Envirmnt and Econ Subcomm hse

<font face="Times New Roman" size="4">=</font><div><div><font size="4" face="Times New Roman" style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);">=</font></div><div><font size="4" face="Times New Roman" style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"><a href="https://insideclimatenews.org/news/07122017/scott-pruitt-epa-testimony-congress-hearing-climate-clean-power-plan-red-team-fossil-fuel-lobby">https://insideclimatenews.org/news/07122017/scott-pruitt-epa-testimony-congress-hearing-climate-clean-power-plan-red-team-fossil-fuel-lobby</a></font></div><div><font size="4" face="Times New Roman" style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);">
</font></div><div><p style="box-sizing: inherit; margin: 0px 0px 1.5em; padding: 0px; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman"><b>For the first time since taking office, EPA Administrator Scott Pruitt sat before a Congressional committee on Thursday to field questions about his controversial handling of the agency.</b></font></p><p style="box-sizing: inherit; margin: 0px 0px 1.5em; padding: 0px;"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman"><span style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);">Within the first hour, </span><span style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 102);">Pruitt told lawmakers he plans to replace the Clean Power Plan—the Obama administration's core legislation to cut carbon emissions—rather than just repeal it.</span></font></p><p style="box-sizing: inherit; margin: 0px 0px 1.5em; padding: 0px;"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman" style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 102);">Pruitt also said he would conduct a critique of a key finding that underpins <a href="https://insideclimatenews.org/topic/climate-change" style="box-sizing: inherit; text-decoration-line: none; font-weight: bold;">climate change</a> law using a "red team, blue team" exercise as soon as January.</font></p><p style="box-sizing: inherit; margin: 0px 0px 1.5em; padding: 0px; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">"Beginning part of next year at the latest," Pruitt told the House Energy and Commerce Subcommittee on Environment during the hearing. "That would be a process that would be focused on an objective, transparent, public review of questions and answers around the issues around carbon dioxide," he said.</font></p><p style="box-sizing: inherit; margin: 0px 0px 1.5em; padding: 0px; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">This exercise would take aim at the EPA's 2009 "endangerment finding," which determined that carbon dioxide is a harmful pollutant and provides the scientific basis for federal regulation of greenhouse gases and the Clean Power Plan. Pruitt has long opposed the finding, arguing in court that the work of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, which brings together thousands of scientists from around the world to synthesize the latest science on climate change, is flawed.</font></p><p style="box-sizing: inherit; margin: 0px 0px 1.5em; padding: 0px; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">The endangerment finding has been in the crosshairs of certain fossil fuel interests, including the conservative think tank Heartland Institute and Bob Murray, CEO of  the largest private coal company in the United States, which have pushed Pruitt to review it. Pruitt has mentioned the "red team, blue team" exercise before, but this was the first time he publicly announced a timeframe.  </font></p><h3 style="box-sizing: inherit; margin: 0px 0px 0.5em; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.333; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">'Signs of an Agency Captured by Industry'</font></h3><p style="box-sizing: inherit; margin: 0px 0px 1.5em; padding: 0px; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">At the top of the hearing, members of the Republican majority thanked Pruitt for what they called his efforts to engage with state regulators and to roll back regulations.</font></p><p style="box-sizing: inherit; margin: 0px 0px 1.5em; padding: 0px; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">Democrats pointedly questioned Pruitt about growing influence within the EPA of industries the agency regulates, especially a recent directive that ushered industry-backed scientists onto influential <a href="https://insideclimatenews.org/news/09112017/scott-pruitt-epa-investigation-scientists-advisory-board-gao-congress" style="box-sizing: inherit; background-color: transparent; text-decoration-line: none; font-weight: bold;">scientific advisory panels</a>.</font></p><p style="box-sizing: inherit; margin: 0px 0px 1.5em; padding: 0px; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">"Rules across the agency are being undone capriciously,"<b> said Rep. Paul Tonko, (D-N.Y.</b>) the subcommittee's ranking member. "I believe the EPA has all the signs of an agency captured by industry."