House Committee on Natural Resources
January 2024 - June 2024
MID-YEAR REPORT
H½²e Ck¸¸ee Na¸½®a Re²½®ce² Re«½bkca² a®e
dedkca¸ed ¸ «½¸¸kg c²e®Ôa¸kÔe² bac~ k¸
c²e®Ôa¸kH Wk¸h a z½®k²dkc¸k ec«a²²kg ee®gÛ
«®d½c¸kI kkgI fk²he®ke²I ÕkdkfeI «½bkc ad²I
cea²I Na¸kÔe Ae®kca²I f®e²¸²I k®®kga¸k ad
®ecaa¸k ad ®eI ½® k²²½e² a®e k«®¸a¸ ¸ eÔe®Û
Ae®kcaH
Skce ¸a~kg bac~ ¸he az®k¸Û k I ¸he ck¸¸ee ha²
adÔaced egk²a¸k ¸ha¸ ½c~² acce²² ¸ ½® ®kch
a¸½®a ®e²½®ce²I ²«½®² kÔa¸k k ¸he «®kÔa¸e ²ec¸®I
«®¸e² c²e®Ôa¸k ad hd² ¸he Bkde adkk²¸®a¸k
acc½¸abeH
Bruce Westerman, Chairman
House Committee on Natural Resources
Sierra Vista, Arizona St. George, Utah Hayward, Wisconsin Sandstone, Minnesota
43 congressional hearings
4 field hearings oversight letters sent to the Biden administration
112 people reached on social media Republican bills passed through the committee 33
of a million
American voices amplified at hearings
CONSERVATION
America is blessed with an abundance of natural resources and we have a responsibility to steward them well, managing them in ways that benefit all Americans.
Case Study:
America's
Wildlife Habitat Conservation Act
I Feb®½a®ÛI Chak®a B®½ce We²¸e®a WR]A®~HX k¸®d½ced ¸he Ae®kcag² Wkdkfe Habk¸a¸ C²e®Ôa¸k Ac¸ WAWHCAXI
Õhkch Õk kÔe²¸ $ kk a½aÛ k g®a¸ f½dkg ¸ ²¸a¸e² f® Õkdkfe habk¸a¸ c²e®Ôa¸kI «®Ôkdkg addk¸ka
®e²½®ce² f® ²¸a¸e gÔe®e¸² ¸ eac¸ ¸hek®
cg®e²²kaÛ ada¸ed ²¸a¸e Õkdkfe ac¸k «a²H
S«eckfkcaÛI ¸he bk Õ½d f½d habk¸a¸ ®e²¸®a¸k ad
f®e²¸ aagee¸ «®zec¸²I ad «®¸e cab®a¸k Õk¸h
«®kÔa¸e «a®¸e®² ¸ c²e®Ôe habk¸a¸ f® a¸]®k²~ ad k²¸ed ²«ecke²H The AWHCA Õk a² «®Ôkde $ kk ¸ f½d habk¸a¸ ®e²¸®a¸k «®zec¸²I f®e²¸ aagee¸ «®zec¸² ad c²e®Ôa¸k eff®¸² ¸®kba ad²H
A ²«edkg k ¸he bk k² ff²e¸ ad Õk ²½²e¸ af¸e® fkÔe fk²ca Ûea®²H
INNOVATION
We will never be satisfied with the status quo, the “this is how we’ve always done it” approach. Our members are constantly finding opportunities to incentivize creative, efficient approaches in managing our natural resources.
