PDF versionAGI policy news briefs summarize geoscience policy activities and related events in Washington, D.C. as part of an effort to keep AGI member societies and other audiences informed about relevant federal policy and legislative updates.
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The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is in the process of updating some of its nuclear energy regulations, including nuclear operation and waste storage standards.
The U.S. and France have teamed up to lead an international initiative to address climate change.
Notable senior officials including Indian Ambassador to the United States S. Jaishankar and National Security Advisor to President Obama, Susan Rice, among other industry leaders, environmental activists and government officials attended a sponsored U.S.-India Strategic Dialogue to facilitate cooperation on greenhouse gas (GHG) emission standards between the two nations.
The Obama Administration is strengthening its message on global climate change. In a series of speeches this February, Secretary of State John Kerry called upon the global community to do what they could to immediately reduce the impacts of climate change.
Secretary of State John Kerry announced this month that the U.S. will appoint an Envoy to the Arctic. The new position comes at the request of Alaskan lawmakers like Senator Mark Begich (D-AK) who argue that an official ambassador is necessary for the U.S. to remain competitive in the region.
This February the President pitched a new climate change resilience fund to help communities across the country react to the impacts of climate change.
The Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) and Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) requested budget increases for fiscal year (FY) 2015.
On March 25, the House Committee on Appropriations' Energy and Water Development Subcommittee held a fiscal year (FY) 2015 budget hearing for Applied Energy Funding at the Department of Energy (DOE).
On March 25, the House Committee on Appropriations Interior, Environment, and Related Agencies Subcommittee held a fiscal year (FY) 2015 budget hearing for the Department of the Interior (DOI).
On March 26, the House Committee on Science, Space, and Technology held a hearing reviewing the Administration's fiscal year (FY) 2015 budget request for science agencies.
On March 12, the House Science, Space, and Technology Committee’s Energy and Environment Subcommittees held a joint hearing to discuss the viability of carbon capture and storage (CCS) techniques used to reduce CO2 emissions from power plants.
Since the Presidential Budget Request for fiscal year (FY) 2015 was released on March 4, lawmakers have drafted bills that would authorize science funding.
On March 3, the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) issued a final Tier 3 rule reducing average levels of sulfur emissions from motor vehicle gasoline consumption from 30 parts per million (ppm) to 10 ppm by 2017.
March saw new developments from the Administration and lawmakers on energy financing under the American tax code.
The Russia-Ukraine conflict has caused the U.S. Administration and lawmakers to step up energy support to Ukraine.
On March 12, the U.S. Senate confirmed France A. Córdova as next Director of the National Science Foundation (NSF).
On March 19, the Extractive Industries Transparency Initiative (EITI) accepted the U.S. as a Candidate country to their global transparency standard for improving governance of natural resources.
On March 20, the White House Office of Science and Technology Policy (OSTP) Director John Holdren issued a memorandum requiring that federal scientific agencies create a draft scientific-collections management and public access policy.
On March 26, President Obama met with European Council President Herman Van Rompuy and European Commission President José Manuel Barroso at the EU-U.S. Summit in Brussels to discuss the Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership (T-TIP) and Europe’s economic security with regard to recent events in Ukraine.
On March 7, the American Geophysical Union (AGU) Journal of Geophysical Research published a U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) sponsored study on the relationship between a November 2011 magnitude-5.0 earthquake and successive aftershocks along the Wilzetta fault in Oklahoma.
This month the Homeowner Flood Insurance Affordability Act of 2014 (H.R. 3370) passed the U.S. House of Representatives 306-91 and the Senate 72-22. H.R. 3370 abolishes certain provisions of the Biggert-Waters Flood Insurance Reform Act of 2012 (BW-12).
On March 27, the House Natural Resources Committee’s Energy and Mineral Resources Subcommittee held an oversight hearing titled “Advances in Earthquake Science: 50th Anniversary of the Great Alaskan Quake.”
Senator Roy Blunt (R-MO) recently introduced the National Rare Earth Cooperative Act of 2014 (S. 2006), which was referred to the Senate Committee on Energy and Natural Resources.