</font></p><p style="box-sizing: inherit; margin: 0px 0px 1.5em; padding: 0px; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">Over the past several months, critics have pointed out that the peer-review process that underpins the science is already a much more rigorous "red team, blue team" process.</font></p><p style="box-sizing: inherit; margin: 0px 0px 1.5em; padding: 0px; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">"Scott Pruitt's call for a 'red team, blue team' debate on climate change is a farce and a distraction," Peter Frumhoff, director of science policy for the Union of Concerned Sciences, said in an email. " If he has questions about climate science, he should turn to the U.S. National Academy of Sciences, not hacks from the Heartland Institute."</font></p><h3 style="box-sizing: inherit; margin: 0px 0px 0.5em; padding: 0px; font-weight: normal; line-height: 1.333; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">'Why All This Secrecy?'</font></h3><p style="box-sizing: inherit; margin: 0px 0px 1.5em; padding: 0px;"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman" style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 102);">Rep. Frank Pallone (D-N.J), the ranking member on the Energy and Commerce Committee, blasted Pruitt for attempting to scrap the Clean Power Plan and for urging Trump to withdraw from the 2015 <a href="https://insideclimatenews.org/tags/paris-climate-agreement" style="box-sizing: inherit; text-decoration-line: none; font-weight: bold;">Paris climate agreement</a>. He also noted Pruitt's lavish expenditures, including the installation of a $25,000 "secret phone booth."</font></p><p style="box-sizing: inherit; margin: 0px 0px 1.5em; padding: 0px; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">"Why all this secrecy? One has to wonder," Pallone said, adding, "Even today, after finally agreeing to appear before his authorizing committee after 10 months, Mr. Pruitt is planning to leave after only one hour."</font></p><p style="box-sizing: inherit; margin: 0px 0px 1.5em; padding: 0px; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">The initial part of the hearing lasted only one hour so Pruitt could meet with President <a href="https://insideclimatenews.org/tags/donald-trump" style="box-sizing: inherit; background-color: transparent; text-decoration-line: none; font-weight: bold;">Donald Trump</a> at the White House. It resumed in the afternoon, and Democrats pressed him on his travel and phone booth expenditures.  </font></p><p dir="ltr" style="box-sizing: inherit; margin: 0px 0px 1.5em; padding: 0px; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"><span id="docs-internal-guid-149b77a1-3325-c076-86fd-6ae034516341" style="box-sizing: inherit;"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman"><b>Rep. Diana Degette (D-Colo.)</b> wanted to know how often he uses the secure phone booth installed this year and for what.</font></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="box-sizing: inherit; margin: 0px 0px 1.5em; padding: 0px; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"><span id="docs-internal-guid-149b77a1-3325-c076-86fd-6ae034516341" style="box-sizing: inherit;"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">Pruitt's reply: "It's used for secure communication that needs to take place at the office."</font></span></p><h3 dir="ltr" style="box-sizing: inherit; margin: 0px 0px 0.5em; padding: 0px; font-weight: normal; line-height: 1.333; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"><span style="box-sizing: inherit;"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">Travel Expenses Amid Agency Cuts</font></span></h3><p dir="ltr" style="box-sizing: inherit; margin: 0px 0px 1.5em; padding: 0px;"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman" style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 102);"><span id="docs-internal-guid-149b77a1-3325-c076-86fd-6ae034516341" style="box-sizing: inherit;">Rep. Tony Cardenas (D-Calif.) asked Pruitt about his frequent visits to Oklahoma, his home state—43 times in 92 days in March, April and May—as well as nearly $60,000 spent on private air travel since February. The agency's Inspector General is </span><a href="https://insideclimatenews.org/news/28082017/epa-inspector-general-will-investigate-pruitts-travel-expenses" style="box-sizing: inherit; text-decoration-line: none; font-weight: bold;">investigating</a> the expenses.</font></p><p dir="ltr" style="box-sizing: inherit; margin: 0px 0px 1.5em; padding: 0px; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"><span id="docs-internal-guid-149b77a1-3325-c076-86fd-6ae034516341" style="box-sizing: inherit;"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">"Every trip that I've taken to Oklahoma with respect to taxpayer expenses has been business related," Pruitt said. "When I travel back to the state for personal reasons, I paid for that, and that will bear out in this process."</font></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="box-sizing: inherit; margin: 0px 0px 1.5em; padding: 0px; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman"><span id="docs-internal-guid-149b77a1-3325-c076-86fd-6ae034516341" style="box-sizing: inherit;">Cardenas said the "costs are especially offensive given the severe cuts" the administration has proposed to the agency, including eliminating the office of environmental justice. </span>"Are the American people supposed to believe that we cannot afford $2 million to help our most vulnerable communities, but we can afford tens of thousands of dollars for you to fly on private jets?" he asked.