Rail Modernization

A subcommittee hearing entitled “America Builds: The Role of Innovation and Technology in a Safe and Efficient Rail System.”

Witnesses:

  • David Shannon, General Manager, RailPulse
  • Brigham McCown, Founder and Chairman of the Board of Directors, Alliance for Innovation and Infrastructure
  • Eric Gebhardt, Executive Vice President and Chief Technology Officer, Wabtec; on behalf of Railway Supply Institute
  • Tony Cardwell, President, Brotherhood of Maintenance of Way Employes Division, International Brotherhood of Teamsters
House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee
   Railroads, Pipelines, and Hazardous Materials Subcommittee
2167 Rayburn

06/24/2025 at 10:00AM

Full Committee Markup of FY26 Agriculture, Rural Development, Food and Drug Administration, and Related Agencies Bill, Continued

Full committee markup.

Continued from June 11 and June 12.

Budget request:

Department of Agriculture (USDA)
Increases
Program(millions of $)Description
Food Safety Inspection Service (FSIS) +15 FSIS inspects meat, poultry, and egg product plants to ensure food safety nationwide. Several States have their own equivalent inspection program, and FSIS shares in the cost of these programs. Increases are needed to support increased production and demand for services.
Rental Assistance Grants +74 The Budget provides funding to renew the rental assistance grant contracts at $1.7 billion. This prevents the default of the $9 billion in USDA underwritten multifamily housing direct loans, that depend on the rental assistance grants for the debt service.
Cuts, Reductions, and Consolidations
Program(millions of $)Description
National Institute of Food and Agriculture (NIFA) -602 The Budget eliminates programming in NIFA, such as activities related to climate change, renewable energy, and promoting DEI in education that were prioritized under the Biden Administration. In addition, the Budget reduces funding for formula grants. Instead, the Budget focuses on the merit-based Agriculture and Food Research Initiative. The Budget protects funding to youth and K-12 programs such as 4-H clubs, tribal colleges, and universities. This investment would help prepare future generations of farmers. It also ensures HBCUs are amply funded.
Agricultural Research Service (ARS) and USDA Research Statistical Agencies -159 The Budget reduces funding for research sites across the Nation and reduces funding for research projects. The Budget also makes small reductions to the Economic Research Service and National Agricultural Statistics Service to stop climate research added by the Biden Administration while ensuring some analysis and data collection continues.
Natural Resource Conservation Service (NRCS)—Private Lands Conservation Operations -754 The Budget eliminates discretionary funding for conservation technical assistance. While funding has helped producers deploy conservation practices on their lands, many have been forced to participate in the program in order to comply with State environmental regulations such as California’s Irrigated Lands Regulatory Program, which regulates agricultural runoff.
NRCS Watershed Operations -16 The Budget eliminates funding to renovate locally owned dams in the NRCS Watershed Programs. These programs received an influx of funding through IIJA. Currently, there is over $100 million in unobligated balances between the two programs.
Rural Development Programs -721 Infrastructure loans are prioritized for aging rural water and wastewater systems, as well as technical assistance through the “Circuit Rider” program balanced with reductions in the grants. Other specialty water grants and earmarks are not funded except where the tax base cannot support loans, including maintaining funding for Native American Tribes. Community facility grants are eliminated, as the Congress has been earmarking nearly 100 percent of them. No new USDA funding is needed for broadband expansion. The Budget would also eliminate rural business programs, single family housing direct loans, self-help housing grants, telecommunications loans, and rural housing vouchers. Rural Development salaries and expenses are reduced commensurately.
Farm Service Agency (FSA) Salaries and Expenses: Farm Production and Conservation-Business Center (FPACBC) -358 The first Trump Administration placed the FSA, NRCS, and Risk Management Agency under one umbrella: FPAC-BC. The staff-heavy FSA struggles with hiring due in part because of labor market competition. The Budget reduces funding in order to reflect the Agency’s plans for efficiencies, which include improving online services.
National Forest System Management -392 The Budget reduces salaries and expenses by $342 million, and saves an additional $50 million by eliminating funding for the Collaborative Forest Landscape Restoration program, and reducing funding for recreation, vegetation and watershed management, and land management regulation. The Budget fully supports the Executive Order 14225, “Immediate Expansion of American Timber Production,” to improve forest management and increase domestic timber production. The requested funding level supports timber sales, hazardous fuels removal, mineral extraction, grazing, and wildlife habitat management.
Forest Service Operations -391 The Budget reduces funding for expenses including salaries and facility leases to streamline the Agency’s management structure and reduce their real property footprint.
State, Local, Tribal, and NGO Conservation Programs -303 The Budget reduces grant programs that subsidize management of State and privately-owned forests. While the Budget provides reduced support for Federal wildland fire management activities, these partners should be encouraged to fund their own community preparedness and risk mitigation activities.
Forest and Rangeland Research (Except Forest Inventory and Analysis) -300 The President has pledged to manage national forests for their intended purpose of producing timber. The Budget reduces funding for the Forest and Rangeland Research program because it is out of step with timber production, but maintains funding for Forest Inventory and Analysis, a longstanding census of forest resources and conditions.
Commodity Supplemental Food Program (CSFP) -425 The Budget ends CSFP and replaces it with MAHA food boxes. The MAHA food boxes provide food directly to seniors. Unlike the current approach using food banks, which provide those in need with shelf-stable foods, MAHA boxes would be filled with commodities sourced from domestic farmers and given directly to American households.
McGovern-Dole Food for Education Program -240 The McGovern-Dole Food for Education program buys agricultural commodities from U.S. farmers and donates them in the form of foreign aid. Only a small portion of the program’s funding goes toward purchasing U.S. commodities, given the high transportation costs and large portion of funding provided for technical assistance. While these donated commodities totaled only $37 million in 2023 (0.01 percent of all U.S. crop sales), they undercut commodity prices in markets abroad. The elimination of this program is consistent with the elimination of other in-kind international food donation programs in the Budget, including Food for Progress and Food for Peace Title II Grants.
House Appropriations Committee
2359 Rayburn

