In the News
Lawmakers fight to stop the Trump administration’s dismantling of a $386M ocean observatory project
by Annika Hammerschlag
A group of Democratic senators and one Republican, as well as two Democratic House committees, sent letters Monday to the National Science Foundation asking it to reverse course on its plan to dismantle a sprawling ocean monitoring network, with House lawmakers going further and accusing the agency of acting illegally. The Ocean Observatories Initiative is a network of more than 900 ocean sensors built at a cost of $386 million. Over the last decade it has tracked ocean circulation, marine … Continue Reading
June 15, 2026
Freedom 250’s fair on National Mall highlights conservative groups
by Gregory Svirnovskiy
The nation’s conservative advocacy groups will be well represented at the Great American State Fair, a two-week-long exposition celebrating the country’s 250th anniversary on the National Mall that is blessed by President Donald Trump and his allies. The fair is organized by Freedom 250, a nonprofit set up by the president and his allies to promote the country’s semiquincentennial. Freedom 250 has clashed with — and overshadowed — America250, a bipartisan organization chartered by Congress a … Continue Reading
June 15, 2026
Lawmakers Warn Trump Officials Not to Pursue Arch Project Without Congress
by Luke Broadwater
The letter adds that the administration would also be violating the Commemorative Works Act, which governs monuments on federal land in Washington; a 1912 law that says buildings or structures “shall not be erected” on federal land in the capital “without express authority of Congress”; and the Height of Buildings Act, which generally does not allow buildings that are more than 160 feet tall in Washington. “This project is stone-cold illegal,” Mr. King said in an interview. “It is one of the … Continue Reading
June 15, 2026
Trump opens protected Pacific waters to commercial fishing
by Jennifer Yachnin
The Trump administration struck down prohibitions on commercial fishing Thursday across more than 500,000 square miles of marine national monuments in the Pacific Ocean, as environmental groups vowed to challenge the action in federal court. President Donald Trump signed an executive order to open the Mariana Trench, Papahanaumokuakea and Rose Atoll marine national monuments to commercial fisherman, removing restrictions put in place under the George W. Bush and Obama … Continue Reading
June 12, 2026
House Democrats meet on energy affordability
by Josh Siegel
House Democrats are still debating the best avenue to address energy affordability and how deeply to wade into specific policy solutions ahead of the midterms. A new House Democratic working group focused on solutions to high gasoline and utility prices convened its first listening session Thursday. The half dozen lawmakers who participated had a high-level discussion about voters' concerns about energy costs, which have become a major vulnerability to President Donald Trump, members and … Continue Reading
June 11, 2026
Inside America’s Ugly Birthday Battle
by Michael Scherer
Years before Poison’s Bret Michaels, Young MC, and the Commodores dropped out of this summer’s concert series on the National Mall celebrating America’s 250th birthday, planners envisioned a Smithsonian-led blockbuster festival stretching from the Washington Monument to the U.S. Capitol that would be open to all and free of partisanship. They wanted a party bigger than the Folklife Festival, an annual two-week summer exhibition, and much longer-lasting. This new “Festival of Festivals” would … Continue Reading
June 11, 2026
This Bay Area highway was known as 'Blood Alley'. Rebuilding it could cost $11 billion
by Rachel Swan
Two hours is far too long to spend driving from Santa Rosa to Vallejo, partly on a single-lane highway with your tires at water level. Halfway home, Robert Donohoe had suffered enough. He really needed to pee. Parking his truck at a turnoff called Vista Point, he got out and shaded his eyes. It was a scorching June afternoon, wind whipping the thistles and cordgrass on a spit of land that dipped into San Pablo Bay. Traffic had slowed to a glacial crawl on Highway 37, the artery that carries … Continue Reading
June 11, 2026
Solar power hits new milestones in the US even as Trump boosts coal over clean energy
by Jennifer Mcdermott
Even as President Donald Trump boosts coal over clean energy, solar power is hitting new milestones in the U.S. and remains the leading source of new power. Data released Wednesday by global energy think tank Ember, along with a report by the Solar Energy Industries Association and analytics firm Wood Mackenzie, show the continued growth of solar and decline of coal in the United States despite federal policy. In May, for the first time, solar supplied more of the nation’s electricity than … Continue Reading
June 10, 2026
Lawmakers press Forest Service on weed killer use
by Marc Heller
A pair of Democratic lawmakers is pressing the Forest Service to respond to complaints that it’s overusing a weed killer that has sparked contentious debate about ties to cancer. Reps. Chellie Pingree of Maine and Jared Huffman of California asked Forest Service Chief Tom Schultz in a letter June 4 to detail the agency’s use of glyphosate, a widely used herbicide that’s sparked legal disputes, competing health claims and policy-related conflicts within the Trump administration. “Given the … Continue Reading
June 10, 2026
Westerman, Huffman pitch Outdoors Act revamp
by Amelia Davidson
Leaders of the House Natural Resources Committee have come to a bipartisan compromise to revamp expired portions of the landmark 2020 Great American Outdoors Act. Chair Bruce Westerman (R-Ark.) and ranking member Jared Huffman (D-Calif.) plan to introduce the “Great American Outdoors Act 250” as soon as Wednesday. The duo were collecting co-sponsors at Tuesday afternoon House votes. Westerman cheered the bipartisan product in an interview, but stopped short of announcing an imminent timeline … Continue Reading