</font></p><p dir="ltr" style="box-sizing: inherit; margin: 0px 0px 1.5em; padding: 0px; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"><span id="docs-internal-guid-149b77a1-3325-c076-86fd-6ae034516341" style="box-sizing: inherit;"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">Pruitt responded that he had recently met with environmental justice employees within the agency. "Environmental justice is an important issue," he said.</font></span></p><h3 dir="ltr" style="box-sizing: inherit; margin: 0px 0px 0.5em; padding: 0px; font-weight: normal; line-height: 1.333; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"><span style="box-sizing: inherit;"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">Meetings with Energy Companies</font></span></h3><p dir="ltr" style="box-sizing: inherit; margin: 0px 0px 1.5em; padding: 0px; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"><span id="docs-internal-guid-149b77a1-3325-c076-86fd-6ae034516341" style="box-sizing: inherit;"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman"><b>In one of the more contentious exchanges, Rep. Kathy Castor (D-Fla.) repeatedly asked Pruitt if he would recuse himself from agency proceedings involving his allies in the energy industry. She noted that Pruitt, as Oklahoma attorney general, had sued the agency 14 times, and in eight of those cases, Murray Energy was a co-plaintiff.</b></font></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="box-sizing: inherit; margin: 0px 0px 1.5em; padding: 0px;"><span id="docs-internal-guid-149b77a1-3325-c076-86fd-6ae034516341" style="box-sizing: inherit; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 102);"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">"Given your extensive history of suing the agency you now oversee and the vast amounts of money you've raised from the fossil fuel industry, offering to recuse yourself from only active cases or only cases where Oklahoma is a party is grossly inadequate," Castor said. "So will you commit to recusing yourself from cases involving your past co-litigants and donors?"</font></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="box-sizing: inherit; margin: 0px 0px 1.5em; padding: 0px;"><span id="docs-internal-guid-149b77a1-3325-c076-86fd-6ae034516341" style="box-sizing: inherit; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 102);"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">Pruitt pointed out that his associations and lawsuits were deemed not to violate ethics rules by the agency's ethics reviewer. "I will follow the advice of counsel," he said.</font></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="box-sizing: inherit; margin: 0px 0px 1.5em; padding: 0px; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">Earlier this week, the EPA's Office of I<b>nspector General said it would investigate a meeting Pruitt held in April with the National Mining Association about the Paris Agreement.</b></font></p><p dir="ltr" style="box-sizing: inherit; margin: 0px 0px 1.5em; padding: 0px;"><span id="docs-internal-guid-149b77a1-3325-c076-86fd-6ae034516341" style="box-sizing: inherit; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 102);"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">Castor also asked how many times Pruitt had met with representatives from energy companies, including Peabody Energy and the utility Southern Company. Pruitt responded that he didn't know.</font></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="box-sizing: inherit; margin: 0px 0px 1.5em; padding: 0px;"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman" style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 102);"><span id="docs-internal-guid-149b77a1-3325-c076-86fd-6ae034516341" style="box-sizing: inherit;">When Castor asked again if he would recuse himself from some of the agency's proceedings, Pruitt would not give a definitive yes or no. Castor told him: </span>"If you cannot do that, you will cement your legacy as one who serves the powerful special interests and not the public interest."</font></p><p dir="ltr" style="box-sizing: inherit; margin: 0px 0px 1.5em; padding: 0px; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"><span id="docs-internal-guid-149b77a1-3325-c076-86fd-6ae034516341" style="box-sizing: inherit;"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">Pruitt started to elaborate, but the subcommittee chair, John <b>Shimkus (R-Ill</b>.) cut him off, saying Castor's allotted time had elapsed.</font></span></p></div><div><font size="4" face="Times New Roman" style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);">=</font></div><font face="Times New Roman" size="4">
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</font><h1 class="title" id="page-title"><font face="Times New Roman">Environment and the Economy</font></h1><font face="Times New Roman">

