Amos
Hochstein,
Presidential Coordinator, U.S. Department of State
Make no mistake, though, we have been working in lockstep with Europe
to respond through decisive actions. Our close cooperation started in
the fall of 2021, when we began working to divert
LNG cargoes to Europe. We continued these
efforts through the winter to help Europe avoid winter blackouts and
shortages. And the United States continues to play its part in
supporting European energy security. In the first four months of 2022,
EU and UK imports of LNG from the United
States have more than tripled when compared with 2021. U.S. companies
on average shipped 7.3 billion cubic feet of
LNG per day to the region and accounted for
49 percent of the region’s total LNG
imports. The United States is now the largest supplier of natural gas
to Europe.
Senate Foreign Relations Committee
Europe and Regional Security Cooperation Subcommittee
On Thursday, June 9, 2022, at 9:30 A.M. ET, in 1324 Longworth
HOB and via Cisco Webex, the Subcommittee on
Energy and Mineral Resources will hold a hybrid legislative
hearing
and will consider the following legislation:
H.R. 2073 (Rep. John Yarmuth), Appalachian Communities Health
Emergency Act or the ACHE Act
H.R. 2505 (Rep. Matt Cartwright), Coal Cleanup Taxpayer Protection Act
H.R. 4799 (Rep. Matt Cartwright), Coal Royalty Fairness and
Communities Investment Act of 2021
H.R. 7283 (Rep. Matt Cartwright), Safeguarding Treatment for the
Restoration of Ecosystems from Abandoned Mines Act or the
STREAM Act
Dr. Joseph
Janzen,
Assistant Professor, Department of Agricultural and Consumer
Economics, University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign
Robert
Craven,
Extension Economist and Associate Director, Center for Farm Financial
Management, University of Minnesota, St. Paul, MN
Dr. Ronald L.
Rainey,
Assistant Vice President and Professor / Director, University of
Arkansas System Division of Agriculture / Southern Risk Management
Education Center, University of Arkansas
Dr. Joe
Outlaw,
Professor and Extension Economist and Co-Director, Agricultural and
Food Policy Center, Texas A&M University
House Agriculture Committee
General Farm Commodities and Risk Management Subcommittee
The House Select Committee on the Climate Crisis will hold a hybrid
hearing
titled “Turning the Tide for Ocean Climate Action: Unleashing the
Climate Benefits of Our Blue Planet” on Thursday, June 9, 2022 at 9:00
a.m. ET. The hearing will take place in Room 210 Cannon House Office
Building and via Zoom video conferencing.
This hearing will examine the role the ocean plays in the climate crisis
and the need to develop and invest in ocean-based climate solutions,
both at home and abroad, to build resilient ecosystems and communities.
Witnesses:
Dr. Richard W. Spinrad, Under Secretary of Commerce for Oceans and
Atmosphere and Administrator, National Oceanic and Atmospheric
Administration (NOAA). Since June 2021, Dr. Spinrad has been
responsible for the strategic direction and oversight of
NOAA, including its mission to understand
and predict changes in climate, weather, ocean, and coasts, as well as
helping conserve and manage coastal and marine ecosystems and
resources. He previously served as NOAA’s
Chief Scientist under President Obama and led
NOAA’s Office of Oceanic and Atmospheric
Research and National Ocean Service.
Monica Medina, Assistant Secretary for Oceans and International
Environmental and Scientific Affairs, U.S. Department of State. Medina
and her team provide leadership to conserve and protect the global
environment and ocean. Prior to this role, Assistant Secretary Medina
was an adjunct professor at Georgetown University’s School of Foreign
Service; a former Principal Deputy Under Secretary of Commerce for
Oceans and Atmosphere; General Counsel of
NOAA; and a Special Assistant to the
Secretary of Defense.
The $773 billion budget
request
includes $56.5 billion for air power platforms and systems; more than
$40.8 billion for sea power, to include nine more battle force ships,
and nearly $12.6 billion to modernize Army and Marine Corps fighting
vehicles; more than $130.1 billion for research and development; and
more than $3
billion
to address the effects of climate change, bolstering our installation
resiliency and adaptation to climate challenges.
