Press Releases
Gov Watchdog Finds Geothermal Developers Lack Permitting Tools Oil and Gas Companies Already Have
Washington, D.C. - Today, the U.S. Government Accountability Office (GAO) released a new report showing that companies trying to build geothermal power on public lands lack basic permitting tools that oil and gas companies already have and face confusing rules with no way to see where their permits stand, even as demand for geothermal development has grown more than fortyfold since 2020.The watchdog report, requested by U.S. House Natural Resources Committee Ranking Member Jared Huffman … Continue Reading
October 01, 2026
Huffman, Warren Reintroduce National Institutes of Clean Energy Act to Make Transformative Investments in Clean Energy Research and Technology
Washington, D.C. - U.S. Representative Jared Huffman (D-Calif.) and U.S. Senator Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.) reintroduced the National Institutes of Clean Energy Act (NICE), legislation that would invest $400 billion over the next decade to establish and operate a new system of institutes at the Department of Energy focused on research and development of advanced clean energy technologies. The National Institutes of Clean Energy, modeled after the National Institutes of Health, would invest in … Continue Reading
September 30, 2026
Ranking Member Huffman Statement on Senate Permitting Deal
Washington, D.C. - Today, House Natural Resources Committee Ranking Member Jared Huffman (D-Calif.) issued the following statement after the introduction of the Senate’s permitting reform package: "Passing a good permitting reform package will be one of my top priorities for the next Congress, so I'm very interested in these Senate negotiations. "From what I've seen, Senators Whitehouse and Heinrich have done some good work, but they've been negotiating from a position of weakness and the … Continue Reading
September 28, 2026
Huffman, Padilla, Schiff, California Colleagues Condemn Trump Administration Efforts to Repeal Roadless Rule
WASHINGTON, D.C. — U.S. Representative Jared Huffman (D-Calif.-02) Ranking Member of the House Committee on Natural Resources, U.S. Senators Alex Padilla and Adam Schiff (both D-Calif.) led 38 members of the California congressional delegation in opposing the Trump Administration’s rescission of the Roadless Rule, a landmark U.S. Forest Service conservation policy adopted in 2001 that protects nearly 60 million acres of undeveloped National Forest System lands. It prohibits new road … Continue Reading
September 24, 2026
Huffman, Titus Lead Colleagues in Demanding Answers on Trump Admin Plans to Open Public Lands to AI Datacenters
Washington, D.C. - Today, Natural Resources Committee Ranking Member Jared Huffman (D-Calif.) and Representative Dina Titus (D-Nev.), along with 14 House Democrats, sent a letter demanding answers from Interior Secretary Doug Burgum on the Department's reported plans to hand over federal public lands for massive data center projects. The Bureau of Land Management is reportedly reviewing at least a dozen data center proposals at the President's direction, covering at least 17,600 acres across … Continue Reading
September 18, 2026
Huffman Statement on Trump Administration Plans to Put More Data Centers on Public Lands
Washington, D.C. — Today, House Natural Resources Committee Ranking Member Jared Huffman (D-Calif.) released the following statement after The Washington Sun reported that the Trump administration is considering far more data centers on public lands than previously known: “Donald Trump is selling out America’s public lands to the richest corporations in human history, and every American who loves these places should be furious. “We need to pump the brakes on the reckless AI buildout, and … Continue Reading
September 18, 2026
Ranking Members Jared Huffman, Robert Garcia, and Gregory Meeks Demand Answers on Trump Administration’s Oil Deal with Alleged Money Launderer
Washington, D.C. — Rep. Jared Huffman, Ranking Member of the Committee on Natural Resources, Rep. Robert Garcia, Ranking Member of the Committee on Oversight and Government Reform, and Rep. Gregory W. Meeks, Ranking Member of the Committee on Foreign Affairs demanded answers from Secretary of State Marco Rubio and Attorney General Todd Blanche on how they sprung alleged white collar criminal Alejandro Betancourt to lead the Trump Administration’s unprecedented scheme to take an ownership stake … Continue Reading
