On Monday, April 22, 2024, at 12:00 p.m. (MDT), the Subcommittee on
Federal Lands will hold an oversight field
hearing
titled “Empowering Local Voices and Stopping Federal Overreach to
Improve the Management of Utah’s Public Lands.” The hearing will examine
the variety of challenges facing local, Western communities surrounded
by significant footprints of federal land.
This hearing will be held at The Rock Bowl, 5665 West Clubhouse Drive,
Hurricane, Utah.
On the 80th anniversary of the World Bank and
IMF, people from around the world are coming
together to say that it’s time to put people and planet first and
decolonize and decarbonize our global economy.
While finance ministers from around the world meet inside the World
Bank, we will be on the streets, joining forces with allies from the
Global South to amplify calls for an end to fossil fuel finance, debt
cancellation, and climate justice.
Tell IMF & World Bank: 80 years of financial
colonialism is enough! On Friday, April 19th, the Debt for Climate
movement is mobilizing around the world to demand debt cancellation for
the Global South during the International Monetary Fund and World Bank
Spring Meetings in Washington, DC. Support the fight for global economic
& climate justice; join our direct
action
bringing our message straight to the delegates going into one of the
most central sessions of the IMF & World Bank
meetings.
Meet us at 7:30 am on Friday, April 19th at 1700 K St NW, Washington,
DC 20006.
Subcommittee
hearing
entitled “Oversight of the Biden Administration’s Pause on Liquified
Natural Gas Exports”. This hearing will examine all aspects of the pause
on new permits of LNG to non-Free Trade
Agreement countries, which affects American companies’ ability to secure
necessary permits, construction, and capitalization of new
LNG projects.
Dr. Robert M. Califf, Commissioner of Food and Drugs, Food and Drug
Administration
The FY 2025 President’s Budget provides $8.0
million for Modernization of Cosmetics Implementation, for the Office of
the Chief Scientist (OCS). These resources will be used to hire
additional staff for continued strategic coordination and implementation
of the Modernization of Cosmetics Regulation Act of 2022 (MoCRA).
Resources will be used for activities to develop proposed and/or final
regulations (for Good Manufacturing Practices, asbestos testing of
talc-containing cosmetics products, and disclosing fragrance allergens
on labeling) and compliance policies. Funds will also be used to
maintain and update submission platforms to address MoCRA provisions for
registration, product listing, and adverse event reporting, as well as
review of such information to ensure industry compliance with those
requirements. The new funding would also support hiring additional
experts to manage critical projects such as assessments of the use of
perfluoroalkyl and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) in cosmetic
products. FDA will hire staff across
OCS and the Office of Cosmetics and Colors to
enable FDA to work toward a modernized
cosmetics regulatory program.
In May 2023, FDA shared testing results for
per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) in 186 samples from two
regional collections from the Total Diet Study (TDS).31
PFAS was detected in two cod and two shrimp
samples, and one sample each of tilapia, salmon, and ground beef. For
the samples where PFAS was detected, each type
of PFAS for which there are toxicological
reference values (TRVs) was assessed individually.
FDA has concluded that exposure to the
PFAS at the levels measured in the seven
samples are not likely to be a health concern for young children or the
general population. These data are consistent with previous
TDS testing results; no
PFAS have been detected in over 97 percent
(701 out of 718) of the fresh and processed foods tested from the
TDS. At least one type of
PFAS was detected in 44 percent (14 out of 32)
of the TDS seafood samples and in 74 percent
(60 out of 81) of the samples from the 2022 targeted seafood survey.
FDA is committed to maintaining the
availability of safe seafood, as it provides key nutrients for children
and adults. The Agency will continue to engage with industry and apply
the latest science to increase our understanding of the levels of
PFAS in seafood, the reasons for the
differences within and across types of seafood, and to help identify
strategies that can reduce PFAS in seafood. In
addition, FDA is available to provide
technical assistance to industry as laboratories work to expand their
analytical capabilities to test for PFAS in
seafood. Since 2019, FDA has expanded its
testing methodology from 16 to now 30 types of
PFAS in 2023. The Agency is also expanding its
research effort by using high resolution mass spectrometry (HRMS). This
will allow FDA to determine which additional
types of PFAS, beyond those tested for with
the current method, are present in foods and should be included in
targeted methods going forward. As part of
FDA’s technical assistance to states, the
Agency is contributing to research to understand how
PFAS is taken up by plants, and how
PFAS concentrations vary between plants and
parts of a plant. This is an area of research that may help make
significant reductions in PFAS exposure from
food. For example, by studying PFAS uptake,
researchers may help identify plants that can be safely grown in
contaminated soil without PFAS uptake to the
edible portion of the plant.