The FY 2023 DoD Budget request of $773.0
billion is a $30.7 billion, or 4.1% increase, from the
FY 2022 enacted amount.
Continuing the work we began in previous years, the Readiness mark
addresses vulnerabilities in installation resiliency and energy
resiliency, both in response to climate change and in ensuring that
our forces can accomplish their missions even in the event of power
disruption, either natural or man-made.
The committee commends the Department of Defense for pursuing policies
to increase energy resilience, and to reduce the carbon emissions of
installation and operational energy to reduce climate risks. However,
the committee is concerned that the Department may not be fully
considering all carbon-free energy technologies, nor is it fully
assessing the ability of carbon-free emitting energy technologies to
meet the reliability, resilience, and performance requirements for
installations and operations, especially for action strategies that do
not maximize the achievement of both mission objectives and climate
goals.
Accordingly, the committee directs the Secretary of Defense to submit
a report to the House Committee on Armed Services not later than June
1, 2023. The report shall include at a minimum the following:
(1) an evaluation of the reliability, resilience, and performance
characteristics of all existing and emerging carbon-free energy
technologies, including grid-scale and micro-advanced nuclear energy;
(2) assesses whether carbon-free energy technologies are currently
capable, if deployed, of meeting the reliability, resilience, and
performance requirements for all agency energy uses at domestic
installations for critical missions; and
(3) an assessment of emerging carbon-free energy technologies in
research and development that could enhance energy resilience at
domestic installations.
The committee commends the military departments on the use of energy
savings performance contracts to improve energy resilience, decrease
energy costs, and increase readiness at military installations. The
committee notes that installation commanders and base personnel
identify energy saving initiatives on their energy conservation
measures list and that these projects could in turn become part of an
energy savings performance contract. The committee is concerned that
without a mechanism for sharing the contents of the energy
conservation measures list with energy service companies, the
Department of Defense is not able to utilize energy savings
performance contracts to the fullest extent possible.
Therefore, the committee directs the Under Secretary of Defense for
Acquisition and Sustainment to initiate a study and submit a report to
the House Committee on Armed Services by January 1, 2023, on potential
methods of securely sharing installation energy conservation measures
requirements lists with existing Department energy services companies.
Michele J. Sison, Assistant Secretary, Bureau of International
Organization Affairs, U.S. Department of State
The President’s Fiscal Year 2023 Budget Request includes $60.4
billion
for the Department of State and the U.S. Agency for International
Development (USAID), $1.9 billion or 3 percent above the Fiscal Year
2022 Request, and $7.4 billion or 14 percent above FY
2021 enacted levels.
The Request has $2.3 billion to support U.S. leadership in addressing
the existential climate crisis through diplomacy; scaled-up
international climate programs that accelerate the global energy
transition to net zero by 2050; support to developing countries to
enhance climate resilience; and the prioritization of climate adaptation
and sustainability principles in Department and
USAID domestic and overseas facilities. This
total includes over $1.6 billion for direct programming for climate
mitigation and adaptation and over $650 million for the mainstreaming of
climate considerations across development programs.
House Foreign Affairs Committee
International Development, International Organizations and Global Corporate Social Impact Subcommittee
The Department of Defense $773 billion budget
request
includes $56.5 billion for air power platforms and systems; more than
$40.8 billion for sea power, to include nine more battle force ships,
and nearly $12.6 billion to modernize Army and Marine Corps fighting
vehicles; more than $130.1 billion for research and development; and
more than $3
billion
to address the effects of climate change, bolstering our installation
resiliency and adaptation to climate challenges.
The FY 2023 DoD Budget request of $773.0
billion is a $30.7 billion, or 4.1% increase, from the
FY 2022 enacted amount.
The Department of Defense $773 billion budget
request
includes $56.5 billion for air power platforms and systems; more than
$40.8 billion for sea power, to include nine more battle force ships,
and nearly $12.6 billion to modernize Army and Marine Corps fighting
vehicles; more than $130.1 billion for research and development; and
more than $3
billion
to address the effects of climate change, bolstering our installation
resiliency and adaptation to climate challenges.
The FY 2023 DoD Budget request of $773.0
billion is a $30.7 billion, or 4.1% increase, from the
FY 2022 enacted amount.