                
    
      
      
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    <div class="field field-name-field-congress-body field-type-text-with-summary field-label-hidden"><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even"><h2><font face="Times New Roman">Jurisdiction:</font></h2>

<p><font face="Times New Roman">All matters related to soil and water contamination, including

Superfund and the Resource Conservation and Recovery Act; the regulation

of solid, hazardous, and nuclear wastes, including mining, nuclear,

oil, gas, and coal combustion waste; emergency environmental response;

industrial plant security, including cybersecurity; the regulation of

drinking water (Safe Drinking Water Act), including underground

injection of fluids (e.g., deep well injection or hydrofracking); toxic

substances (Toxic Substances Control Act); noise; and all aspects of the

above-referenced jurisdiction related to the Department of Homeland

Security.</font>

<font face="Times New Roman">You can follow activities of <a href="https://energycommerce.house.gov/subcommittees/energy-and-commerce-114th-congress">Full Committee here</a>.</font></p>

<h3><font face="Times New Roman">Republican Members</font></h3>

<p><font face="Times New Roman"><a href="http://shimkus.house.gov/" target="blank">John Shimkus (Illinois - 15)</a> - Chairman
<a href="http://harper.house.gov/" target="blank">Greg Harper (Mississippi - 03)</a> - Vice Chairman
<a href="http://whitfield.house.gov">Ed Whitfield (Kentucky - 01)</a>
<a href="http://pitts.house.gov/" target="blank">Joseph Pitts (Pennsylvania - 16)</a>
<a href="http://murphy.house.gov/" target="blank">Tim Murphy (Pennsylvania - 18)</a>
<a href="http://Latta.house.gov/" target="blank">Bob Latta  (Ohio - 05)</a>
<a href="http://mckinley.house.gov/" target="blank">David McKinley (West Virginia - 01)</a>
<a href="http://billjohnson.house.gov/" target="blank">Bill Johnson (Ohio - 06)</a>
<a href="https://bucshon.house.gov" target="blank">Larry Bucshon (Indiana -08)</a>
<a href="http://flores.house.gov/" target="blank">Bill Flores (Texas - 17)</a>
<a href="http://hudson.house.gov/" target="blank">Richard Hudson (North Carolina - 08)</a>
<a href="http://cramer.house.gov/" target="blank">Kevin Cramer (North Dakota - OO)</a>
<a href="http://upton.house.gov/" target="blank">Fred Upton (Michigan - 06)</a> - Ex Officio</font></p>

</div>

<h3><font face="Times New Roman">Democratic Members</font></h3>

<p><font face="Times New Roman"><a href="http://tonko.house.gov/" target="blank">Paul Tonko (New York - 20)</a> - Ranking Member
<a href="http://schrader.house.gov/" target="blank">Kurt Schrader (Oregon - 05)</a>
<a href="https://green.house.gov/" target="blank">Gene Green (Texas - 29)</a>
<a href="http://degette.house.gov/" target="blank">Diana DeGette (Colorado - 01)</a>
<a href="http://capps.house.gov/" target="blank">Lois Capps (California - 24)</a>
<a href="http://doyle.house.gov/" target="blank">Michael Doyle (Pennsylvania - 14)</a>
<a href="https://mcnerney.house.gov/" target="blank">Jerry McNerney (California - 09)</a>
<a href="http://cardenas.house.gov/" target="blank">Tony Cárdenas  (California 29)</a>
<a href="https://pallone.house.gov/" target="_blank">Frank Pallone (New Jersey - 06)</a> - Ex Officio</font></p>