Case Study: Fix Our Forests Act
Ae®kca f®e²¸² a®e k ze«a®dÛI Õk¸h ®e ¸ha kk ac®e² f f®e²¸² c½®®e¸Û Ôe®g®ÕI fk®e]«®e ad k eed f ac¸kÔe
aagee¸H T add®e²² ¸hk² c®k²k²I Chak®a B®½ce We²¸e®a WR]
A®~HX ad Re«H Sc¸¸ Pe¸e®² WD]CakfHX k¸®d½ced ¸he FkÚ O½® F®e²¸²
Ac¸H
The egk²a¸k k² a hk²¸®kc «ac~age ¸ha¸ Õk ec½®age ac¸kÔe f®e²¸
aagee¸ ad ²½««®¸ c½k¸Û ®e²kkecÛ ¸ Õkdfk®e² bÛ
eÚ«edk¸kg eÔk®e¸a aaÛ²e²I ®ed½ckg f®kÔ½² aÕ²½k¸² ad kc®ea²kg ¸he «ace ad ²cae f f®e²¸ ®e²¸®a¸k «®zec¸²H
The FkÚ O½® F®e²¸² Ac¸ ²½««®¸² a «k¸ «®g®a f® ¸e²¸kg eÕ ad kÔa¸kÔe Õkdfk®e «®eÔe¸kI de¸ec¸kI c½kca¸k ad
k¸kga¸k ¸echgke²H U²kg d®e² ad a®¸kfkcka k¸ekgece ad
Se f ¸he bk² kc½ded k ¸he FkÚ O½® F®e²¸² Ac¸ a®eJ
The F®e²¸ I«®Ôee¸² ¸h®½gh Re²ea®ch ad Ee®gecÛ S¸eÕa®d²hk« f® Hea¸hÛ
Ec²Û²¸e DeÔe«e¸ ad S½²¸akabkk¸Û WFIRESHEDSX Ac¸I ²«²®ed bÛ UHSH Re«H Ba~e
M®e WR]U¸ahX
The T®ea¸kg T®kbe² ad C½¸ke² a² Gd Nekghb®² Ac¸I ²«²®ed bÛ UHSH Re«H R½²²
F½che® WR]IdahX
The P®Ôe F®e²¸ Maagee¸ Ac¸I ²«²®ed bÛ UHSH Re«H T McCk¸c~ WR]CakfHX
The F®e²¸ If®a¸k Ref® Ac¸I ²«²®ed bÛ UHSH Re«H Ma¸¸ R²edae WR]M¸HX
The Acc½®a¸eÛ C½¸kg Rk²~ Ekka¸k S½¸k² WACRESX Ac¸I ²«²®ed bÛ UHSH Re«H T
TkffaÛ WR]Wk²HX
The Wkdfk®e TechgÛ De²¸®a¸kI EÔa½a¸kI Mde®käa¸kI ad O«¸kkäa¸k WDEMOX
Ac¸I ²«²®ed bÛ UHSH Re«H Y½g Kk WR]CakfHX
The LcaÛ Led Re²¸®a¸k Ac¸ f I ²«²®ed bÛ UHSH Re«H D½g Lab® WR]CHX
The FkÚ O½® F®e²¸² Ac¸ «a²²ed ½¸ f ¸he ck¸¸ee J½e I H
ACCESS
Public lands and natural resources belong to all Americans and our policies are rooted in the principle that no one –either now or in the future – should be prohibited from enjoying their benefits.
