariz.) today issued the following statement on the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service’s (FWS) announcement on gray wolves, namely their decision not to relist gray wolves in the Northern Rockies area under protections of the Endangered Species Act (ESA). The agency also announced it will keep the endangered and threatened status of other gray wolf populations unchanged and will draft a new national recovery plan … Continue Reading
01.31.24
Grijalva Calls on Chairman Westerman to Cancel Next Week’s Sham Arizona Field Hearing
Washington, D.C. - House Natural Resources Committee Ranking Member Raúl M. Grijalva (D-Ariz.) today issued the following statement calling on Chairman Bruce Westerman (R-Ark.) to cancel next week’s border-related field hearing in Sierra Vista, Arizona on Thursday, Feb. 8. The field hearing will occur during the previously scheduled Democratic Issues Conference, which is designated on the official House calendar. Ranking Member Grijalva, whose district is in close proximity to the hearing and i… Continue Reading
01.31.24
Líder demócrata Grijalva solicita al Republicano Westerman cancelar audiencia falaz en Arizona la próxima semana
Washington, D.C. - El líder demócrata del Comité de Recursos Naturales de la Cámara de Representantes (Comité), Raúl M. Grijalva (D-Ariz.), emitió hoy la siguiente declaración pidiendo al presidente del Comité Bruce Westerman (R-Ark.) que cancele la audiencia local relacionada con la frontera de la próxima semana en Sierra Vista, Arizona el jueves 8 de febrero. La audiencia local se llevará a cabo durante la Conferencia sobre los Asuntos Demócratas previamente programada, que está designada en e… Continue Reading
01.26.24
Ranking Member Grijalva Celebrates Biden Decision to Pause New LNG Exports, Consider Climate and EJ Impacts
Washington, D.C. - House Natural Resources Committee Ranking Member Raúl M. Grijalva (D-Ariz.) today issued the following statement on the Biden administration’s decision to pause pending approvals for all methane gas (also called liquified natural gas, or LNG) export terminals. The pause will be in effect until the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) has conducted a public interest determination, which includes—for the first time in history—an analysis of climate change impacts and harms to frontli… Continue Reading
01.18.24
Grijalva, Merkley, Colleagues Call to Center EJ and Climate Impacts of Dakota Access Pipeline; Urge Increased Transparency and Tribal Consultation in Environmental Analysis
Washington, D.C. - House Natural Resources Committee Ranking Member Raúl M. Grijalva (D-Ariz.) and U.S. Senator Jeff Merkley (D-Ore.) today led more than 30 House and Senate colleagues in a letter to the Army Corps of Engineers (USACE or Corps) expressing their concerns with the agency’s climate analysis in the court-ordered Draft Environmental Impact Statement (DEIS) for the Dakota Access Pipeline (DAPL). The lawmakers’ letter calls to light problems with insufficient climate analysis and lack … Continue Reading