June 08, 2026
Lawmakers move on Outdoors Act reauthorization
by Amelia Davidson
The House Natural Resources Committee will meet Friday to discuss legislation to reauthorize expired portions of the landmark 2020 Great American Outdoors Act. Ahead of the Friday hearing — which will take place in Arkansas' Hot Springs National Park in Chair Bruce Westerman's district — the committee unveiled a discussion reauthorization bill, titled the "Great American Outdoors Act 250." The bill would revamp the Legacy Restoration Fund (LRF), a major maintenance fund for the National … Continue Reading
June 07, 2026
Democrats eyeing investigations, and perhaps prosecutions, of Trump officials
by Mike Lillis
House Democrats want 2029 to be the year of reckoning for Trump administration officials. Democrats have long accused top members of President Trump’s team of violating laws across a wide range of activities, from deadly immigration raids and strikes on alleged drug boats, to financial self-dealing and targeting Trump’s political enemies for prosecutions. The Department of Justice (DOJ) has not pursued those cases, the Democrats contend, only because the president’s loyalists control the … Continue Reading
June 05, 2026
Dems rekindle questions around Trump forest official
by Marc Heller
Democrats pressed Forest Service Chief Tom Schultz on Thursday for answers about another high-ranking Agriculture Department official’s personal ties to matters he oversees in national forests, as well as concerns about other political appointees. At a hearing on Forest Service programs, Democrats on the House Natural Resources Subcommittee on Federal Lands raised concerns about Agriculture Undersecretary for Natural Resources and Environment Michael Boren, who’s tussled with the forest … Continue Reading
June 05, 2026
Arctic Refuge Oil Draws Few Bids, Despite Trump’s Push for ‘Liquid Gold’
by Lisa Friedman
An auction of oil leases in Alaska’s remote Arctic National Wildlife Refuge ended on Friday with just nine bids covering only about 10 percent of the available land, undercutting President Trump’s claims that drilling in the pristine wilderness area would set off an economic boom. The sale brought in about $3.7 million, nearly half of which came from the state of Alaska’s publicly owned economic development corporation. Most of the 58 tracts available drew no bids at all. No major … Continue Reading
June 05, 2026
Lawmakers Push Back Against Trumps $75M Coal Terminal Proposal
by Bay City News Service
On Thursday, President Donald Trump announced a $75 million coal export terminal in Oakland, a controversial project with pushback from some local representatives. The Oakland terminal is just one of 13 total projects proposed. Trump invoked the Cold War-era Defense Production Act, allowing him to provide $700 million to build American coal-fired power plants and export infrastructure. According to a U.S. Department of Energy news release Thursday, the West Gateway Terminal Project in … Continue Reading
June 03, 2026
House passes resolution to end Iran war, challenging Trump
by Mike Lillis
House lawmakers on Wednesday passed legislation designed to force President Trump to end the Iran war, marking a victory for Democrats and the constitutional purists who say the conflict is illegal without explicit congressional approval. The tally was 215-208, with four Republicans — Reps. Thomas Massie (Ky.), Brian Fitzpatrick (Pa.), Tom Barrett (Mich.) and Warren Davidson (Ohio) — joining every Democrat in supporting the measure. The development is largely symbolic, since there are … Continue Reading
April 30, 2026
Panel debates opening ESA reviews to water contractors
by Rylan DiGiacomo-Rapp
Members of the House Natural Resources Committee debated Wednesday whether to give local water contractors input into Endangered Species Act reviews, as shrinking water supplies across the West increasingly put agricultural and environmental needs at odds. The Subcommittee on Water, Wildlife and Fisheries reviewed H.R.8259, the “Federal Water Projects Consultation Improvement Act,” which would require federal agencies to involve local contractors during ESA biological assessments, which can … Continue Reading
April 29, 2026
Democrats investigate as Trump OKs almost $2 billion in taxpayer money to end offshore wind projects
by Jennifer McDermott
The Trump administration is spending nearly $2 billion to get energy companies to walk away from U.S. offshore wind projects. Democrats in Congress are investigating. The Republican administration adopted this strategy after federal courts thwarted President Donald Trump’s efforts to stop offshore wind development through executive action. Three agreements have been announced. U.S. Reps. Jared Huffman of California, the top Democrat on the House Natural Resources Committee, and Jamie Raskin, … Continue Reading
April 29, 2026
House Democrats probe TotalEnergies offshore wind deal
by Kelsey Tamborrino
Democratic Reps. Jared Huffman of California and Jamie Raskin of Maryland said Wednesday they are launching a probe into French energy giant TotalEnergies over its offshore wind lease deal with the Trump administration. "Making a secretive, taxpayer-funded deal and trying to shield it from any legislative oversight does not generate confidence that this deal benefits the American people," the top Democrats on the Natural Resources and Judiciary committees wrote to TotalEnergies' CEO Patrick … Continue Reading
April 28, 2026
Trump administration blocks US wind energy projects in switch to oil and gas
by Gabrielle Canon
The Trump administration blocked two permitted US wind energy projects from development this week, with an agreement to pay millions of dollars in refunds to the companies behind them if those funds are reinvested in oil and gas. US Department of the Interior officials framed the canceled agreements as a way to “promote US energy security and affordability” by funneling funds “away from intermittent, higher-cost energy sources toward proven conventional solutions”, in an announcement issued … Continue Reading