Case Study: EXPLORE Act
The EÚ«adkg P½bkc Lad² O½¸d® Rec®ea¸k EÚ«e®kece²
WEXPLOREX Ac¸ k² a Õkde]®eachkg «kece f egk²a¸k ¸ha¸
Õk k«®Ôe ¸he kÔe² f ½¸d®²e ad Õe Õhke a²
eÚ«adkg acce²² ¸ Ae®kcag² «½bkc ad² ad Õa¸e®²H
I¸®d½ced bÛ Chak®a B®½ce We²¸e®a WR]A®~HXI ¸hk²
egk²a¸k Õk eÚ«ad «½bkc ad acce²²I de®käe
¸echgÛ ¸ k«®Ôe Ôk²k¸® eÚ«e®kece²I ²¸®eake ¸he
«e®k¸¸kg «®ce²²I ²½««®¸ ga¸eÕaÛ c½k¸ke²I ad
k«®Ôe acce²²kbkk¸Û f® kk¸a®Û ²e®Ôkce ebe®²I Ôe¸e®a²I
kdkÔkd½a² Õk¸h dk²abkk¸ke² ad chkd®eH
The EXPLORE Ac¸ k² ²½««®¸ed bÛ ®e ¸ha ½¸d®
®gakäa¸k²I kc½dkg adÔca¸e² f® h½¸kgI fk²hkgI h®²ebac~ ®kdkgI ®ec®ea¸ka ba¸kgI ca«kgI ®c~ ckbkg ad ®eH
I A«®k I ¸he H½²e f Re«®e²e¸a¸kÔe² «a²²ed ¸he
egk²a¸k Õk¸h Ôe®Õhekg bk«a®¸k²a ²½««®¸H I¸ aÕak¸²
ac¸k k ¸he Sea¸eH
The Mkk¸a®Û ad Ve¸e®a² k Pa®~² WMVPX Ac¸I ²«²®ed bÛ UHSH Re«²H Je Kkgga² WR]VaHX ad
Sc¸¸ Pe¸e®² WD]CakfHX
The P®¸kg Acce²²kbkk¸Û Fede®a Lad² Ac¸ f I ²«²®ed bÛ UHSH Re«²H J½a
Ck²cak WR]A®käHX ad Meake S¸a²b½®Û WD]NHMHX
The I«®Ôkg O½¸d® Rec®ea¸k C®dka¸k Ac¸I ²«²®ed bÛ UHSH Re«²H Mk~e LaÕe® WR]
NHYHX ad Je Neg½²e WD]CHX
The Ae®kca Ba¸¸efked P®¸ec¸k P®g®a Ehacee¸ Ac¸ f I ²«²®ed bÛ UHSH Re«²H
Ek²e S¸efak~ WR]NHYHX ad Ge®®Û CÛ WD]VaHX
The F®e²¸ Se®Ôkce FeÚkbe H½²kg Pa®¸e®²hk«² Ac¸ f I ²«²®ed bÛ UHSH Re«²H La½®e
Bebe®¸ WR]CHX ad Je Neg½²e WD]CHX
The Ge¸ ReÕa®dkg O½¸d® W®~ f® ½® Ve¸e®a² WGROWX Ac¸I ²«²®ed bÛ UHSH Re«²H Rb
Wk¸¸a WR]VaHX ad Mk~e LeÔk WD]CakfHX
The Bk~kg Lg]Dk²¸ace T®ak² WBOLTX Ac¸I ²«²®ed bÛ UHSH Re«²H Jh C½®¸k² WR]U¸ahX ad
Je Neg½²e WD]CHX
The Ga¸eÕaÛ C½k¸Û ad Rec®ea¸k Ehacee¸ Ac¸I ²«²®ed bÛ UHSH Re«²H RÛa Zk~e
WR]M¸HX ad Ma®Û Pe¸a WD]Aa²~aX
The P®¸ec¸kg Ae®kcag² Rc~ Ckbkg Ac¸I ²«²®ed bÛ UHSH Re«²H Jh C½®¸k² WR]U¸ahX ad
Je Neg½²e WD]CHX
The Cec¸ O½® Pa®~² Ac¸I ²«²®ed bÛ UHSH Re«H Jh C½®¸k² WR]U¸ahX
The Rage Acce²² Ac¸I ²«²®ed bÛ UHSH Re«²H Ba~e M®e WR]U¸ahX ad JkÛ Pae¸¸a WD] CakfHX
The Fede®a I¸e®k® Lad Medka WFILMX Ac¸I ²«²®ed bÛ UHSH Re«H R½²² F½che® WR]IdahX
The Sk«kfÛ O½¸d® Acce²² f® Rec®ea¸k Ac¸ WSOARX Ac¸I ²«²®ed bÛ UHSH Re«²H Jh C½®¸k²
WR]U¸ahX ad Je Neg½²e WD]CHX
TRANSPARENCY
Every decision made in Washington has implications for Americans across the country. Federal agencies must be transparent and engaged, with not only Congress, but also with the people and communities these agency actions impact.