A list of notices from the federal register for March 2014 from agencies including the Department of the Interior, EPA, FEMA, USGS and more.
The House Science, Space, and Technology Subcommittee on Space passed the NASA Authorization Act of 2014 (H.R. 4412) which lays out an "Exploration Roadmap" detailing NASA's priorities.
The United Nations International Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) recently released the Fifth Assessment Report Working Group II and Working Group III contributions which discuss evidence of climate change and pathways to reduce global carbon levels.
The U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit struck down portions of a Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) rule requiring companies to disclose whether their products contain conflict minerals.
On April 1, the House passed legislation authorizing increased funding for weather research at the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA).
On April 24, the National Science Board (NSB) released a press statement responding to the Frontiers in Innovation, Research, Science, and Technology (FIRST) Act (H.R. 4186).
The House Committee on Natural Resources held an oversight hearing on April 3 to examine the proposed fiscal year (FY) 2015 budget for the Department of the Interior.
On April 10, the House Committee on Science, Space, and Technology held a hearing to discuss the Department of Energy’s (DOE) fiscal year (FY) 2015 budget request.
The House Energy and Commerce Committee and Energy and Power Subcommittee passed The Domestic Prosperity and Global Freedom Act (H.R. 6) which would provide for expedited approval of liquefied natural gas (LNG) exports to World Trade Organization countries.
On April 3, Senator Michael Bennet (D-CO) was named chairman of the Senate Finance Subcommittee on Energy, Natural Resources, and Infrastructure.
The Senate confirmed Neil Kornze as the 18th Director of the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) on April 8 by a vote of 71-28.
Revised estimates of earthquake risk have led at least two dozen nuclear reactor facilities to inform the Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) that their facilities may not withstand the most severe earthquake they could possibly face.
On April 29, the Supreme Court of the United States (SCOTUS) upheld the Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA) Cross-State Air Pollution Rule (CSAPR).
The Government Accountability Office (GAO) released a report on April 14 suggesting that delays in issuing yearly federal renewable fuel standards (RFS) leads to increased regulatory uncertainty and compliance costs for petroleum refiners.
On April 18, the U.S. Department of State issued a notice granting more time for intra-agency review of the approval of the Keystone XL pipeline.
The Bureau of Land Management (BLM) provided notice of its plans to develop rules to control methane releases from mining operations on public lands in the April 29 edition of the Federal Register.
A recent Department of Defense (DOD) report finds that despite concerns about availability and price of rare earth elements (REEs), the global supply should be sufficient to meet U.S. defense needs for the foreseeable future.
A list of notices from the federal register for April 2014 from agencies including the Department of the Interior, EPA, FEMA, USGS and more.
The Department of Energy (DOE) released a report in early May concluding that the U.S. has the potential to almost double its current hydropower generation capacity.
On May 2, the U.S. Forest Service (USFS) announced a proposal to strengthen the agency’s management direction for groundwater resources and other best management practices.
On May 1, the Senate approved Janice Schneider as Assistant Secretary for Land and Minerals Management (ASLM) in the Department of the Interior (DOI) by a vote of 64-32.
On May 1, the Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee held a hearing to discuss the causes of propane shortages last winter and how to prevent shortages in the future.
On May 13, the Senate Committee on Energy and Natural Resources held a hearing to consider the nomination of Dr. Suzette Kimball to serve as Director of the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS).
The House Committee on Science, Space, and Technology approved the Frontiers in Innovation, Research, Science, and Technology (FIRST) Act (H.R. 4186) in a markup held on May 28 by a party-line vote of 20-16.
The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) seeks comments in anticipation of a proposed rule on how companies should report chemicals used in hydraulic fracturing.
On May 29, the House Committee on Foreign Affairs, Asia and the Pacific Subcommittee held a hearing to discuss potential U.S. exports of liquefied natural gas (LNG) to meet rising energy needs in Asia.
This May, the White House nominated Rick Spinrad to serve as Chief Scientist for the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA).