Articles by Kate Sheppard

Senate session will kick off with vote on big wilderness and lands bill

Action in the Senate will begin this year with a Sunday vote on an omnibus public-lands bill, Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-Nev.) announced on Wednesday.

The legislation was reintroduced on Wednesday by Jeff Bingaman (D-N.M.), chair of the Energy and Natural Resources Committee. It combines more than 150 bills on wilderness areas and other federal lands, and would protect more than 2 million acres of wilderness in nine states.

Tom Coburn (R-Okla.) repeatedly blocked the bill last year, and has threatened to do so again, using any parliamentary tactic necessary. "The decision by Senate leaders to kick off the new Congress with an earmark-laden omnibus lands bill makes a mockery of voters' hopes for change," said Coburn in a statement on Tuesday. "This package represents some of the worst aspects of congressional incompetence and parochialism. Congress should spend the next few weeks holding hearings on an economic stimulus package and identifying areas of the budget to cut to pay for that proposal. Instead, the Senate is set to resume business as usual."

Jeff Merkley and Tom Udall to join Senate Environment Committee

Two new senators, Oregon's Jeff Merkley and New Mexico's Tom Udall, will be joining the Senate Environment and Public Works Committee, chair Barbara Boxer (D-Calif.) said on Wednesday.

The two attended the committee's first hearing of the year on Wednesday, though their appointments are not yet official. Adding the two senators would give Democrats a three-seat majority on the committee, after holding a one-seat lead last Congress.

Final organizational structure has not yet been worked out, however, as the outcome of the never-ending Minnesota race between Al Franken (D) and Norm Coleman (R) may determine the ratio of Democrats to Republicans on the committee. The leadership from both parties will need to come to agreement on the breakdown.

The committee lost Joe Lieberman (I-Conn.), who was booted from his seat in November as punishment for campaigning for Republican presidential candidate John McCain. It also lost Republicans John Warner (Va.) and Larry Craig (Idaho) to retirement. No word yet on who will replace them.

Senate Environment Committee gets rolling in 111th Congress

Senate Environment and Public Works Committee Chair Barbara Boxer (D-Calif.) said on Wednesday that she has been consulting with incoming Obama administration officials on a climate plan, though she didn't give a sense of when to expect a new bill this year.

"I will be putting out basic principles shortly," Boxer told reporters. "I wanted to have some consultation [with the incoming administration]." As for when to expect a new bill, Boxer said only that her committee will begin working on one "as soon as it makes sense."

She was also asked about what sort of green stimulus to expect in the upcoming economic package, and said that while she didn't give specifics, she foresees it including green measures. "I'm very optimistic we'll have some green jobs in this proposal, but I can't say how many."

Boxer's committee kicked off the 111th Congress on Wednesday with a briefing on "Investing in Green Technology as a Strategy for Economic Recovery," featuring New York Times columnist Thomas Friedman and clean-tech investor John Doerr, a partner at legendary venture capital firm Kleiner Perkins Caufield & Byers. The two guests urged the committee to push for a price on carbon and massive investments in the research and development of new energy technologies.

Waxman creating new environment subcommittee

Henry Waxman. New House Energy and Commerce Committee Chair Henry Waxman (D-Calif.) is planning some major changes to the organization of the subcommittees, notably creating a single subcommittee to oversee climate, energy, air quality, and water issues. In a letter [PDF] to Democratic committee members on Tuesday, Waxman proposed combining the two subcommittees that currently […]