Climate Change and the Environment

Reps. Don Beyer (D-VA) and David Cicilline (D-RI) today led 64 House Democrats calling for the immediate dismissal of EPA Administrator Scott Pruitt. In a letter to President Donald Trump, the Representatives raised Pruitt’s unethical behavior, wasteful use of taxpayer money, and numerous actions which contravened the EPA’s mission. The Representatives wrote: “Pruitt worked out a… Read more »

The cloud of scandal surrounding EPA Administrator Scott Pruitt continued to thicken in the week following the initial report that he got a special deal on his condo rent from an energy lobbyist, which apparently included free rent for his family. In response, calls from Members of Congress for Pruitt to resign are now bipartisan. Meanwhile a number of questions about Pruitt’s conduct in… Read more »

Today, U.S. Senators Tom Udall (D-N.M.) and Brian Schatz (D-Hawaii) and Representatives Don Beyer (D-Va.) and Ted Lieu (D-Calif.) wrote a letter to Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) Administrator Scott Pruitt asking him to personally answer several questions that have been raised about how he secured a special arrangement to rent a room in a Capitol Hill townhouse in 2017. According… Read more »

Today Reps. Ted Lieu (D-CA) and Don Beyer (D-VA) wrote to the Environmental Protection Agency’s Office of the Inspector General (OIG) seeking an immediate investigation into EPA Administrator Scott Pruitt’s questionable lease arrangement with an energy lobbyist. The Representatives wrote: “We are writing to request you investigate allegations that EPA Administrator Scott Pruitt received… Read more »

Today, Congressional Safe Climate Caucus co-chairs Reps. Alan Lowenthal and Don Beyer released the following statement after the Environmental Protection Agency announced its decision to roll back the clean car standards:  “By rolling back these clean car standards, President Trump and Scott Pruitt have again proved that they will prioritize deregulation over all else. Not all in… Read more »

Rep. Don Beyer today released the following statement after the Environmental Protection Agency announced that it would roll back the clean car standards as scandals continued to pile up around Administrator Scott Pruitt:  “Scott Pruitt’s decision to weaken our clean car standards will hurt Americans’ health, economy, and environment, but it may well help the bottom lines of the… Read more »

Rep. Don Beyer today issued the following statement calling for the resignation of Environmental Protection Agency Administrator Scott Pruitt: “From the first Scott Pruitt has conducted himself terribly, without regard for environmental protection or public safety. He has given free rein to lobbyists and industry insiders to sabotage the EPA’s mission. He has endeavored to corrupt the… Read more »

Today, Reps. Don Beyer (D-VA) and Carlos Curbelo (R-FL) led a bipartisan letter (11 Republicans, 73 Democrats) to the House Appropriations Committee calling for strong funding for the Department of Energy’s clean energy innovation programs: Advanced Research Projects Agency-Energy (ARPA-E) program; Energy Innovation Hubs; and Energy Frontier Research Centers (EFRCs). The bipartisan… Read more »

House Natural Resources Committee Ranking Member Raúl M. Grijalva (D-Ariz.), Rep. Don Beyer (D-Va.) and 53 House Democrats sent a letter to Interior Secretary Ryan Zinke today on the Trump administration’s recent announcement that the Department of the Interior’s (DOI) Fish and Wildlife Service (FWS) will now consider all permits for importing elephant and lion carcasses into the country… Read more »

Today, the Congressional Safe Climate Caucus sent a letter condemning the White House’s systematic effort to reduce and suppress public access to climate change resources through federal channels. The members highlighted many examples and expressed their concerns that these efforts violate the intent of the Federal Records Act.  The letter comes after a report issued by the… Read more »