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 D654-D656 on June 16.
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)
APPROPRIATIONS: DOI
Committee on Appropriations: Subcommittee on Interior, Environment, and Related Agencies concluded a hearing to examine proposed budget estimates and justification for fiscal year 2022 for the Department of the Interior, after receiving testimony from Deb Haaland, Secretary of the Interior.
APPROPRIATIONS: DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION
Committee on Appropriations: Subcommittee on Labor, Health and Human Services, and Education, and Related Agencies concluded a hearing to examine proposed budget estimates and justification for fiscal year 2022 for the Department of Education, after receiving testimony from Miguel Cardona, Secretary of Education.
APPROPRIATIONS: MILITARY CONSTRUCTION AND FAMILY HOUSING
Committee on Appropriations: Subcommittee on Military Construction and Veterans Affairs, and Related Agencies concluded a hearing to examine proposed budget estimates and justification for fiscal year 2022 for military construction and family housing, after receiving testimony from Paul Cramer, performing the duties of Assistant Secretary of Defense for Sustainment, Lieutenant General Jason Evans, Deputy Chief of Staff, G-9, Vice Admiral Ricky Williamson, Deputy Chief of Naval Operations for Fleet Readiness and Logistics, Lieutenant General Charles Chiarotti, Deputy Commandant, Installations and Logistics, and Lieutenant General Warren Berry, Deputy Chief of Staff for Logistics, Engineering, and Force Protection, all of the Department of Defense.
APPROPRIATIONS: DOT
Committee on Appropriations: Subcommittee on Transportation, Housing and Urban Development, and Related Agencies concluded a hearing to examine proposed budget estimates and justification for fiscal year 2022 for the Department of Transportation, after receiving testimony from Peter Buttigieg, Secretary of Transportation.
NOMINATIONS
Committee on Armed Services: Committee concluded a hearing to examine the nominations of Caroline Diane Krass, of the District of Columbia, to be General Counsel, who was introduced by Senator Bennet, Gina Maria Ortiz Jones, of Texas, to be Under Secretary of the Air Force, who was introduced by Senator Duckworth, Ely Stefansky Ratner, of Massachusetts, and Shawn Graham Skelly, of Virginia, both to be an Assistant Secretary, and Meredith Berger, of Florida, to be an Assistant Secretary of the Navy, all of the Department of Defense, after the nominees testified and answered questions in their own behalf.
NUCLEAR DETERRENCE
Committee on Armed Services: Subcommittee on Strategic Forces concluded a hearing to examine United States nuclear deterrence policy and strategy, after receiving testimony from Tom Z. Collina, Ploughshares Fund, Madelyn R. Creedon, George Washington University Elliott School of International Affairs, Lisa E. Gordon-Hagerty, former Administrator, National Nuclear Security Administration, Matthew Kroenig, Georgetown University Scowcroft Center for Strategy and Security, and Sharon K. Weiner, American University School of International Service, all of Washington, D.C.
BUSINESS MEETING
Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation: Committee ordered favorably reported the following business items:
S. 66, to require the Inter-Agency Task Force on Harmful Algal Blooms and Hypoxia to develop a plan for reducing, mitigating, and controlling harmful algal blooms and hypoxia in South Florida;
S. 1747, to provide for an equitable management of summer flounder based on geographic, scientific, and economic data, with an amendment;
S. 1890, to require the Federal Trade Commission to conduct a study on scams that target travelers during the COVID-19 pandemic, with an amendment in the nature of a substitute;
S. 1894, to designate Regional Ocean Partnerships of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, with an amendment in the nature of a substitute;
S. 1995, to amend the Dingell-Johnson Sport Fish Restoration Act with respect to sport fish restoration and recreational boating safety;
S. 2016, to authorize elements of the Department of Transportation, with an amendment in the nature of a substitute; and
The nominations of Pamela A. Melroy, of New York, to be Deputy Administrator of the National Aeronautics and Space Administration, Carlos Alberto Monje, Jr., of Louisiana, to be Under Secretary of Transportation for Policy, and Richard W. Spinrad, of Oregon, to be Under Secretary of Commerce for Oceans and Atmosphere, and routine lists in the Coast Guard.
