Climate science, policy, politics, and action
Hearing for the purpose of receiving testimony from The Honorable Michael Regan, Administrator, U.S. Environmental Protection Agency.
Chair GT Thompson (R-Pa.)
On Wednesday, April 19, 2023, at 10:00 a.m., in room 1324 Longworth House Office Building, the Committee on Natural Resources will hold an oversight hearing titled “Examining the President’s FY 2024 Budget Request for the Department of the Interior”.
Chair Paul Gosar (R-Ariz.)
Witness:
The Department’s 2024 budget totals $18.9 billion in current authority ($18.3 billion in net discretionary authority)—an increase of $2.0 billion, or 12 percent, from the 2023 enacted budget.
The budget for the Bureau of Ocean Energy Management provides $72.3 million for conventional energy programs to support OCS planning, leasing, and oversight.
The 2024 budget for the Bureau of Safety and Environmental Enforcement includes $217.1 million for conventional energy programs to support OCS permit application reviews, regulation and standard development for offshore activities, verification and enforcement of operator compliance with all applicable environmental laws and regulations, technical reviews of planned operations and emerging technologies to properly identify and mitigate risks, a robust inspection program employing an annual inspection strategy that includes risk-based inspections, and incident investigations. BSEE’s budget also includes $30.0 million to fund the decommissioning of orphaned offshore oil and gas infrastructure.
The 2024 budget includes $123.5 million for the Bureau of Land Management’s Oil and Gas Management program, an increase of $10.6 million from the 2023 enacted amount. The BLM budget also includes $51.0 million for Oil and Gas Inspection Activities and proposes to offset the cost of this program through the establishment of onshore inspection fees.
The 2024 BOEM budget includes $6.6 million in Conventional Energy and $2.3 million in Environmental Programs to establish a dedicated team, train existing staff, hire additional specialized experts, and fund environmental studies, scientific research, data collection, and other activities critical to the establishment and implementation of the new program. The 2024 BSEE budget includes $1.5 million to prepare for regulating and overseeing safe and effective offshore carbon sequestration activities. The budget includes $3.4 million to start an onshore carbon sequestration program in BLM.
Full committee hearing entitled “Protecting American Taxpayers: Highlighting Efforts to Protect Against Federal Waste, Fraud, and Mismanagement.”
Witnesses:
Witness:
The National Science Foundation FY2024 budget request is $11.314 billion, including $1 billion for the U.S. Global Change Research Program, $550.5 million for clean energy research, $30 million for the National Discovery Cloud for Climate, and $15 million for climate equity fellowships.
Chair Jeanne Shaheen (D-N.H.)
Witnesses:
The National Science Foundation FY2024 budget request is $11.314 billion, including $1 billion for the U.S. Global Change Research Program, $550.5 million for clean energy research, $30 million for the National Discovery Cloud for Climate, and $15 million for climate equity fellowships.
The National Aeronautics and Space Administration FY2024 budget request is $27.2 billion, including $2.5 billion for earth science.
Witness:
The FY 2024 budget request is $30.2 billion, including $20.3 billion for the Disaster Relief Fund and $4.8 billion for the National Flood Insurance Program.
The FY 2024 Budget includes an increase to create a full-time, dedicated policy and coordination office to lead FEMA’s focus on climate adaptation, impacts, and lead coordination with FEMA program offices, the Federal Interagency, and SLTT partners in support of FEMA’s programs.
Hearing with the title “Spending on Empty: How the Biden Administration’s Unprecedented Spending Increased Risk of Waste, Fraud, and Abuse at the Department of Energy.”
Chair Pat Fallon (R-Texas), Ranking Member Cori Bush (D-Mo.)
Fallon: “In one instance, DOE awarded $200 million available under the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act to a lithium battery company despite the company’s primary operations taking place in China.”
The company mentioned, Microvast, has been the target of Fox News stories.
On Tuesday, April 18, 2023, at 2:00 p.m. in 2123 Rayburn House Office Building, the Subcommittee on Energy, Climate, and Grid Security will hold a hearing entitled “American Nuclear Energy Expansion: Powering a Clean and Secure Future.” The hearing will examine issues associated with expanding nuclear energy for power generation and industrial use and for international competition and security, including issues concerning advanced reactor deployment and licensing, industrial infrastructure and fuel supply chains.
Witnesses:
The House Committee on Appropriations, Subcommittee on Military Construction, Veterans Affairs, and Related Agencies will hold a hearing entitled, “FY24 Navy and Marine Corps Military Construction and Family Housing Budget Request” on Tuesday, April 18, 2023, at 2:00 p.m. (ET), in Room 2362B of the Rayburn House Office Building. The hearing is on the FY24 budget request for Navy and Marine Corps military construction and family housing.
Witnesses:
The budget request for military construction for the the Navy and Marine Corps is $6.1 billion, including a $1 billion dry dock at Pearl Harbor raised above expected sea level rise.