Climate science, policy, politics, and action
The Senate Committee on Environment and Public Works will hold a business meeting to consider the following items:
The committee reported Zeldin’s nomination favorably by a vote of 11-8, Sen. Mark Kelly (D-Ariz.) joining all Republicans in favor.
Co-hosted by Young Democrats of America, Voters of Tomorrow, and the DNC Youth Council.
Moderated by Joshua Rush, former Young Democrats of America Communications Director
Potential participants include, for Vice Chair of Civic Engagement and Voter Protection:
Potential participants include, for Vice Chair (3 positions, gender balanced):
Please join the Texas Democratic Party and Way to Lead in Austin, Texas for a conversation moderated by Olivia Messer, editor in chief of The Barbed Wire, with top DNC Chair contenders, Ben Wikler, Ken Martin, and Martin O’Malley, on the future of our nation, the charge before the Democratic Party to win back the soul of America, and the critical role of Texas, whose 42 electoral votes make it the Game Over State.
Doors for the moderated forum will open at 5:00 PM and run from 5:30–6:30 PM.
Location will be shared upon RSVP.
Organizational meeting to consider the Committee Rules, the Committee Authorization and Oversight Plan, and to appoint Committee staff.
The Committee has amended the rule relating to subpoena authority to include a provision providing for notice to the Minority for any subpoena issued pursuant to Committee Rule 4(d)(1).
Republican staff:
Democratic staff:
Climate change is already provoking mass migration, and as environmental conditions worsen, that trend will accelerate. In the coming decades, the United States will be increasingly affected by sea level rise, hurricanes, extreme heat, wildfires and freshwater shortages, among other hazards. Millions of Americans will respond by moving. How to prepare for and respond to the challenges of climate change will be a primary governance question for the years to come.
On January 22, join Governance Studies at Brookings for a conversation on domestic climate migration in the United States. Experts will explore questions including: How are U.S. communities vulnerable to climate change? What steps are being taken at a federal, state and local level to prepare localities to adapt to climate risks and to welcome new residents displaced by climate disasters? Can preparations for the upheaval of climate change be structured to help address longstanding inequities of wealth, health and opportunity?
Viewers can submit questions for speakers by emailing [email protected] or via Twitter at @BrookingsGov by using #USClimateMigration.
Panelists:
Moderator:
At The Brookings Institution, Falk Auditorium
1775 Massachusetts Ave NW Washington, D.C. 20036
On Wednesday, January 22, 2025, at 10:30 a.m., the Subcommittee on Environment will hold a hearing in 2123 Rayburn House Office Building, entitled, “A Decade Later: Assessing the Legacy and Impact of the Frank R. Lautenberg Chemical Safety for the 21st Century Act.”
Witnesses:
After years of discussion in Congress around reform, President Obama signed the Frank Lautenberg Chemical Safety for the 21st Century Act into law June 22, 2016. The legislation marked the first major overhaul of TSCA since its passage, and it enjoyed bipartisan support. It included many significant changes to the EPA’s regulation of new and existing chemicals and collection of information:
The Office of Pollution Prevention and Toxics within EPA’s Office of Chemical Safety and Pollution Prevention manages EPA’s TSCA responsibilities. Despite these reforms, the EPA has reported difficulty implementing the Lautenberg Act and has struggled to meet statutorily mandated timeframes for both new chemical reviews and risk evaluations for existing chemicals. Manufacturers and processors have also expressed frustration with EPA’s approach to risk evaluations, new requirements governing data manufacturers must submit to EPA, and increased user fees, among other issues.
U.S. Senator Ted Cruz (R-Texas), Chairman of the Senate Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation, will hold an executive session at 10:00 a.m. on Wednesday, January 22, 2025, to consider the nomination of Sean Duffy to be U.S. Secretary of Transportation.
Agenda Items:
Vote: 28-0 in favor.
The nomination hearing took place on January 15th.
A hearing of The Committee on Budget to consider
Nominee:
Vought is a co-author of Project 2025 who wants to eliminate the National Climate Assessment produced by the interagency U.S. Global Change Program.
Vought’s nomination hearing before the Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs took place on January 15th.
Co-hosted by Young Democrats of America, Voters of Tomorrow, and the DNC Youth Council.
Moderated by Eve Levenson, former Harris-Walz National Youth Engagement Director.
Potential participants include, for Vice Chair of Civic Engagement and Voter Protection:
Potential participants include, for Vice Chair (3 positions, gender balanced):
The Committee on Rules will meet Tuesday, January 21, 2025 at 4:00 PM ET in H-313, The Capitol on the following measures:
The Fix Our Forests Act dismantles National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) and Endangered Species Act safeguards in order to fast-track forest management projects up to 10,000 acres with minimal public oversight, promoting unchecked tree removal and vegetation clearing.