House Committee on Natural Resources
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Categories: US House Committees | Congressional Committees Project
The U.S. House Committee on Resources will now be known as the U.S. House Committee on Natural Resources. Democratic Chairman Rep. Nick Rahall has changed the name back to its original state. The word "natural" was dropped under the Chairmanship of Don Young (who will be Ranking Republican Member under the 110th Congress) when the "Gingrich Revolution" came to power with Republican majorities in 1995. (Committee name to revert to U.S. House Committee on NATURAL Resources in 110th congress.)
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Jurisdiction
- Fisheries and wildlife, including research, restoration, refuges, and conservation.
- Forest reserves and national parks created from the public domain.
- Forfeiture of land grants and alien ownership, including alien ownership of mineral lands.
- Geological Survey.
- International fishing agreements.
- Interstate compacts relating to apportionment of waters for irrigation purposes.
- Irrigation and reclamation, including water supply for reclamation projects and easements of public lands for irrigation projects; and acquisition of private lands when necessary to complete irrigation projects.
- Native Americans generally, including the care and allotment of Native American lands and general and special measures relating to claims that are paid out of Native American funds.
- Insular possessions of the United States generally (except those affecting the revenue and appropriations).
- Military parks and battlefields, national cemeteries administered by the Secretary of the Interior, parks within the District of Columbia, and the erection of monuments to thememory of individuals.
- Mineral land laws and claims and entries thereunder.
- Mineral resources of public lands.
- Mining interests generally.
- Mining schools and experimental stations.
- Marine affairs, including coastal zone management (except for measures relating to oil and other pollution of navigable waters).
- Oceanography.
- Petroleum conservation on public lands and conservation of the radium supply in the United States.
- Preservation of prehistoric ruins and objects of interest on the public domain.
- Public lands generally, including entry, easements, and grazing thereon.
- Relations of the United States with Native Americans and Native American tribes.
- Trans-Alaska Oil Pipeline (except ratemaking).
Legislation to Watch
- H.R. 6-110 — To reduce our Nation's dependency on foreign oil by investing in clean, renewable, and alternative energy resources, promoting new emerging energy technologies, developing greater efficiency, and creating a Strategic Energy Efficiency and Renewables Reserve to invest in alternative energy, and for other purposes.
- January 22, 2007: Read the second time. Placed on Senate Legislative Calendar under General Orders. Calendar No. 9.
- H.R. 17-110 — To reauthorize the Secure Rural Schools and Community Self-Determination Act of 2000, and for other purposes.
- February 7, 2007: Referred to House subcommittee. Status: Referred to the Subcommittee on National Parks, Forests, and Public Lands.
- H.R. 21-110 — To establish a national policy for our oceans, to strengthen the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, to establish a national and regional ocean governance structure, and for other purposes.
- April 26, 2007: House committee/subcommittee actions. Status: Subcommittee Hearings Held.
- H.R. 39-110 — To preserve the Arctic coastal plain of the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge, Alaska, as wilderness in recognition of its extraordinary natural ecosystems and for the permanent good of present and future generations of Americans.
- February 7, 2007: Referred to House subcommittee. Status: Referred to the Subcommittee on National Parks, Forests, and Public Lands.
- H.R. 50-110 — To reauthorize the African Elephant Conservation Act and the Rhinoceros and Tiger Conservation Act of 1994.
- March 22, 2007: House committee/subcommittee actions. Status: Forwarded by Subcommittee to Full Committee (Amended) by Voice Vote .
- H.R. 74-110 — To amend the National Trails System Act to authorize an additional category of national trail known as a national discovery trail, to provide special requirements for the establishment and administration of national discovery trails, and to designate the cross-country American Discovery Trail as the first national discovery trail.
- February 7, 2007: Referred to House subcommittee. Status: Referred to the Subcommittee on National Parks, Forests, and Public Lands.
- H.R. 135-110 — To establish the Twenty-First Century Water Commission to study and develop recommendations for a comprehensive water strategy to address future water needs.
- February 7, 2007: Referred to House subcommittee. Status: Referred to the Subcommittee on Water and Power.
- H.R. 189-110 — To establish the Paterson Great Falls National Park in the State of New Jersey.
- March 29, 2007: House committee/subcommittee actions. Status: Subcommittee Hearings Held.
- H.R. 249-110 — To restore the prohibition on the commercial sale and slaughter of wild free-roaming horses and burros.
- April 26, 2007: Referred to Senate committee. Status: Received in the Senate and Read twice and referred to the Committee on Energy and Natural Resources.
- H.R. 620-110 — To accelerate the reduction of greenhouse gas emissions in the United States by establishing a market-driven system of greenhouse gas tradeable allowances that will limit greenhouse gas emissions in the United States, reduce dependence upon foreign oil, and ensure benefits to consumers from the trading in such allowances, and for other purposes.
- February 7, 2007: Referred to House subcommittee. Status: Referred to the Subcommittee on Fisheries, Wildlife, and Oceans.
- H.R. 777-110 — To amend the Outer Continental Shelf Lands Act to permanently prohibit the conduct of offshore drilling on the outer Continental Shelf in the Mid-Atlantic and North Atlantic planning areas.
- February 7, 2007: Referred to House subcommittee. Status: Referred to the Subcommittee on Energy and Mineral Resources.