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        </font><h2 class="pane-title"><font face="Times New Roman">
      Recent Activity    </font></h2><font face="Times New Roman">

      
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<div class="views-field views-field-title"> <h3 class="field-content"><font face="Times New Roman"><a href="https://energycommerce.house.gov/news-center/press-releases/upton-pallone-shimkus-tonko-comment-efforts-update-chemical-safety-laws">Upton, Pallone, Shimkus, Tonko Comment on Efforts to Update Chemical Safety Laws for the 21st Century</a></font></h3> </div>

<span class="views-field views-field-field-congress-article-type"> <span class="field-content"><a href="https://energycommerce.house.gov/news-center/press-releases">Press Release</a></span> </span></font> </div><font face="Times New Roman">

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<div class="views-field views-field-title"> <h3 class="field-content"><font face="Times New Roman"><a href="https://energycommerce.house.gov/news-center/press-releases/subenvecon-examines-epa-s-brownfields-program">#SubEnvEcon Examines EPA’s Brownfields Program</a></font></h3> </div>

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<div class="views-field views-field-title"> <h3 class="field-content"><font face="Times New Roman"><a href="https://energycommerce.house.gov/hearings-and-votes/hearings/epas-brownfields-program-empowering-cleanup-and-encouraging-economic">EPA's Brownfields Program: Empowering Cleanup and Encouraging Economic Redevelopment</a></font></h3> </div>

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<div class="views-field views-field-title"> <h3 class="field-content"><font face="Times New Roman"><a href="https://energycommerce.house.gov/news-center/press-releases/subenvecon-subenergypower-scrutinize-nrc-budget-request">#SubEnvEcon & #SubEnergyPower Scrutinize NRC Budget Request</a></font></h3> </div>

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<div class="views-field views-field-title"> <h3 class="field-content"><font face="Times New Roman"><a href="https://energycommerce.house.gov/news-center/press-releases/hearing-subenvecon-examine-epa-brownfields-program">HEARING: #SubEnvEcon to Examine EPA's Brownfields Program</a></font></h3> </div>

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<div class="views-field views-field-title"> <h3 class="field-content"><font face="Times New Roman"><a href="https://energycommerce.house.gov/news-center/press-releases/hearing-subenergypower-and-subenvecon-examine-nuclear-regulatory">HEARING: #SubEnergyPower and #SubEnvEcon to Examine Nuclear Regulatory Commission Budget </a></font></h3> </div>

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<div class="views-field views-field-title"> <h3 class="field-content"><font face="Times New Roman"><a href="https://energycommerce.house.gov/news-center/press-releases/subhealth-subenvecon-joint-hearing-examines-drinking-water-crisis-flint">#SubHealth, #SubEnvEcon Joint Hearing Examines Drinking Water Crisis in Flint, Michigan </a></font></h3> </div>

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<div class="views-field views-field-title"> <h3 class="field-content"><font face="Times New Roman"><a href="https://energycommerce.house.gov/news-center/press-releases/subenvecon-subhealth-examine-flint-drinking-water-crisis-next-week">#SubEnvEcon & #SubHealth to Examine Flint Drinking Water Crisis NEXT WEEK</a></font></h3> </div>

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<div class="views-field views-field-title"> <h3 class="field-content"><font face="Times New Roman"><a href="https://energycommerce.house.gov/news-center/press-releases/subenergypower-subenvecon-review-epa-s-budget-press-epa-its-prioritizing">#SubEnergyPower & #SubEnvEcon Review EPA’s Budget; Press EPA on Its Prioritizing of Regulations Over Jobs</a></font></h3> </div>

</font><div class="views-field views-field-title"> <h3 class="field-content"><font face="Times New Roman"><a href="https://energycommerce.house.gov/news-center/press-releases/look-ahead-committee-announces-hearing-schedule-week-march-21-0">Look Ahead: Committee Announces Hearing Schedule for the Week of March 21</a></font></h3> </div><font face="Times New Roman" size="4">==
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