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Biden touts his win on Senate-passed infrastructure bill to state and local leaders
After the U.S. Senate approved the bipartisan infrastructure bill that he championed, President Joe Biden met virtually Wednesday with scores of state, local and tribal leaders to build support for the measure as it heads to the House. The meeting resembled a victory lap, with state, local and tribal leaders of both parties telling Biden […]
U.S. Senate OKs $1.2T bipartisan infrastructure bill
The U.S. Senate passed 69-30 on Tuesday a sweeping bipartisan $1.2 trillion infrastructure package, a milestone for one of President Joe Biden’s priorities after months of negotiation. Biden proposed an infrastructure plan in March that would have topped $2 trillion. A bipartisan group of senators led by Rob Portman, (R-Ohio), and Kyrsten Sinema, (D-Ariz.), worked […]
‘Big and bold’ infrastructure bill still falls short on helping states fight climate change
The Senate is poised to pass a massive $1.2 trillion infrastructure bill that would upgrade state transportation networks, electric grids, water systems and more. It’s a major spending boost and potential job-creator that yet falls short of the administration’s goals to address climate change and reduce its effects in the states. The White House worked […]
Stone-Manning nomination set to advance to U.S. Senate after emotions run high at committee vote
In a contentious meeting that distilled a weeks-long fight, the U.S. Senate Energy & Natural Resources Committee deadlocked, 10-10, along party lines, Thursday on approving Tracy Stone-Manning’s nomination as head of the Bureau of Land Management. That means an extra procedural vote will be forced before the full U.S. Senate takes up the nomination of […]
Democrats in Congress unite around ‘climate corps’ that could employ youth, prevent fires
U.S. Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer pledged on Tuesday to include a Civilian Climate Corps in a $3.5 trillion infrastructure bill later this year, as a broad swath of Democrats rallied around a framework of employing thousands of young people to do conservation work. Schumer, (D-N.Y.), appeared with a handful of congressional Democrats, led by […]
U.S. Sen. Manchin says he’ll back Stone-Manning nomination, as committee vote is set
The U.S. Senate Energy & Natural Resources Committee is expected to vote Thursday on the nomination of Tracy Stone-Manning to lead the Bureau of Land Management, with Chairman Joe Manchin III planning to vote to approve her — a major step forward for her confirmation after weeks of aggressive Republican opposition. Manchin, a West Virginia […]
Conflicting versions of tree-spiking case overshadow Stone-Manning nomination
Tracy Stone-Manning and a former federal investigator during the past few days shared widely varying accounts of her involvement in a 1989 tree-spiking in an Idaho national forest, as the fight over the Montanan’s nomination to lead the U.S. Bureau of Land Management escalated. Stone-Manning’s confirmation remains stuck in a divided U.S. Senate Energy & […]
McConnell blasts nomination of Stone-Manning as public lands chief
U.S. Senate Republican Leader Mitch McConnell on Tuesday joined the ranks of GOP senators opposing the confirmation of Tracy Stone-Manning, the president’s nominee to lead the Bureau of Land Management, possibly signaling the confirmation could soon move beyond the Energy Committee. The strongly critical statement from McConnell, of Kentucky, was not a surprise, but the timing […]
Federal judge halts Biden pause on new oil and gas leases across the U.S.
A federal judge in Louisiana has ordered the Biden administration to restart regular sales of oil and gas leases, forcing the administration to prematurely abandon a central piece of its climate change agenda. In a preliminary ruling issued Tuesday, U.S. District Judge Terry Doughty granted the request of Louisiana Attorney General Jeff Landry and 12 other Republican-led […]
Public lands pick Tracy Stone-Manning fends off objections from U.S. Senate Republicans
Republicans on the U.S. Senate Energy Committee on Tuesday grilled public lands nominee Tracy Stone-Manning of Montana about her past opposition to an “energy dominance” agenda, as well as her 2020 support for the Democratic challenger to a GOP senator from her home state who sits on the committee. The sometimes rancorous hearing previewed a […]
Biden’s public lands pick wins backing by environmental advocates ahead of hearing
Environmental groups are lining up behind President Joe Biden’s nominee to lead the Bureau of Land Management prior to her Tuesday confirmation hearing. More than 100 organizations wrote to Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, (D-N.Y.), and Minority Leader Mitch McConnell, (R-Ky.), Monday asking that the Senate confirm Tracy Stone-Manning, a Montanan who led conservation and […]
National parks struggling with maintenance would get a boost under Biden budget request
Basic needs at the largest U.S. national parks top the Biden administration’s first proposed lists of projects to receive money through public lands trust funds, showing how much maintenance is needed even as parks brace for record numbers of visitors this summer. The projects likely wouldn’t be visible to the usual tourist, but they are […]