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How Congress will attempt the biggest expansion of U.S. social programs since FDR
WASHINGTON — The U.S. Senate this week passed a massive bipartisan infrastructure bill and an even larger budget blueprint that would pave the way for historic changes in U.S. health, education, climate and tax policies. The two measures are roped to each other, reflecting Democrats’ strategy to pass what could be bipartisan with Republicans—and to […]
U.S. Senate OKs $1.2T bipartisan infrastructure bill
The U.S. Senate on Tuesday passed a sweeping bipartisan $1.2 trillion infrastructure package, a milestone for one of President Joe Biden’s priorities after months of negotiation. Biden proposed an infrastructure plan in March that would have topped $2 trillion. A bipartisan group of senators led by Rob Portman (R-Ohio) and Kyrsten Sinema (D-Ariz.) worked out […]
Stone-Manning nomination set to advance to U.S. Senate after emotions run high at committee vote
In a contentious meeting that distilled a weeks-long fight, the U.S. Senate Energy & Natural Resources Committee deadlocked 10-10 along party lines Thursday on approving Tracy Stone-Manning’s nomination as head of the Bureau of Land Management. That means an extra procedural vote will be forced before the full U.S. Senate takes up the nomination of […]
Conflicting versions of tree-spiking case overshadow Stone-Manning nomination
Tracy Stone-Manning and a former federal investigator during the past few days shared widely varying accounts of her involvement in a 1989 tree-spiking in an Idaho national forest, as the fight over the Montanan’s nomination to lead the U.S. Bureau of Land Management escalated. Stone-Manning’s confirmation remains stuck in a divided U.S. Senate Energy & […]
Biden public lands nominee opposed by GOP over link to 1989 tree-spiking in Idaho
Republicans in the U.S. Senate are ramping up opposition to President Joe Biden’s pick to lead the Bureau of Land Management after a conservative news site and other news reports detailed her connection to an Idaho tree-spiking scheme three decades ago.
U.S. House panel probes slow cleanup of ‘exploited’ coal mining sites
A U.S. House Natural Resources subcommittee examined the cleanup needs for regions transitioning away from coal production Tuesday, with witnesses representing coal workers and Native American communities saying energy companies should be responsible for returning the land to its pre-mining state.
Biden’s public lands pick wins backing by environmental advocates ahead of hearing
Environmental groups are lining up behind President Joe Biden’s nominee to lead the Bureau of Land Management prior to her Tuesday confirmation hearing.
National parks struggling with maintenance would get a boost under Biden budget request
Basic needs at the largest U.S. national parks top the Biden administration’s first proposed lists of projects to receive funding through public lands trust funds, showing how much maintenance is needed even as parks brace for record numbers of visitors this summer. The projects likely wouldn’t be visible to the usual tourist, but they are […]
Nominee to oversee U.S. parks and wildlife pledges commitment to conservation
Shannon Estenoz, tapped by President Joe Biden to oversee management of U.S. wildlife and parks, on Wednesday repeated the administration’s promises to increase access to outdoor recreation, use conservation for job creation and collaborate with states and private landowners. Asked by members of the U.S. Senate Environment and Public Works Committee at her confirmation hearing […]
Migratory bird protections to be permanently restored by Biden administration
The Interior Department plans to officially revoke a Trump-era rule that loosened enforcement of a longstanding law to protect migratory birds, the department said Thursday. The rule put in place by former Interior Secretary David Bernhardt barred government authorities from holding companies liable for environmental violations leading to the deaths of birds protected under the […]
Biden’s ‘30 by 30’ conservation plan urges collaboration with private landowners
The Biden administration plans to broadly define conservation and encourage private landowners to adopt sustainable practices to meet a goal of protecting 30 percent of the land and water in the U.S. by 2030, according to a multi-agency report published Thursday. The recommendations are short of the most aggressive federal directives congressional Republicans feared would be […]
No details yet on Biden conservation plan, but Republicans slam it as a ‘land grab’
Republicans on the U.S. House Natural Resources Committee on Tuesday previewed their objections to the Biden administration’s still-unreleased plan to conserve 30% of U.S. land and water by 2030. President Joe Biden created what is commonly called the “30 by 30 plan” in a Jan. 27 executive order, but the administration hasn’t released details about how […]