LEGISLATION
Committee on Energy and Natural Resources: Subcommittee on Public Lands, Forests, and Mining concluded a hearing to examine S. 173, to provide for the designation of certain wilderness areas, recreation management areas, and conservation areas in the State of Colorado, S. 177, to amend the John D. Dingell, Jr. Conservation, Management, and Recreation Act to establish the Cerro de la Olla Wilderness in the Rio Grande del Norte National Monument and to modify the boundary of the Rio Grande del Norte National Monument, S. 182, to withdraw certain Federal land in the Pecos Watershed area of the State of New Mexico from mineral entry, S. 455, to designate and expand wilderness areas in Olympic National Forest in the State of Washington, and to designate certain rivers in Olympic National Forest and Olympic National Park as wild and scenic rivers, S. 554, to require the Secretary of Agriculture to conduct a study on the establishment of, and the potential land that could be included in, a unit of the National Forest System in the State of Hawaii, S. 567, to provide for conservation and economic development in the State of Nevada, S. 569, to direct the Secretary of Agriculture to transfer certain National Forest System land to the State of South Dakota, S. 609, to withdraw the National Forest System land in the Ruby Mountains subdistrict of the Humboldt-Toiyabe National Forest and the National Wildlife Refuge System land in Ruby Lake National Wildlife Refuge, Elko and White Pine Counties, Nevada, from operation under the mineral leasing laws, S. 904, to require the Secretary of the Interior, the Secretary of Agriculture, and the Assistant Secretary of the Army for Civil Works to digitize and make publicly available geographic information system mapping data relating to public access to Federal land and waters for outdoor recreation, S. 1008, to require the Secretary of the Interior to develop a modeling tool, conduct a study, and issue reports relating to the tax equivalent amount of payments under the payment in lieu of taxes program, S. 1076, to amend the Energy Policy Act of 2005 to require the Secretary of the Interior to establish a program to plug, remediate, and reclaim orphaned oil and gas wells and surrounding land, to provide funds to State and Tribal government to plug, remediate, and reclaim orphaned oil and gas wells and surrounding land, S. 1128, to provide for the continuation of higher education through the conveyance to the University of Alaska of certain public land in the State of Alaska, S. 1222, to designate and adjust certain lands in the State of Utah as components of the National Wilderness Preservation System, and S. 1686, to amend the Wilderness Act to allow local Federal officials to determine the manner in which nonmotorized uses may be permitted in wilderness areas, after receiving testimony from Senators Murray, Cramer, Bennet, and Romney; Nada Wolff Culver, Deputy Director, Policy and Programs, Bureau of Land Management, Department of the Interior; Chris French, Deputy Chief, National Forest System, Forest Service, Department of Agriculture; Utah Representative Keven Stratton, Salt Lake City; Marci Henson, Clark County Department of Environment and Sustainability, Las Vegas, Nevada; Pat Pitney, University of Alaska, Fairbanks; and Jocelyn Torres, Conservation Lands Foundation, North Las Vegas, Nevada.
NOMINATIONS
Committee on Environment and Public Works: Committee concluded a hearing to examine the nominations of Jeffrey M. Prieto, of California, who was introduced by Senator Padilla, and Jane Toshiko Nishida, of Maryland, who was introduced by Senator Cardin, both to be an Assistant Administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency, and Alejandra Y. Castillo, of New York, to be Assistant Secretary of Commerce for Economic Development, who was introduced by Representative Espaillat, after the nominees testified and answered questions in their own behalf.
BUDGET
Committee on Finance: Committee concluded a hearing to examine the President's proposed budget request for fiscal year 2022, after receiving testimony from Janet L. Yellen, Secretary of the Treasury.
BUSINESS MEETING
Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs: Committee ordered favorably reported the nominations of Robin Carnahan, of Missouri, to be Administrator of General Services, Jen Easterly, of New York, to be Director of the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency, Department of Homeland Security, and Chris Inglis, of Maryland, to be National Cyber Director.
SOUTHWEST BORDER SECURITY
Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs: Subcommittee on Government Operations and Border Management concluded a hearing to examine improving security, trade, and travel at land ports of entry at the southwest border, after receiving testimony from Kevin K. McAleenan, former acting Secretary of Homeland Security, McLean, Virginia; Anthony M. Reardon, National Treasury Employees Union, Washington, D.C.; Sam F. Vale, Starr-Camargo Bridge Company, Rio Grande City, Texas, on behalf of the Border Trade Alliance; and Guillermo Valencia, Valencia International, Inc., Nogales, Arizona, on behalf of the Greater Nogales Santa Cruz County Port Authority.
BUSINESS MEETING
Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions: Committee ordered favorably reported the nominations of Gwen Graham, of Florida, to be Assistant Secretary for Legislation and Congressional Affairs, Department of Education, Rajesh D. Nayak, of Maryland, Taryn Mackenzie Williams, of the District of Columbia, and Douglas L. Parker, of West Virginia, each to be an Assistant Secretary of Labor, and Dawn Myers O'Connell, of the District of Columbia, to be Assistant Secretary for Preparedness and Response, and Miriam E. Delphin-Rittmon, of Connecticut, to be Assistant Secretary for Mental Health and Substance Use, both of the Department of Health and Human Services.
WOMEN'S HEALTH PROTECTION ACT
Committee on the Judiciary: Subcommittee on the Constitution concluded a hearing to examine the Women's Health Protection Act, after receiving testimony from Michele Bratcher Goodwin, University of California, Irvine; Jamila Perritt, Physicians for Reproductive Health, and Catherine Glenn Foster, Americans United for Life, both of Washington, D.C.; Melissa Ohden, The Abortion Survivors Network, Kansas City, Missouri; and Tohan, Texas.
USCP OVERSIGHT FOLLOWING JANUARY 6 ATTACK
Committee on Rules and Administration: Committee concluded an oversight hearing to examine the United States Capitol Police following the January 6th attack on the Capitol, after receiving testimony from Michael A. Bolton, Inspector General, United States Capitol Police.
VA BUDGET
Committee on Veterans' Affairs: Committee concluded a hearing to examine the President's proposed budget request for fiscal year 2022 and 2023 advance appropriations requests for the Department of Veterans Affairs, after receiving testimony from Denis McDonough, Secretary, and Jon Rychalski, Assistant Secretary for Management and Chief Financial Officer, both of the Department of Veterans Affairs; and Shane Liermann, Disabled American Veterans, Patrick Murray, Veterans of Foreign Wars, and Roscoe Butler, Paralyzed Veterans of America, all of Washington, D.C.
BUSINESS MEETING
Select Committee on Intelligence: Committee ordered favorably reported the nomination of Robin C. Ashton, of Maryland, to be Inspector General, Central Intelligence Agency.