Case Study: Floyd Bennett Field
Sept. 15, 2023
Chairman Westerman leads a letter to DOI Secretary Haaland and NPS Director Sams, rebuking the Biden administration's plan
Nov. 17, 2023
U.S. Rep. Nicole Malliotakis’ (R-N.Y) bill, the Protecting our Communities from Failure to Secure the Border Act of 2023, passes the House
Aug. 21, 2023
Biden administration enters lease with NYC to establish migrant camps on National Park Service land
Sept. 18, 2023
Chairman Westerman and other Republican members visit Floyd Bennett Field and the camp construction first hand
The Bkde adkk²¸®a¸kg² b®de® «kce² a®e ¸½®kg
eÔe®Û c½k¸Û a b®de® c½k¸ÛH I I ¸he
Bkde adkk²¸®a¸kg² kac¸k a¸ ¸he b®de® ®e²½¸ed k a kg®a¸ eca«e¸ a¸ FÛd Bee¸¸ FkedI k ¸he
Ga¸eÕaÛ Na¸ka Rec®ea¸k A®ea k NeÕ Y®~ Ck¸ÛH
¸hk² beÔed ®ec®ea¸k a®ea k¸ a kdefkk¸e
¸he UHSH H½²e f Re«®e²e¸a¸kÔe²
O½® C½k¸ke² f® Fak½®e ¸ Sec½®e ¸he B®de® Ac¸ f I ²«²®ed bÛ UHSH Re«H Nkce
Mak¸a~k² WR]NHYHXH The egk²a¸k «®hkbk¸² fede®a f½dkg f® bekg ½²ed ¸ h½²e kg®a¸² aÛ fede®a ad²H
The ck¸¸ee ha² a² ²e¸ däe² f Ôe®²kgh¸ ®e½e²¸² ¸ ¸he adkk²¸®a¸kH SeÔe®a haÔe ®e²½¸ed k ¸®a²c®kbed k¸e®ÔkeÕ² Õk¸h ¸« ffkcka²I kc½dkg e k J½e Õk¸h Rebecca S¸e®heI P®kck«a De«½¸Û A²²k²¸a¸ Sec®e¸a®Û a¸ ¸he UHSH De«a®¸e¸ f Head Sec½®k¸ÛH
The ck¸¸ee k² c¸k½kg ¸ kÔe²¸kga¸e ad Õk hd ¸he Bkde adkk²¸®a¸k acc½¸abe f® ¸hek® fak½®e² a¸ ¸he b®de® ad ¸he k²½²e f ½® «½bkc ad²H
UNLOCKING AMERICAN ENERGY AND MINERALS
By Rep. Bruce Westerman
Oe f ¸he defkkg a¸¸e®² f ½® ¸ke k² ee®gÛ ²ec½®k¸Û ad aff®dabkk¸ÛH I a Õ®d k Õhkch Chka ad R½²²ka a®e a¸¸e«¸kg ¸ ¸a~e Ôe® ¸he gba ee®gÛ ²¸age dakÛI Ae®kca ½²¸ ®eak ¸he Õ®d eade® k ee®gÛ «®d½c¸kI eÚ«®¸a¸kI ad kÔa¸kH
Fighting Biden’s war on American energy
By Rep. Daniel Webster I ®eak ck¸¸ed ¸ eb®ackg kÔa¸k ad «®¸kg ee®gÛ ade k Ae®kca Õk¸h Ae®kca Õ®~e®² ad b®kgkg dÕ «®kce² f® c²½e®²H
S½b²c®kbe ad fÕ ¸ ~ee« ½« Õk¸h ½® ebe®²H
MEMBER HIGHLIGHTS
Several of the committee-led bills that passed on the House floor in 2024
Rob Wittman, Virginia
