House Committee on Natural Resources Chair Bruce Westerman speaks out on the status of CEQ and reduction of funding.
The Council on Environmental Quality (CEQ) is part of the Executive Office of the President, according to a White House website. The council was established in 1969 when the National Environmental Policy Act was signed into law. Its primary function is implementing the National Environmental Policy Act.
On Nov. 2, the U.S. House of Representatives passed an amendment sponsored by Rep. Westerman to reduce CEQ funding to its authorized level, $1 million. This move represents a reduction of $2,750,000, according to an Amendment page focused on House Resolution 4821.
House Resolution 4821 acts as the appropriations act for the Department of the Interior and Related Agencies for 2024. Amendments were due Oct. 3, 2023 and subsequently, the Committee on Rules convened on Nov. 1 in The Capitol building. Apart from reducing funds for CEQ, an earlier version of this resolution suggested reducing salaries of key figures such as Deb Haaland, Secretary of Interior; Tracy Stone-Manning, Director of Bureau of Land Management; and Elizabeth Klein, Director of Bureau of Ocean Energy Management to merely $1 each among other proposals from legislators across party lines.
The scope and power associated with CEQ have shifted away from its original mission as noted by the Natural Resources Committee. According to them, President Biden has transformed this office into one that implements his ecological agenda effectively turning federal agencies into vehicles for social change and spearheading domestic energy production opposition efforts. As a result, increased responsibilities have led CEQ to request additional funding over recent years – their baseline budget saw a rise from $2.89 million in 2019 to $4.67 million in 2023.