06/23/2025 at 07:30PM

Markup of FY26 Legislative Branch Bill

Subcommittee markup.

Budget requests:

U.S. House of Representatives budget requests:

House Appropriations Committee
   Financial Services and General Government Subcommittee
H-140 Capitol

06/23/2025 at 06:00PM

POSTPONED: Markup of FY26 Interior, Environment, and Related Agencies Bill

The subcommittee markup has been postponed.

Budget request

Department of the Interior (DOI)
Program Name $ Change from 2025 Enacted (in millions) Brief Description of Program and Recommended Reduction or Increase
Cuts, Reductions, and Consolidations
Bureau of Reclamation and the Central Utah Project -609 The Budget provides $1.2 billion for the Bureau of Reclamation and the Central Utah Project.
Operation of the National Park System -900 The Budget would transfer most properties to State-level management. Achieving a $900 million cut to operations would require eliminating funding for roughly 350 park sites, 75 percent of the total.
NPS Historic Preservation Fund -158 The Budget eliminates almost all funding except for projects in partnership with HBCUs.
NPS Construction -73 This reduction complements the Administration’s goals transferring most parks to State and tribal governments.
NPS National Recreation and Preservation -77
Bureau of Indian Affairs Programs that Support Tribal Self-Governance and Tribal Communities -617 The Budget eliminates the Indian Guaranteed Loan program for tribal business development. The Budget also terminates the Indian Land Consolidation Program. In addition, the Budget also reduces funding for programs that directly fund tribal operations such as roads, housing, and social services.
Bureau of Indian Affairs (BIA) Public Safety and Justice -107 The Budget cuts the tribal law enforcement program by 20 percent.
Bureau of Indian Education Construction -187 The Budget eliminates funding for construction of tribal schools.
U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) Surveys, Investigations, and Research programs -564 USGS provides science information on natural hazards, ecosystems, water, energy and mineral resources, and mapping of Earth’s features. The Budget eliminates programs that provide grants to universities and crucial climate science initiatives and instead focuses on support for minerals and fossil fuel extraction.
Bureau of Land Management Conservation Programs -198 The Budget proposes deep reductions. The Budget also reduces the Wildlife and Aquatic Habitat Management program.
U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS) State, Tribal, and NGO Conservation Grant Programs -170 The Budget eliminates USFWS grant programs that fund conservation of species managed by States, Tribes, and other nations.
Renewable Energy Programs -80 The Budget proposes to eliminate support for renewable energy deployment.
USFWS Ecological Services -37 USFWS’ Ecological Services program and NOAA’s National Marine Fisheries Service Office of Protected Resources are jointly responsible for administering the Endangered Species Act and the Marine Mammal Protection Act. The Budget consolidates these two programs into a single program housed within DOI with significantly reduced funding.
Federal Wildland Fire Service (consolidation of USDA and DOI Wildland Fire Management programs under a unified agency within DOI) -- Federal wildfire risk mitigation and suppression responsibilities currently are split across five agencies in two departments: the U.S. Forest Service in USDA and BIA, Bureau of Land Management, USFWS, and NPS in DOI. The Budget consolidates the Federal wildland fire responsibilities into a single new Federal Wildland Fire Service at DOI, including transferring USDA’s current wildland fire management responsibilities.
Environmental Protection Agency (EPA)
Program Name $ Change Enacted from 2025 (in millions) Brief Description of Program and Recommended Reduction or Increase
Increases
Drinking Water Programs +9 The Budget provides $124 million in funding for the drinking water mission at EPA. The $9 million increase from the 2025 enacted level is to equip EPA with funds to respond to drinking water disasters.
Indian Reservation Drinking Water Program +27 The Budget increases funding for Tribes to retain access to funding for drinking water and wastewater infrastructure on their lands, with a total level of $31 million for the grant program.
Cuts, Reductions, and Consolidations
Clean and Drinking Water State Revolving Loan Funds -2,460 The Budget provides the decreased funding level of $305 million total.
Categorical Grants -1,006 The Budget includes the elimination of 16 categorical grants, and maintains funding at 2025 enacted levels for Tribes.
Hazardous Substance Superfund -254 The IIJA and the Inflation Reduction Act helped finance the Superfund program.
Office of Research and Development -235 The Budget puts an end to research grants, environmental justice work, climate research, and modeling that influences regulations. The Budget provides $281 million.
Environmental Justice -100 EPA’s environmental justice program is eliminated in line with the vision the President set forth in Executive Order 14151, “Ending Radical and Wasteful Government DEI Programs and Preferencing,” and Executive Order 14173, “Ending Illegal Discrimination and Restoring Merit-Based Opportunity.”
Diesel Emissions Reduction Act (DERA) Grants -90 This program is eliminated.
Atmospheric Protection Program -100 The Atmospheric Protection Program imposes climate change regulations. This program is eliminated in the 2026 Budget.
Small Agency Eliminations
Cuts, Reductions, and Consolidations
  • 400 Years of African American History Commission
  • Corporation for National and Community Service (operating as AmeriCorps)
  • Corporation for Public Broadcasting
  • Federal Mediation and Conciliation Service
  • Institute of Museum and Library Sciences
  • Inter-American Foundation
  • Marine Mammal Commission
  • National Endowment for the Arts
  • National Endowment for the Humanities
  • Neighborhood Reinvestment Corporation
  • U.S. African Development Foundation
  • U.S. Agency for Global Media
  • U.S. Institute of Peace
  • U.S. Interagency Council on Homelessness
  • Woodrow Wilson Center
  • Presidio Trust
-3,586 The Budget includes the elimination of, or the elimination of Federal funding for, the following small agencies. Agencies in bold are in this appropriations bill.
  • Delta Regional Authority
  • Denali Commission
  • Northern Border Regional Commission
  • Southeast Crescent Regional Commission
  • Southwest Border Regional Commission
  • Great Lakes Authority
The Budget eliminates six small regional commissions. The Budget continues funding for Appalachian Regional Commission’s (ARC) operations at $14 million.
Office of Navajo and Hopi Indian Relocation (ONHIR) -2 The budget closes this office.
House Appropriations Committee
   Interior, Environment, and Related Agencies Subcommittee

06/23/2025 at 05:30PM

Fiscal Year 2026 Budget Request for the Department of Justice

Subcommittee budget hearing.

