The Congressional Record is a unique source of public documentation. It started in 1873, documenting nearly all the major and minor policies being discussed and debated.
“Senate Committee Meetings” mentioning the Department of Interior was published in the Daily Digest section on pages D529-D531 on May 14, 2019.
The Department oversees more than 500 million acres of land. Downsizing the Federal Government, a project aimed at lowering taxes and boosting federal efficiency, said the department has contributed to a growing water crisis and holds many lands which could be better managed.
The publication is reproduced in full below:
Committee Meetings
(Committees not listed did not meet)
BUSINESS MEETING
Committee on Agriculture, Nutrition, and Forestry: Committee ordered favorably reported the nominations of Mindy Brashears, of Texas, to be Under Secretary for Food Safety, Naomi C. Earp, of Maryland, to be an Assistant Secretary, and Scott Hutchins, of Indiana, to be Under Secretary for Research, Education, and Economics, all of the Department of Agriculture.
BUDGET AND SPENDING PROCESS
Committee on the Budget: Committee concluded a hearing to examine fixing a broken budget and spending process, focusing on the perspectives of two former Chairmen, after receiving testimony from former Senators Judd Gregg and Kent Conrad.
THE EMERGING SPACE ENVIRONMENT
Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation: Subcommittee on Aviation and Space concluded a hearing to examine the emerging space environment, focusing on operational, technical, and policy challenges, after receiving testimony from James F. Bridenstine, Administrator, and Pamela A. Melroy, Astronaut (Ret.), both of the National Aeronautics and Space Administration; Kevin M. O'Connell, Director, Office of Space Commerce, Department of Commerce; Lieutenant General David D. Thompson, Vice Commander, Air Force Space Command, Department of Defense; and Robert Cardillo, former Director, National Geospatial-Intelligence Agency, Alexandria, Virginia.
ACHIEVING MINERAL SECURITY
Committee on Energy and Natural Resources: Committee concluded a hearing to examine the importance of and path to achieving mineral security, including S. 1052, to authorize the Office of Fossil Energy to develop advanced separation technologies for the extraction and recovery of rare earth elements and minerals from coal and coal byproducts, and S. 1317, to facilitate the availability, development, and environmentally responsible production of domestic resources to meet national material or critical mineral needs, after receiving testimony from Joseph Balash, Assistant Secretary for Land and Minerals Management, Department of the Interior; David Solan, Deputy Assistant Secretary for Renewable Power, Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy, Department of Energy; Jonathan Evans, Lithium Americas, Reno, Nevada; John Warner, American Battery Solutions, Holly, Michigan, on behalf of the National Alliance for Advanced Technology Batteries; and Paul F. Ziemkiewicz, West Virginia University Water Research Institute, Morgantown.
PUBLIC LANDS LEGISLATION
Committee on Energy and Natural Resources: Subcommittee on Public Lands, Forests, and Mining concluded a hearing to examine S. 242, to require the Secretary of Agriculture to release reversionary and reserved interests in certain land in the Coconino National Forest in the State of Arizona, S. 258, to prohibit oil and gas leasing on the National Forest System land in the Ruby Mountains Ranger District located in the Humboldt-Toiyabe National Forest, Elko and White Pine Counties, Nevada, S. 434, to provide for a report on the maintenance of Federal land holdings under the jurisdiction of the Secretary of the Interior, S. 490, to designate a mountain ridge in the State of Montana as ``B-47 Ridge'', S. 499, to amend the Outer Continental Shelf Lands Act to apply to territories of the United States, to establish offshore wind lease sale requirements, to provide dedicated funding for coral reef conservation, S. 526, to withdraw certain Bureau of Land Management land from mineral development, S. 1079, to provide for the withdrawal and protection of certain Federal land in the State of New Mexico, and S. 1262, to designate certain land administered by the Bureau of Land Management and the Forest Service in the State of Oregon as wilderness and national recreation areas, to withdraw certain land located in Curry County and Josephine County, Oregon, from all forms of entry, appropriation, or disposal under the public land laws, location, entry, and patent under the mining laws, and operation under the mineral leasing and geothermal leasing laws, after receiving testimony from Senators Braun and Udall; Frank R. Beum, Acting Associate Deputy Chief, National Forest System, Forest Service, Department of Agriculture; and Michael Nedd, Deputy Director for Operations, Bureau of Land Management, Department of the Interior.
RETIREMENT SYSTEM CHALLENGES
Committee on Finance: Committee concluded a hearing to examine challenges in the retirement system, after receiving testimony from Tobias Read, Oregon State Treasurer, Salem; Joni Tibbetts, Principal Financial Group, Des Moines, Iowa; and Joan Ruff, AARP, and Lynn D. Dudley, American Benefits Council, both of Washington, D.C.
5G
Committee on the Judiciary: Committee concluded a hearing to examine 5G, focusing on national security concerns, intellectual property issues, and the impact on competition and innovation, after receiving testimony from Christopher Krebs, Director, Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency, Department of Homeland Security; Robert L. Strayer, Deputy Assistant Secretary of State for Cyber and International Communications and Information Policy, Bureau of Economic and Business Affairs; James Andrew Lewis, Center for Strategic and International Studies, and Peter Harrell, Center for a New American Security, both of Washington, D.C.; and Charles Clancy, Virginia Tech Hume Center for National Security and Technology, Arlington, Virginia.
BUSINESS MEETING
Select Committee on Intelligence: Committee ordered favorably reported an original bill entitled, ``Damon Paul Nelson and Matthew Young Pollard Intelligence Authorization Act (IAA) for Fiscal Year 2020''.
