Environment & Energy
The environment — our air, our water, our land — is a sacred trust that we must protect and preserve for ourselves and future generations. Today, our planet is in peril because of climate change, which is already affecting Minnesotans and Americans.
As the Chair of the Interior-Environment Appropriations Subcommittee, I am a strong supporter of action on climate change and strongly oppose efforts to undermine our international commitments and turn the United States into an environmental rogue nation. In addition, I support full funding for environmental protections and oppose harmful efforts to weaken our bedrock clean air, clean water, and conservation laws. These are laws that protect the health of our families and our planet.
When it comes to energy, we must make smart decisions today to create green jobs and safeguard our environment. Instead of doubling down on fossil fuels, I support strategic investments in clean energy infrastructure, research, and education.
More on Environment & Energy
The U.S. Department of Defense (DOD) today announced an $87 million, seven-year award to the BioIndustrial Manufacturing and Design Ecosystem (BioMADE) for the creation of the BioIndustrial Manufacturing Innovation Institute (MII) to be headquartered at the University of Minnesota in Saint Paul. BioMADE is a partnership between the University of Minnesota, the Engineering Biology Research Consortium (EBRC) and a national network of academic and private sector partners working together to advance America’s bioindustrial manufacturing industry.
Congresswoman Betty McCollum (DFL-Minn.), Chair of the Appropriations Subcommittee on Interior, Environment, and Related Agencies, released the following statement today after the passage of the FY 21 Interior-Environment funding bill, part of a four-bill appropriations minibus, H.R. 7608:
Led by Chair Betty McCollum (DFL-Minn.), the House Appropriations Committee today approved the fiscal year 2021 Interior, Environment, and Related Agencies bill. In total, the bill includes $36.76 billion in federal funding, and includes bill language stating, “None of the funds appropriated or otherwise made available by this Act may be used to review or approve a mine plan proposed within the Rainy River Watershed of the Superior National Forest.” The language prohibits the Department of the Interior and the U.S.
Led by Chair Betty McCollum (DFL-Minn.), the House Appropriations Subcommittee on Interior, Environment, and Related Agencies today approved its fiscal year 2021 bill. In total, the draft bill includes $36.76 billion in regular appropriations, an increase of $771 million above the FY 2020 enacted level, and $5.11 billion over the President’s 2021 request. Additionally, the bill includes $15 billion in emergency supplemental appropriations for investments in critical infrastructure.
The House Appropriations Committee today released the draft fiscal year 2021 Interior, Environment, and Related Agencies funding bill, which will be considered in subcommittee tomorrow at 11am ET/10am CT. The legislation includes funding for programs within the Department of the Interior, the Environmental Protection Agency, and other related agencies, including the Indian Health Service.
Today, Congresswoman Betty McCollum (DFL-Minn.) announced that the Boundary Waters Wilderness Protection and Pollution Prevention Act (H.R. 5598) is highlighted in the House Select Committee on the Climate Crisis’s Congressional Action Plan for a Clean Energy Economy and a Healthy, Resilient, and Just America.
Congresswoman Betty McCollum (DFL-Minn.), Chair of the Interior-Environment Appropriations Subcommittee, and Congressman Raúl Grijalva (D-Ariz.), Chairman of the House Natural Resources Committee, issued the following statement today following the decision by the U.S. District Court in Washington, D.C., to uphold the Trump administration’s revival of previously-cancelled mining leases in the Rainy River Watershed in northern Minnesota:
Congresswoman Betty McCollum (DFL-Minn.), Chair of the Appropriations Subcommittee on Interior, Environment, and Related Agencies, held a field hearing in St. Paul on Monday, Feb. 25, 2020, to gather testimony from stakeholders on funding priorities for Fiscal Year 2021.
Chair McCollum heard testimony from two dozen witnesses representing academia, tribes, government entities, and community groups. A recap of the witness testimony is below.
Congresswoman Betty McCollum (DFL-Minn.) released the following statement today after the State Department responded to a directive from Congress within the Fiscal Year 2020 conference spending agreement:
Congresswoman Betty McCollum (DFL-Minn.) and Congresswoman Chellie Pingree (D-ME), Chair and Vice Chair of the Interior-Environment Appropriations Subcommittee, respectively, are questioning the U.S. Forest Service’s decision to allow Canadian mining company Midas Gold to conduct its own Biological Assessment to be used in the Environmental Impact Statement for the company’s proposed open-pit gold mine in central Idaho.