For 2024, H.R. 5893 provides $58.7 billion, a <a
href=’https://democrats-appropriations.house.gov/news/press-releases/republicans-advance-bill-to-defund-law-enforcement-hurt-communities-advantage
‘>decrease of $25 billion – 29 percent – below 2023. The operating
budget of the National Weather Service is cut by 15 percent below the
current level. Nearly $1 billion is cut from
NOAA, while more than $400 million is cut from
the NASA Science account, and nearly a quarter
of a billion dollars is cut from the National Science Foundation
STEM Education account.
On Tuesday, November 14, 2023, at 2:00 p.m., in room 1324 Longworth
House Office Building, the Subcommittee on Federal Lands will hold a
legislative
hearing
on the following bills:
H.R. 4235 (Rep. Kim of CA), “Wildfire Technology Demonstration,
Evaluation, Modernization, and Optimization Act” or the “Wildfire
Technology DEMO Act”;
H.R. 4353 (Rep. Salinas), “Civilian Conservation Center Enhancement
Act of 2023”;
H.R. 4717 (Rep. Lamborn), “Locally Led Restoration Act of 2023”;
H.R. 5582 (Rep. Barr), “White Oak Resilience Act”;
H.R. 5665 (Rep. Stansbury), “Promoting Accessibility on Federal Lands
Act of 2023”;
H.R. 6070 (Rep. Amodei), To amend the Military Lands Withdrawal Act of
1999 to clarify the authority of Department of Defense to conduct
certain military activities at the Nevada test and training range, and
for other purposes; and
Discussion draft of H.R.
___
(Rep. Westerman),“Biochar Innovations and Opportunities for
Conservation, Health, and Advancements in Research Act” or the
“BIOCHAR Act”.
On Tuesday, November 14, 2023, at 10:30 a.m.
EST in room 1334 Longworth House Office
Building, the Committee on Natural Resources, Subcommittee on Water,
Wildlife and Fisheries will hold a legislative
hearing
on the following bills:
H.R.
4219
(Rep. Graves of Missouri), “Southwestern Power Administration Fund
Establishment Act”, to establish the Southwestern Power Administration
Fund;
H.R.
5770
(Rep. Neguse), “Water Data Improvement Act”, to reauthorize certain
United States Geological Survey water data enhancement programs;
H.R.
6107
(Rep. Simpson), “Urban Canal Modernization Act”, to authorize certain
extraordinary operation and maintenance work for urban canals of
concern; and
H.R.
6127
(Rep. Moore of Utah), “Modernizing Access to Our Public Waters Act” or
“MAPWaters Act”, to standardize mapping of recreation al boating and
fishing access to federal waterways
On Tuesday, November 14, 2023, at 10:30 a.m. in 2322 Rayburn House
Office Building, the Subcommittee on Environment, Manufacturing, and
Critical Materials will hold a
hearing
entitled “Clean Power Plan 2.0: EPA’s Effort
to Jeopardize Reliable and Affordable Energy for States.” The hearing
will examine State perspectives concerning the Environmental Protection
Agency’s (EPA’s) proposed greenhouse gas emissions standards for the
power sector and the reliable delivery of electricity.
On Tuesday, November 14, 2023, at 10:15 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 “Examining the Biden Administration’s Abandoned Mine Lands and
Active Mining Programs.”
Glenda Owens, Deputy Director, Office of Surface Mining, Reclamation
and Enforcement
Kyle Wendtland, Administrator, Wyoming Department of Environmental
Quality, Land Quality Division
Dustin Morin, Director, Mining and Reclamation Division, Alabama
Department of Labor
Benjamin McCament, Chief, Division of Mineral Resources Management,
Ohio Department of Natural Resources
Peter Morgan, Senior Attorney, Sierra Club Legislative Office
The two programs under Surface Mining Control and Reclamation Act
(SMCRA) regulating active coal mining and AML
reclamation are Title IV and Title V, respectively. Title IV of
SMCRA establishes the
AML Reclamation Program, which is funded by a
fee on each ton of coal produced. This fee has been reauthorized eight
times, most recently in 2021 under the Infrastructure Investment and
Jobs Act (IIJA), which lowered the fee level by 20 percent and
reauthorized it through September 30, 2034. The funds raised by these
fees are disbursed through a pre-set formula to states and tribes to
reclaim coal mines on their lands that were abandoned prior to the
enactment of SMCRA in 1977.4 The
IIJA also provided $11.3 billion in additional
funding for reclamation grants, distinct from the funds raised by the
preexisting SMCRA fee on coal production. For
active surface mining, SMCRA has Title V,
which regulates production and details requirements for states to
receive delegated authority to regulate coal mining in their state. As
Title IV funding is exclusively used for AML
reclamation, coal sites regulated under Title V are ineligible for
grants from the AML Reclamation Fund.
Subcommittee on Coast Guard and Maritime Transportation hearing
examining Coast Guard efforts in drug enforcement, illegal migration,
and illegal, unreported, and unregulated
fishing.
Witnesses:
Rear Admiral Jo-Ann Burdian, Assistant Commandant for Response Policy
(CG-5R), United States Coast Guard
Heather MacLeod, Director, Homeland Security and Justice, United
States Government Accountability Office
Full committee
hearing
to examine innovation in American agriculture, focusing on leveraging
technology and artificial intelligence.
Dr. Mason Earles, Assistant Professor, Viticulture & Enology;
Biological & Agricultural Engineering, Co-PI and Lead of Agricultural
Cluster, AI Institute for Next-Generation Food Systems, University of
California, Davis
Quick, what’s the difference between “carbon dioxide removal” (CDR) and
“carbon capture and storage” (CCS)? And what role might each play in
decarbonizing the global economy fast enough to avoid climate breakdown?
If you’re a climate journalist, you need to know the answers, especially
because CDR and CCS
will both be major bones of contention at
COP28 this November and December.
Get briefed by two of the world’s leading scientists and most gifted
climate communicators: Dr. Katharine Hayhoe, Chief Scientist of The
Nature Conservancy and Distinguished Professor at Texas Tech University,
and Sir David King, Emeritus Professor of Chemistry at the University of
Cambridge and former chief science adviser to the UK government. Join
us
Thursday, Nov. 9, from 12-1pm US Eastern Time.
All CCNow Talking Shops and press briefings are for journalists only,
and are recorded and published on our YouTube channel.