Daily Kos Diaries
House Committee on Natural Resources - Week in Review, Jan. 18, 2007
House Committee on Natural Resources - Week in Review, Feb. 11, 2007
News
Natural Resources Committee Chairman Rep. Nick Rahall has outlined his Agenda of American Values for the 110th Congress. Below are the highlights from the original document:16:32, 5 January 2007 (PST)
Addressing America's Energy Needs: Provide sufficient energy for America, which is critical to our national defense and economic security. Develop energy resources on our federal lands but ensure a fair return to the American people. Develop new fuels, improve fuel efficiency, and stimulate responsible production on non-federal lands.
Empowering Insular Areas: Ensure territories of Puerto Rico, Guam, the US Virgin Islands, American Samoa and the Northern Mariana Islands have right of political self-determination. Federal policy must be considerate of the unique economic impediments confronting each respective insular area.
Ending Corporate Welfare: Reform Mining Law of 1872, which allows multinational corporations to mine valuable hardrock minerals from western federal lands without paying a royalty to American people and allows companies to purchase lands at 1872 prices.
Ending Drilling in the Federal Treasury: Reform the current oil and gas royalty system that allows companies to undercut payments to the American people, and eliminate corruption in the Interior Department that allows corporations to rob the American people of a fair return for America's resources.
Enhancing the Potential of Public Lands: Find a responsible balance between use and protection of our National Parks, over 500 National Wildlife Refuges, National Forests, and wilderness areas.
Ensuring Sustainable Water Supplies for the West: Direct funds to new and innovative projects to develop new and sustainable water supplies, help communities recycle water and create new supplies through desalting ocean water in coastal areas where appropriate, and aggressively direct priority attention to projects that will restore watersheds and aquatic habitats.
Honoring Our Oceans: Work to maintain healthy oceans, keep corals and marine mammals alive, ensure that our fisheries are sustainable, and protect jobs.
Investing in Our Forests and Forest Communities: Reinstate sound management and stewardship to forest policy, such as balancing timber production with forest restoration. Prioritize road maintenance backlogs before constructing new roads, and concentrate on creating new jobs and protecting communities.
Keeping Faith with Native Americans: Immediately reauthorize the Indian Health Care Improvement Act, which the Republicans allowed to expire in 2001.
Maintaining Public’s Right to Know: Protect and maintain the public's right to know and comment on the environmental impact of federal actions. The National Environmental Policy Act -- a law that protects the public's right to know -- has been under intense attack by the Bush administration, and Americans are increasingly being cut out of federal decisions affecting their environment.
Reclaiming America: Reauthorize the Abandoned Mine Reclamation Program, which is set to expire at the end of fiscal year 2007. The program assesses fees on the coal industry, and the money raised helps restore abandoned mine sites that pose a threat to the public.
Respecting Sacred Sites: Enact a comprehensive law that empowers Indian tribes to protect sacred places in Indian Country.
Returning Common-Sense Stewardship to Our National Parks: Review park proposals to ensure that they are consistent with the overriding mission of the Park Service, and conduct oversight of decisions made by the Administration to ensure sound stewardship of our natural and cultural heritage.
Safeguarding God's Creatures: Ensure adequate funding of the Endangered Species Act so that federal agencies can use tools in the law to recover threatened and endangered species, reduce the number of species that are candidates for listings, and work with landowners to address their concerns in a timely manner. Also there must be oversight to ensure that the Administration's polices result in species conservation.
More News
Indian Country Ignored in President’s FY 2008 Budget Feb. 5, 2007
President’s Budget Glosses Over Interior’s Core Mission Feb. 5, 2007
House Votes to Repeal Big Oil Subsidies Jan. 18, 2007
Committee Staff
Staff Director
Jim Zoia
Office of Chief Counsel
Chief Counsel – Jeff Petrich
Policy Office
Senior Policy Adviser – Ann Adler
Policy Adviser – Laurel Angell
Policy Adviser – Amelia Jenkins
Communications Office
Communications Director – Allyson Ivins Groff
Press Assistant – Heather Warren
Administration Office
Chief Administrator – Lisa Wallace
Deputy Administrator – Linda Livingston
Chief Clerk – Nancy Locke
IT – Matt Vaccaro
IT – Ed Van Scoyoc
Editor/Printer – Kathy Miller
Chief Financial Officer - Linda Booth
Office of Indian Affairs
Staff Director – Marie Howard
Legislative Staff – Tracey Parker
Subcommittee on Insular Affairs
Staff Director – Tony Babauta
Subcommittee on Fisheries, Wildlife, and Oceans
Staff Director – Lori Sonken
Legislative Staff – Dave Jansen
Legislative Staff – Jean Flemma
Clerk – Charlotte Stevenson
Sea Grant Fellow – Jennifer Kassikian
Subcommittee on National Parks, Forests, and Public Lands
Staff Director – Rick Healy
Counsel – David Watkins
Legislative Staff – Meghan Conklin
Clerk – Dominick Carroll
Subcommittee on Water and Power
Staff Director – Steve Lanich
Legislative Staff – David Zacher
Clerk – Emily Knight
Subcommittee on Energy and Mineral Resources
Staff Director – Deborah Lanzone
Legislative Staff – Lauren Garry
Committee Websites
- Committee on Natural Resources Majority website
- Committee on Natural Resources Minority website
Subcommittee Websites
Links will be posted as soon as the committee website has been updated for the 110th Congress
External Links
- The Congresspedia page on the House Committee on Natural Resources.
House Committee on Natural Resources Subcommittees: |
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Office of Native American & Insular Affairs • Energy & Mineral Resources • Fisheries, Wildlife & Oceans • National Parks, Forests & Public Lands • Water & Power |