On July 31, a group of Democrats from Western states introduced the Water in the 21st Century Act, which includes a number of programs intent on conserving and managing diminishing water supplies in drought-stricken states.

The Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee approved the Conference Accountability Act of 2014 to limit the travel of federal employees to conferences.

The Senate Committee on Appropriations released a committee report to accompany their Interior, Environment, and Related Agencies appropriations bill on August 1. Committee reports allow legislators to make their views on funding levels public at a time when the Senate appropriations process has come to a halt, and it is unclear whether specific appropriations bills will be voted on in committee and on the Senate floor.

Rep. Rick Larsen (D-WA) and Rep. Don Young (R-AK) recently announced the formation of a new bipartisan caucus designed to bring more attention to Arctic issues in Congress.

The White House Council of Economic Advisers released a report examining possible economic consequences of delaying policies addressing climate change.

President Barack Obama announced on July 31 his intent to nominate astrophysicist France Córdova as the next Director of the National Science Foundation (NSF). Dr. France Anne Córdova served as President of Purdue University from 2007 to 2012 and is currently President Emerita. Prior to Purdue, she served as Chancellor of the University of California at Riverside, where she was also a Distinguished Professor of Physics and Astronomy. The first female chief scientist ever hired by NASA, Dr.

Former astronaut Dr. Kathryn D. Sullivan was nominated by President Obama on August 1 to serve as Administrator of the National Atmospheric and Oceanic Administration (NOAA) and Undersecretary of Commerce for Oceans and Atmosphere. She has been serving as NOAA’s acting administrator since Jane Lubchenco’s retirement in February.

The U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) reported that National Scenic Trails will be added to U.S. Topography Maps. The United States has 11 National Scenic Trails and the first to be featured on USGS maps is the Ice Age National Scenic Trail in Wisconsin.  The revised maps will be added to the USGS Historical Topographic Map Collection and are also available for download. 

The Union of Concerned Scientists (UCS) released a report on August 13 that criticizes the failure of the National Flood Insurance Program (NFIP) to take account of climate change in risk assessment. The report is part of a larger effort by UCS to convince the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) to account for climate impacts on flooding in its policies. The report comes before the planned initiation of increased premiums for risky buildings, which will be done by the NFIP on October 1.

The U.S. Geological Survey is launching an experimental program to map man-made structures and facilities in the state of Colorado. Using an internet mapping application, volunteers can help USGS update The National Map by modifying or adding information about features such as schools and fire stations. If the pilot program in Colorado is successful, this volunteer-based mapping will be expanded to other areas.