September 16, 2026
Huffman Demands Answers After Park Service Quietly Hires Contractors for Trump Golf Course
Washington, D.C. - Today, House Natural Resources Committee Ranking Member Jared Huffman (D-Calif.) revealed during a committee hearing that the National Park Service awarded contracts on Sept. 10, with no notice to Congress, to begin work on Donald Trump’s planned takeover of the East Potomac Golf Course.“Democrats on this committee just learned that a couple of days ago, the Park Service hired a company to start working on the historic public golf course at East Potomac Park without any … Continue Reading
September 16, 2026
Huffman Advances Northern CA Projects in Critical Water Resources Legislation
Washington, D.C. - Today, Representative Jared Huffman voted to pass the Water Resources Development Act (WRDA) of 2026. This piece of bipartisan legislation authorizes the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers' civil works program while advancing critical water infrastructure, ecosystem restoration, and climate resilience projects nationwide. "We’re in a tough time when it comes to water policy. President Trump has tried to roll back years of progress on sustainable water management, clawed back … Continue Reading
September 15, 2026
Rep. Huffman Bill to Expand Bay Area Ridge Trail Passes Committee
Washington D.C. - Today, the House Committee on Natural Resources advanced legislation led by Representative Jared Huffman to help designate the Bay Area Ridge Trail as a National Scenic Trail, bringing the decades-long vision of a continuous trail encircling the Bay Area one step closer to reality. The next step will be a vote by the entire House of Representatives. The Bay Area Ridge Trail stretches more than 550 miles across nine counties, connecting communities and public lands throughout … Continue Reading
September 15, 2026
At Final Markup Before Midterms, Huffman Lays Out How Democrats Will Hold the Trump Administration Accountable
Washington, D.C. - Today, during the House Natural Resources Committee’s final markup before the November elections, Ranking Member Jared Huffman (D-Calif.) called out Committee Republicans for two years of enabling corruption in the Trump administration and laid out what Democrats will do with the powers of the majority next Congress: Watch Ranking Member Huffman speak during committee markup. (September 15, 2026) “Our Republican colleagues have had two years with President Trump in the … Continue Reading
September 08, 2026
Carbajal, Whitehouse, Padilla, Schiff Lead Colleagues in Filing Amicus Brief Challenging Trump Administration’s Involvement in the Sable Offshore Pipeline Restart
WASHINGTON, D.C. - U.S. Representative Salud Carbajal (D-CA-24), along with Senate Environment and Public Works Committee Top Democrat Sheldon Whitehouse (D-RI) and U.S. Senators Alex Padilla (D-CA) and Adam Schiff (D-CA), led 14 of their colleagues in filing an amicus brief in California v. Wright, pending in the U.S. District Court for the Central District of California, to challenge the Trump Administration’s use of the Defense Production Act (DPA) to facilitate the restart of the Sable … Continue Reading
September 08, 2026
Huffman, Morelle Demand Gov Watchdog Investigate Whether Trump’s Freedom 250 Harvested Americans’ Data to Influence the Midterm Elections
Washington, D.C. - Today, House Natural Resources Committee Ranking Member Jared Huffman (D-Calif.) and Committee on House Administration Ranking Member Joe Morelle (D-N.Y.) sent an urgent request to the Government Accountability Office to investigate whether Freedom 250, Trump’s shadow organization that hijacked America’s 250th birthday, used federal resources to build a voter contact list for President Trump and his allies ahead of the midterms. “Based on our preliminary findings, President … Continue Reading
September 08, 2026
Over 250 Current & Former Members of Congress Urge Supreme Court to Block Trump’s Executive Order Limiting Mail Voting
