Author

Jacob Fischler

Jacob Fischler

Jacob covers federal policy as a senior reporter for States Newsroom. Based in Oregon, he focuses on Western issues. His coverage areas include climate, energy development, public lands and infrastructure.

Trump indicted by Manhattan grand jury, according to reports

By: - March 30, 2023

WASHINGTON — A New York criminal grand jury has indicted former President Donald Trump, the Manhattan District Attorney’s Office confirmed following news reports. A former president has never been indicted before. Trump is also a Republican candidate in the 2024 race for the presidency. “This evening we contacted Mr. Trump’s attorney to coordinate his surrender […]

climate heat air

U.S. House passes sweeping energy bill pushing back against Biden climate policies

By: - March 30, 2023

WASHINGTON – The U.S. House on Thursday approved a bill packed with Republican energy priorities meant to counteract the Biden administration’s approach and boost U.S. oil and gas production. Numbered H.R. 1 as a signal that energy policy is the House majority’s top legislative priority, the bill includes a package of GOP proposals, ranging from reforming the […]

U.S. Senate clears measure to undo Biden WOTUS rule on wetlands

By: - March 29, 2023

WASHINGTON — Both Republican and Democratic members of the U.S. Senate voted Wednesday to repeal the Biden administration’s intensely contested expansion of what qualifies as wetlands that the federal government can regulate. The Senate approved a resolution, sponsored by West Virginia Republican Shelley Moore Capito, that would revoke the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s definition of […]

Denver airport CEO withdraws as FAA nominee after attacks by U.S. Senate Republicans

By: - March 27, 2023

Phil Washington, the chief executive of Denver International Airport and President Joe Biden’s pick to lead the Federal Aviation Administration, withdrew from consideration in the face of persistent Republican opposition, Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg confirmed Saturday night. Reuters first reported Washington’s withdrawal and Buttigieg confirmed it in a late Saturday tweet. Republicans had attacked Washington as unqualified for […]

Members of Congress blast TikTok CEO as bipartisan support for U.S. ban looks possible

By: - March 24, 2023

A U.S. House panel grilled TikTok’s CEO for more than five hours Thursday over the social media giant’s ties to China, and indicated there may be bipartisan consensus for a national ban on the platform. Members of both parties showed an unusual level of agreement during tough questioning of TikTok CEO Shou Chew. Several members […]

Priorities for rail safety bill debated in U.S. Senate hearing with Norfolk Southern CEO

By: - March 23, 2023

Members of a U.S. Senate committee on Wednesday previewed what they would push for in bipartisan rail safety legislation likely to progress through Congress in the aftermath of the East Palestine, Ohio, derailment. Democrats and Republicans on the U.S. Senate Commerce, Science and Transportation Committee hinted they wanted to strengthen requirements about reporting hazardous cargo, […]

U.S. Senate committee postpones vote on Denver airport chief’s nomination to lead FAA

By: - March 22, 2023

The U.S. Senate Commerce, Science and Transportation Committee postponed a scheduled vote Wednesday on Denver International Airport CEO Phil Washington’s nomination to lead the Federal Aviation Administration. The panel’s chairwoman, Washington Democrat Maria Cantwell, said the vote would be held at an unspecified future date and offered few details about why it was pushed. The […]

Trump’s possible arrest by Manhattan DA blasted by U.S. House GOP leaders

By: - March 21, 2023

Former President Donald Trump’s claim that he would be arrested Tuesday had not materialized by early evening on the East Coast, but U.S. House Republicans harshly criticized any such move as an abuse of prosecutorial authority. In an all-caps post to his social media site, Truth Social, on Saturday, Trump predicted that he would be […]

U.S. Senate leader calls for safety audit into all major railroads after Ohio derailment

By: - March 16, 2023

U.S. Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer called Wednesday for the federal authority responsible for determining the causes of transportation casualties to investigate the safety culture at all major North American freight railroads. Following the Feb. 3 Norfolk Southern derailment that caused a toxic chemical spill in East Palestine, Ohio, Schumer, a New York Democrat, said […]

Right whales vs. commercial fishing: No ‘easy solution’ for NOAA, says Raimondo

By: - March 15, 2023

Once hunted to near-extinction, the greatest threats to the endangered North Atlantic right whale now are accidental encounters with humans. Federal efforts to protect the whale species, which spends most of the year off the coast of New England, from collisions with ships and entanglements in fishing gear — incidents that represent the two leading […]

States to receive $2.5B from feds for electric vehicle charging infrastructure

By: - March 14, 2023

The federal government will send $2.5 billion over the next five years to states, local governments and tribes to build electric vehicle charging infrastructure, Biden administration officials said Tuesday. The new Charging and Fueling Infrastructure grant program, which was authorized by the 2021 bipartisan infrastructure law, will spend $2.5 billion over five years to build […]

Florida wetlands

U.S. House votes to roll back Biden’s WOTUS rule

By: - March 10, 2023

The U.S. House voted Thursday to undo a Biden administration definition of wetlands that allows for regulations on private lands. The chamber approved, 227-198, a resolution to roll back the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s broader definition of what qualifies as “waters of the United States,” or WOTUS, for the purposes of federal regulation under the Clean […]