Press Release : Interior, Environment, and Related Agencies
| Press Release
Today, Congresswoman Rosa DeLauro (D-CT-03), Ranking Member of the House Appropriations Committee, and Senator Patty Murray (D-WA), Vice Chair of the Senate Appropriations Committee, released updated information detailing at least $410 billion in federal funding that President Trump and Office of Management and Budget (OMB) Director Russ Vought are holding up and denying communities across the country.
| Press Release
Today, Congresswoman Chellie Pingree (D-Maine), Ranking Member of the House Appropriations Interior, Environment, and Related Agencies Subcommittee, sent a letter to President Trump strongly opposing his attempt to undermine the curatorial independence of the Smithsonian Institution. In the letter, Pingree calls out the president’s plan to install political appointees—without relevant experience—to decide what American history is displayed in the nation’s museums and how it is presented.
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WASHINGTON — During today’s House Appropriations Committee markup of the 2026 Interior, Environment, and Related Agencies funding bill, Democrats shined a light on how Republicans drafted yet another funding bill that makes the cost-of-living crisis worse. Their bill raises energy utility bills while slashing funds for National Parks and the arts.
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WASHINGTON — During this evening’s House Appropriations Subcommittee markup of the 2026 Financial Services and General Government funding bill, House Democrats highlighted how the bill makes the cost-of-living crisis worse, sides with billionaires and big corporations, and makes communities less safe.
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During this morning’s House Appropriations Subcommittee markup of the 2026 Interior, Environment, and Related Agencies funding bill, House Democrats emphasized that President Trump and Republicans are doing nothing to lower the cost of living. Instead, they are introducing funding bills that raise utility bills and energy prices and fail to confront the climate crisis.
| Press Release
Today, House Republicans released the draft fiscal year 2026 Interior, Environment, and Related Agencies funding bill, which will be considered in subcommittee tomorrow. Instead of lowering the cost of living and confronting the climate crisis, House Republicans are raising utility bills and energy prices. The legislation takes an aggressive anti-environment, pro-pollution stance with crippling cuts to the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and policy provisions that endanger public health and fail to confront the climate crisis. The bill also slashes funding for National Parks and arts programs.
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WASHINGTON, D.C.—Maine First District Congresswoman Chellie Pingree is sounding the alarm over illegal plans by Elon Musk’s rogue “agency” to gut grant funding for the National Park Service. Many of the grants, including two in Maine, targeted by DOGE for elimination aimed to support Tribes and protect public lands from the impacts of climate change. Pingree, the top Democrat on the House Appropriations Subcommittee that oversees the National Park Service, released the following statement:
| Press Release
Last week, United States Secretary of Energy Chris Wright appeared before the House Appropriations Subcommittee on Energy and Water Development and Related Agencies for a hearing on the Department of Energy’s fiscal year 2026 budget request. During the hearing, Secretary Wright made several incorrect, misleading, or outright false statements.
| Press Release
Congresswoman Chellie Pingree (D-Maine), the top Democrat on the House Appropriations Subcommittee that oversees the National Endowment for the Arts and the National Endowment for the Humanities, released a scathing statement in response to the Trump Administration's mass termination of National Endowment for the Humanities grants.
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WASHINGTON, D.C.— Congresswoman Chellie Pingree (D-Maine) and Senator Jeff Merkley (D-Ore.), the top Democrats on the subcommittees that oversee funding for the Department of the Interior (DOI), demanded the Trump Administration immediately reinstate terminated Indian Affairs employees, lift the hiring freeze, and officially rescind the deferred resignation and early retirement offers. As Ranking Members of the Senate and House Interior Appropriations Subcommittees, Merkley and Pingree wrote to Interior Secretary Doug Burgum urging the Administration to instead work to strengthen and grow the Indian Affairs staff to best meet the needs of American Indians and Alaska Natives in accordance with our treaty and trust obligations.