Hill Heat

Full committee markup.

• Defense bill text

• Committee report

• Adopted amendments

• GOP summary

• LHHSE bill text

• Committee report

• Adopted amendments

• GOP summary

Subcommittee hearing entitled: “The Future is Loper Bright: Congress’s Role in the Regulatory Landscape.”

Witnesses:

• Allyson Schwartz, Senior Fellow at the Bipartisan Policy Center and Former Member of the U.S. House of Representatives (D-PA)
• Susan Dudley, Distinguished Professor of Practice, Regulatory Studies Center, George Washington University
• Chad Squitieri, Assistant Professor of Law, Columbus School of Law, Catholic University

Full committee hearing of the USDA reorganization proposal.

Witness:

• Stephen Alexander Vaden, Deputy Secretary of Agriculture, USDA

U.S. Senator Ted Cruz (R-Texas), Chairman of the Senate Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation, will convene a full committee Executive Session on Wednesday, July 30, 2025, at 10:00 a.m. ET to consider the following:

Agenda:

• Nomination of Neil Jacobs, of North Carolina, to be Under Secretary of Commerce for Oceans and Atmosphere (NOAA Administrator) - Agreed to by voice vote. Markey, Blunt-Rochester, Peters, Duckworth, Hickenlooper, Fetterman, Kim recorded as noes after the fact.

• Nomination of Paul Roberti, of Rhode Island, to be Administrator of the Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration. Roll call vote 22-6. R aye: Wicker Fischer Moran Sullivan Blackburn Young Budd Schmitt Moreno Sheehy Capito Lummis. R Aye by proxy: Thune, Curtis. Curtis. D aye: Cantwell Rosen. D aye by proxy: Klobuchar Peters Baldwin Duckworth Fetterman. D no: Markey Luján Hickenlooper Kim Blunt-Rochester Schatz. (Cantwell initially asked for Schatz to be aye by proxy)

• Nomination of Gregory Zerzan, of Texas, to be General Counsel of the Department of Transportation. Roll call vote 15-13. R aye: Wicker Fischer Moran Sullivan Blackburn Young Budd Schmitt Curtis Moreno Sheehy Capito Lummis Cruz. R aye by proxy Thune. D no: Cantwell Klobuchar Schatz Markey Peters Baldwin Duckworth Rosen Luján Hickenlooper Fetterman Kim Blunt-Rochester

• Nomination of Taylor Jordan, of the District of Columbia, to be an Assistant Secretary of Commerce for Environmental Observation and Prediction (NOAA). Roll call vote: 15-13. Same as above.

• Nomination of Jonathan Morrison, of California, to be Administrator of the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration. Roll call vote: 16-12. Peters aye by proxy.

• Nomination of Derek Barrs, of Florida, to be Administrator of the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration. Roll call vote: 15-13.

• Nomination of Michael Rutherford, of Florida, to be the Assistant Secretary of Transportation for Multimodal Freight Infrastructure and Policy. Roll call vote: 15-13.

• Nomination of Harry Kumar, of New York, to be an Assistant Secretary of Commerce for Legislative and Intergovernmental Affairs. Not voted on.

• Nomination of Seval Oz, of California, to be the Assistant Secretary of Transportation for Research and Technology. Not voted on.

• Coast Guard Promotions (PN 127-2, PN 367, PN 371, PN 414) - Agreed to by voice vote

• S.2314, SHARKED Act of 2025 (Scott-FL) - Agreed to by voice vote, supported by Cantwell

• S.2318, Streamlining American Manufacturing Strategy Act (Blunt-Rochester) - Agreed to by voice vote, supported by Cantwell

• S.2351, Space Exploration Research Act (Cruz) - Agreed to by voice vote, supported by Cantwell

• S.1691, Traveler Privacy Protection Act of 2025 (Merkley). Not voted on.

Full committee markup.

• Record

Legislation:

• S. 854, Risky Research Review Act; 12-3 (Gallego, Slotkin, Kim nay)
• S. 855, Royalty Transparency Act; 15-0
• S. 269, Ending Improper Payments to Deceased People Act; 15-0
• S. 81, Guidance Clarity Act of 2025;
• S. 861, Disaster Assistance Simplification Act; 15-0
• S. 766, Billion Dollar Boondoggle Act of 2025; 15-0
• S. 872, Stop Secret Spending Act of 2025; 15-0
• S. 727, CBPO Retirement Technical Corrections Act; 15-0
• S. 874, Expanding Whistleblower Protections for Contractors Act; 15-0
• S. 594, Helping Eliminate Limitations for Prompt (HELP) Response and Recovery Act, to allow non-competitive disaster recovery contracts to last more than 150 days; 15-0
• S. 865, Lobbying Disclosure Improvement Act; 15-0
• S. 856, Disclosing Foreign Influence in Lobbying Act; 15-0
• S. 850, Northern Border Security Enhancement and Review Act; 15-0
• S. 848, Reporting Efficiently to Proper Officials in Response to Terrorism (REPORT) Act; 15-0
• S. 572, Shadow Wolves Improvement Act. 15-0

Full committee business meeting.