Witness:

  • Pamela Bondi, Attorney General, Department of Justice

DOJ plans to close two Environment and Natural Resources Division offices in Sacramento and San Francisco.

Budget request

Detailed budget request

Program Name $ Change from 2025 Enacted (in millions) Brief Description of Program and Recommended Reduction or Increase
Department of Justice (DOJ)
Cuts, Reductions, and Consolidations
Reduce State and Local Grant Programs -1,019 The Budget proposes to eliminate nearly 40 DOJ grant programs. The Budget eliminates programs such as Community Based Approaches to Advancing Justice, as well as programs that focus on hate crimes. Further, the Budget cuts Violence Against Women Act funding.
Cut the FBI -545 The Budget reflects a new focus on counterintelligence and counterterrorism, while reducing non-law enforcement missions, including DEI programs and intelligence activities.
DEA International Capacity -212 The Budget targets DEA’s foreign spending to Mexico, Central America, South America, and China.
Refocus ATF Enforcement and Regulatory Priorities -468 The Budget cuts funding for ATF offices and background checks.
General Legal Activities -193 The Budget focuses funding for General Legal Activities on the Civil Division ($441 million), and the Criminal Division ($220 million). The Budget reduces funding for the Civil Rights Division ($107 million, a cut of $4 million) and the Environment and Natural Resources Division ($90 million, a cut of $26 million and reduction of 79 attorneys).
House Appropriations Committee
   Commerce, Justice, Science, and Related Agencies Subcommittee
2362-B Rayburn

06/23/2025 at 02:00PM

End the Oligarchy, Save Our Futures Campaign Launch

No matter our skin tone or zip code, we all want a stable future, enough money in our pockets, and a government where everyday people – not billionaires – call the shots.

But, oil billionaires are poisoning our air, polluting our water, and turbocharging the climate crisis so they can keep making millions. And, they’re bankrolling Trump’s rise to power.

We’re launching our new campaign to take on Big Oil’s power and make them — not working people — pay for the rising costs of climate disasters.

And we’re building a powerful movement of young people who can disrupt business as usual to fight authoritarianism and remake our political system so we can stop the climate crisis and win a Green New Deal.

Speakers:

  • Aru Shiney-Ajay, Sunrise
  • Rep. Ro Khanna (D-Calif.)
  • Nico Gardner Serna, Sunrise Los Angeles
  • Keanu Arpels-Josiah, Fridays For Future NYC
  • and actress and climate activist Hannah Einbinder

Join us Wednesday to hear the full plan, and join the fight.

A watch party in Washington, D.C. begins at 7 pm.

Sunrise Movement
06/18/2025 at 08:30PM

DC Watch Party for End the Oligarchy, Save Our Futures Campaign Launch

Join Sunrise DC as we tune in to the national campaign launch of Make Polluters Pay. Expect food and fun activities!

Oil billionaires are poisoning our air, polluting our water, and turbocharging the climate crisis so they can keep making millions. They’re bankrolling Trump’s rise to power and betting we won’t fight back while they continue to get rich. No more.

Learn how we’ll make Big Oil pay up to fund green jobs, clean energy, and bright futures, while fucking over Trump.

In-person location and zoom link available upon sign-up.

Located in the Capitol Hill area- sign up for more details.

Sunrise DC
District of Columbia
06/18/2025 at 07:00PM

Modernizing America’s Rail Network

U.S. Senator Todd Young (R-Ind.), Chairman of the Senate Commerce Committee’s Subcommittee on Surface Transportation, Freight, Pipelines, and Safety, will convene a subcommittee hearing titled “On the Right Track: Modernizing America’s Rail” on Wednesday, June 18, 2025, at 10:00 a.m. EST. This hearing will examine the state of the U.S. freight and passenger rail network, with an emphasis on enhancing safety, improving efficiency, fostering innovation, and ensuring the long-term viability of the nation’s rail infrastructure to move American energy, goods, and people. The hearing will explore avenues for meaningful regulatory and policy reforms in the context of the upcoming surface transportation reauthorization.