HHRH I Õhkch ®e½k®e² ¸he
Dk®ec¸® f ¸he B½®ea½ f
Lad Maagee¸ ¸
Õk¸hd®aÕ ¸he «®«²ed
®½e ®ea¸kg ¸ f½kd ke®a
ea²e² ad ®eI passed the House March 2024
John Curtis, Utah
HHRH I Õhkch
®e½k®e² ¸he Dk®ec¸® f ¸he
B½®ea½ f Lad Maagee¸
¸ Õk¸hd®aÕ a ®½e f ¸he
BLM ®ea¸kg ¸ c²e®Ôa¸k
ad ad²ca«e hea¸hI passed the House April 2024
Juan Ciscomani, Arizona
HHRH I Õhkch ®ea½¸h®käe²
¸he M®®k² KH Uda ad S¸eÕa®¸ LH
Uda T®½²¸ F½dI passed the House February 2024
HHRH I Õhkch «®hkbk¸² ¸he
Sec®e¸a®Û f ¸he I¸e®k® ad
¸he Sec®e¸a®Û f Ag®kc½¸½®e
f® «®hkbk¸kg ¸he ½²e f
ead a½k¸k ® ¸ac~e
ce®¸ak fede®a ad ®
Õa¸e® ½de® ¸he z½®k²dkc¸k
f ¸he Sec®e¸a®Û f ¸he
I¸e®k® ad ¸he Sec®e¸a®Û f
Ag®kc½¸½®eI passed the House April 2024
Lauren Boebert, Colorado Amata Coleman Radewagen, America Samoa
HHRH I Õhkch aed² ¸he
S½¸h Packfkc T½a Ac¸ f I passed the House April 2024
Pete Stauber, Minnesota
HHRH I Õhkch ®ek²¸a¸e²
ke®a ea²e² ad «e®k¸² k
¸he S½«e®k® Na¸ka F®e²¸I passed the House April 2024
Harriet Hageman, Wyoming
HHRH I Õhkch dk®ec¸² ¸he
Sec®e¸a®Û f ¸he I¸e®k® ¸
cÔeÛ ¸ ¸he MkdÔae
I®®kga¸k Dk²¸®kc¸ ¸he Pk¸
B½¸¸e PÕe® Pa¸ k ¸he
²¸a¸e f WÛkgI passed the House February 2024
HHRH I Õhkch ½kfke² aÛ
®de® ® ac¸k bÛ ¸he «®e²kde¸
® ¸he De«a®¸e¸ f ¸he I¸e®k®
¸ha¸ «ace² a ®a¸®k½ I
²½²«ed²I ® ¸he®Õk²e «a½²e²
ea²kg k ANWR'² A®eaI passed the House May 2024
Chak®a We²¸e®a ed ¸he ]Ûea® ®eeÕa f ¸he C«ac¸² f F®ee A²²cka¸k Aede¸² Ac¸ WCOFAX fÕkg ¸he Õ®~ f ¸he bk«a®¸k²a Id]Packfkc Ta²~ F®ce ad af¸e® eadkg a hk²¸®kc bk«a®¸k²a cg®e²²ka deega¸k WCODELX ¸ ¸he Id]Packfkc k A½g½²¸ H
Ae®kca ha² Ôk¸a ²ec½®k¸Û ad eckc k¸e®e²¸² ¸h®½gh½¸ ¸he Id]Packfkc ®egkI «a®¸kc½a®Û akd g®Õkg agg®e²²k f® ¸he Pe«eg² Re«½bkc f Chka ½de® ¸he Chke²e C½k²¸ Pa®¸Û WCCPXH COFA c½¸e®² ¸he CCPg² a¸¸e«¸² ¸ gak kf½ece k ¸he ®egkI ¸ Û ¸h®½gh eckc akd ad kf®a²¸®½c¸½®e deÔe«e¸ b½¸ a² bÛ ¸hek® a¸¸ac~² dec®a¸kc k²¸k¸½¸k²I ckÔk ²cke¸Û ad aÕf½ «®kÔa¸e f®ee e¸e®«®k²eH
Tha~² ¸ ¸he eade®²hk« f S«ea~e® Mk~e Jh²I COFA Õa² ²kged k¸ aÕ a² «a®¸ f ¸he C²kda¸ed A««®«®ka¸k² Ac¸I H