Nominees:

• Lanny Erdos, of Ohio, to be Director of the Office of Surface Mining Reclamation and Enforcement
• Audrey Robertson, of Colorado, to be an Assistant Secretary (Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy)
• Timothy John Walsh, of Colorado, to be an Assistant Secretary (Environmental Management), both of the Department of Energy.

The nomination hearing was held on July 9. David Eisner withdrew his nomination to be Department of Energy Assistant Secretary of International Affairs.

Audrey Robinson is an oil executive who “helped found Denver-based Franklin Mountain Energy, a since-sold natural gas fracking firm in the Permian Basin with an open investigation at EPA over recent Clean Air Act violations.” She “also sits on the board of Liberty Energy, the fracking services company led by Energy Secretary Chris Wright until his resignation in January. Earlier in her career, Robertson worked at Goldman Sachs and Kayne Anderson Capital Advisors, an investment firm focused on fossil fuels.”

Tim Walsh is a Colorado real estate developer who “has donated over $2.5 million to Republican candidates and conservative causes since 2022.”

All nominees were backed 11-9, Justice voting aye by proxy, all Democrats opposed.

Full committee hearing.

Witnesses:

• Nicholas Friant, Chairman, Grain Grades and Weights Committee, National Grain and Feed Association, Chanhassen, MN
• Kia Mikesh, President, American Association of Grain Inspection and Weighing Agencies, Fargo, ND
• Brandon Wipf, Board of Directors Member, American Soybean Association, Huron, SD

Full committee markup has been postponed.

Budget request:

Full committee markup has been postponed. Subcommittee markup was on July 15.

• Subcommittee mark
• GOP summary
• Democratic fact sheet
• Democratic summary
  • Provides $5.795 billion for the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, which is $387.453 million (6%) below the FY25 enacted level.
    • Includes $4.152 billion for NOAA Operations, Research, and Facilities, which is $257.186 million below the FY25 enacted level.
    • Includes $1.59 billion for NOAA procurement, acquisition, and construction, which is $129.967 million below the FY25 enacted level.
  • Provides $24.838 billion for the National Aeronautics and Space Administration, which is equal to the FY25 enacted level.
    • Science – $6 billion, $1.33 billion below the fiscal year 2025 enacted level and $2.1 billion above the request.
    • STEM Engagement – $84 million, $59 million below the fiscal year 2024 enacted level.
  • Provides $7 billion for the National Science Foundation, which is $2.06 billion (23%) below the FY25 enacted level.
  • Provides $1 million for the Marine Mammal Commission, which is $3.5 million (78%) below the FY25 enacted level

Budget request

On Thursday, July 24, 2025, at 10:00 AM ET, Senator Sheldon Whitehouse (D-RI), Ranking Member of the Senate Environment and Public Works Committee (EPW), will lead Committee Democrats in a spotlight forum on how the oil and gas industry is releasing methane into our air that is warming our planet, raising our cost of living, and choking our children—all while the Trump Administration makes it easier for these companies to pollute. The forum, titled “Mind Over Methane: The No-Brainer Climate, Economic, and Health Solution,” will highlight progress that many states, companies, and researchers are making on this issue despite federal rollbacks.

Speakers:

• Senator Sheldon Whitehouse (D-RI), Ranking Member, Senate Environment and Public Works Committee
• Dr. Arvind Ravikumar, Assistant Professor at the University of Texas at Austin, Hildebrand Department of Petroleum and Geosystems Engineering; Co-Director of the Energy Emissions Monitoring and Data Laboratory
• Courtney Smith, First Principal Deputy Executive Officer at the California Air Resources Board
• Lori Ehrlich, Former Massachusetts State Representative; Former FEMA Region 1 Administrator
• Dr. Sarav Arunachalam, Adjunct Professor at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill’s Department of Environmental Sciences and Engineering; Research Professor and Deputy Director at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill’s Institute for the Environment

Methane is a greenhouse gas more than 80 times as potent as carbon dioxide, and it is responsible for approximately one third of the rise in global temperatures. In the United States, the oil and gas sector is the largest industrial source of methane emissions: at every stage of fossil fuel production, this dangerous, poisonous, explosive gas is leaked or deliberately released into our atmosphere, where it pollutes our air, helps drive climate change-driven economic risks, and increases energy costs for families. Landfills are also a significant contributor of this pollution and are an emerging focus for state action.

Although much of the methane abatement work needed to address the climate and public health harms—particularly in the oil and gas sector—could be done at no net cost, the Trump Administration is considering rolling back methane mitigation rules for the fossil fuel industry, and the Department of Transportation has already canceled requirements to fix leaky natural gas pipelines. While a significant share of methane pollution comes from intentional releases, leaks alone waste over $1.5 billion worth of gas each year—losses that are passed on to consumers via higher energy bills.