House Appropriations Committee
Senate Appropriations Committee
Agriculture, Rural Development, Food and Drug Administration, and Related Agencies Subcommittee
On Thursday, April 18, 2024, at 9:00 a.m., in Room 1324 Longworth House
Office Building, the Committee on Natural Resources, Subcommittee on
Energy and Mineral Resources will hold an oversight
hearing
titled “Assessing Solutions to Secure America’s Offshore Energy Future.”
This hearing will focus on the Bureau of Ocean Energy Management’s
(BOEM) approach to resource
assessments,
particularly offshore oil and gas reserves on the Outer Continental
Shelf.
Subcommittee
hearing
on the FY 2025NASA
budget request of $25.3
billion, including $7.6 billion for science.
Witness:
Bill Nelson, Administrator, National Aeronautics and Space
Administration
This request proposes $2.4 billion to fund Earth science and
observations that enhance our understanding of the Earth system and
continues efforts to make data more accessible and useful to a wide
range of stakeholders, including scientists and policymakers. This
request also includes over $500 million in Aeronautics to improve
aircraft efficiency and reduce the climate impact of aviation.
House Appropriations Committee
Senate Appropriations Committee
Commerce, Justice, Science, and Related Agencies Subcommittee
Subcommittee
hearing
to examine the President’s proposed budget request for fiscal year 2025
for the Department of Defense and Future Years Defense Program. The
budget request is $849.8
billion.
Witnesses
Lloyd J. Austin III, Secretary of Defense,
Department of Defense
General Charles Q. Brown, Jr., Chairman, Joint Chiefs of Staff
Michael McCord, Under Secretary of Defense (Comptroller)/ Chief
Financial Officer, Department of Defense
On Wednesday, April 17, 2024, at 10:00 a.m., in room 1324 Longworth
House Office Building, the Subcommittee on Federal Lands will hold a
legislative
hearing
on the following bill:
Discussion Draft of H.R.
___
(Rep. Westerman), “To expedite under the National Environmental Policy
Act of 1969 and improve forest management activities on National
Forest System lands, on public lands under the jurisdiction of the
Bureau of Land Management, and on Tribal lands to return resilience to
overgrown, fire-prone forested lands, and for other purposes.”
Chris French, Deputy Chief of the National Forest System, U.S. Forest
Service
Panel II (Outside Experts):
Cody Desautel, President, Intertribal Timber Council, & Executive
Director, Confederated Tribes of the Colville Reservation, Nespelem,
Washington
Hannah Downey, Policy Director, Property and Environment Research
Center, Bozeman, Montana
Jim Parma, Eastern Fiber Manager, Bell Lumber and Pole, New Brighton,
Minnesota
Dr. Kimiko Barrett, Wildfire Research and Policy Lead, Headwaters
Economics, Bozeman, Montana [Minority Witness]
From the GOP
memo:
Unprecedented drought facing the West has further weakened overgrown
national forests, leaving them extremely vulnerable to wildfire.
Recent research has shown that some areas are experiencing the driest
conditions in 1,200 years.7 These conditions have turned vast swaths
of the nation’s forests into ticking time bombs that can ignite with a
single spark. It is no longer a matter of “if” these areas will
experience catastrophic wildfire but “when.”
“We know what needs to be done to turn the tide of this crisis and
restore our forests to healthy, resilient conditions. Despite the
fearmongering of increasingly isolated, radical environmentalists,
there is a scientific consensus among a broad array of stakeholders
recognizing the importance of active forest management. . . The
National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA), in particular, is a major
roadblock in improving the health of our nation’s forests.”