Washington, D.C. — Current and former Members of Congress mobilized in a court filing challenging the legality of President Donald Trump’s Executive Order seeking to exert control over mail-in ballots ahead of the 2026 midterm elections. The effort was led by House Administration Ranking Member Joe Morelle; Assistant House Minority Leader Joe Neguse, who leads the House Democrats’ Litigation Task Force; and Task Force Co-Chairs Oversight Ranking Member Robert Garcia and Judiciary Ranking … Continue Reading
September 02, 2026
House Republicans Pass Bills to Push North Atlantic Right Whales Toward Extinction, Let Trump Fast-Track Permits for Any Mine He Likes
Washington, D.C. — House Natural Resources Committee Ranking Member Jared Huffman (D-Calif.) took to the House Floor this week to oppose H.R. 9436, which extends a special industry waiver that will lead to more critically endangered North Atlantic right whales dying in fishing rope, and H.R. 1501, which lets the Trump administration fast-track any mining project, including those the Trump family has invested in. “This bill sells our fishing communities a false promise. We may hear that … Continue Reading
September 02, 2026
Rep. Huffman Helps Move Critical California Fishery Disaster Relief Forward
Washington, D.C. - Today, Representative Jared Huffman welcomed the Department of Commerce’s fishery disaster determination for the Hoopa Valley Tribe’s Klamath River fall Chinook salmon fishery and California’s red sea urchin fishery, making them eligible to receive federal disaster assistance. “This funding is a critical lifeline for the people whose livelihoods have been devastated by fishery disasters. We have resources available to help people weather these hardships, and the Department … Continue Reading
September 01, 2026
Huffman Statement on Supreme Court Ruling Greenlighting Trump's Ballroom Construction
Washington, D.C. - Today, Natural Resources Committee Ranking Member Jared Huffman (D-Calif.) issued the following statement after the Supreme Court allowed the Trump administration to continue unauthorized construction on the White House ballroom: “This ruling is a disgrace and a masterclass in judicial sycophancy. Once again, this extremist MAGA majority on the Supreme Court has proven it functions as little more than a rubber stamp for Trump, letting him roll out his vanity projects and … Continue Reading
August 27, 2026
Huffman, Dexter Demand Records from Corporate Sponsors of Freedom 250
Washington, D.C. - Today, House Natural Resources Committee Ranking Member Jared Huffman (D-Calif.) and Oversight and Investigations Subcommittee Ranking Member Maxine Dexter (D-Ore.) sent letters to 23 corporate sponsors and partners of Freedom 250, LLC, demanding documents and communications related to their donations to the entity at the center of the White House’s takeover of the nation’s 250th celebration. In the letters, the lawmakers point to the Committee’s July interim report, From … Continue Reading
August 21, 2026
Huffman, Padilla, Schiff, Panetta Lead California Lawmakers in Push to End Politically Motivated Attack on California’s Coastline Protections
WASHINGTON, D.C. — Today, U.S. Representatives Jared Huffman (D-Calif.-02), U.S. Senators Alex Padilla and Adam Schiff (both D-Calif.), along with Jimmy Panetta (D-Calif.-19), led 29 colleagues in condemning the Trump Administration’s recent decision to initiate a formal review of California’s coastal management program under the Coastal Zone Management Act (CZMA). In the letter, they warned that the politically-motivated review threatens California’s authority to protect its coastline and … Continue Reading
August 21, 2026
Huffman, Dexter Press National Park Service, Trust for the National Mall on Who Is Buying into Trump’s Ballroom
Washington, D.C. - Today, House Natural Resources Committee Ranking Member Jared Huffman (D-Calif.) and Oversight and Investigations Subcommittee Ranking Member Maxine Dexter (D-Ore.) sent letters to National Park Service Acting Director Jessica Bowron and to Trust for the National Mall President and CEO Catherine Townsend and COO Cindy Willmann, requesting briefings on the fundraising agreements and donor vetting procedures behind President Trump’s White House Ballroom. “The Trust may have … Continue Reading