Witnesses:

  • Ian Jefferies, President and Chief Executive Officer, Association of American Railroads
  • Peter Gilbertson, President and Chief Executive Officer, Anacostia Rail Holdings Company; on behalf of the American Short Line and Regional Railroad Association
  • Husein Cumber, Senior Advisor, Brightline Holdings
  • Clarence Anthony, Chief Executive Officer and Executive Director, National League of Cities
Senate Commerce, Science, and Transportation Committee
   Surface Transportation, Freight, Pipelines, and Safety Subcommittee
253 Russell

06/18/2025 at 10:00AM

The President's Budget Request for the U.S. Department of Energy for Fiscal Year 2026

The purpose of the hearing is to examine the President’s budget request for the U.S. Department of Energy for Fiscal Year 2026.

Witness:

  • Chris Wright, Secretary of Energy

Budget request

Department of Energy
Program Name $ Change from 2025 Enacted (in millions) Brief Description of Program and Recommended Reduction or Increase
Cuts, Reductions, and Consolidations
IIJA Cancellation -15,247 The Budget cancels over $15 billion in funds committed to build renewable energy, removing carbon dioxide from the air, and other technologies. The Budget also ends programs for electric vehicle and battery makers and cancels the Carbon Dioxide Transportation Infrastructure Finance and Innovation Act.
Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy (EERE) -2,572 The Budget reorients EERE programs to early-stage research and development programming, eliminating funding for Justice40. This proposal would support technologies that promote fossil-fuel and nuclear power and bioenergy.
Office of Science -1,148 The Budget reduces funding for climate change and renewable energy research. The Budget maintains priority areas such as high-performance computing, artificial intelligence, quantum information science, fusion, and critical minerals.
Environmental Management (EM) -389 The EM program performs activities at 14 active cleanup sites and operates a geologic disposal facility (Waste Isolation Pilot Plant near Carlsbad, New Mexico). The EM topline is being reduced by $389 million, which reflects a reduction of about $178 million for the transfer of responsibility from the EM program to the National Nuclear Security Administration for the Savannah River site in South Carolina, where plutonium pit production capabilities would be developed. The Budget maintains the Hanford site in Washington at the 2025 enacted level but reduces funding for various cleanup activities at other sites.
Advanced Research Project Agency‒ Energy (ARPA-E) -260 The Budget reduces funding for ARPA-E, limiting support to research advancing fossil-fuel technologies and other technologies. Pollution-reducing technologies are not supported.
Office of Nuclear Energy -408 The Budget reduces funding for research on nuclear energy. Funding priorities include innovative concepts for nuclear reactors, researching advanced nuclear fuels, and maintaining the capabilities of the Idaho National Laboratory.
Office of Fossil Energy -270 The Budget restores the name and function of the Office of Fossil Energy to its original purpose, which is funding for the research of technologies that could produce an abundance of domestic fossil energy and critical minerals.
Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee
366 Dirksen

06/18/2025 at 10:00AM

Testify Against Washington Gas's Latest Cash-Grab

Washington Gas wants to add $215 million to our gas bills to pay for their project to lock the District into dirty methane gas for decades. But YOU can speak out to stop them!

Join us and testify against Washington Gas’s money-making District (un)SAFE plan at upcoming community hearings hosted by the Public Service Commission! Sign up to let us know you’re coming. We’ll follow up with you to share our testimony guide, connect you with experienced testifiers for help, and make sure you know where to find us on hearing day.

D.C Public Service Commission Hearing Room, 1325 G Street, NW, 8th Floor, Washington, D.C. 20005

RSVP today

Chesapeake Climate Action Network
District of Columbia
06/17/2025 at 05:30PM