Democrats Reject Republican Bill that Guts Environmental Protections, Slashes Resources for National Parks, and Cuts Funding for the Arts

Republicans Endanger Americans’ Health While Profiting Polluters in 2025 Interior, Environment Funding Bill

WASHINGTON — Today, House Appropriations Committee Democrats united against Republicans’ harmful 2025 Interior, Environment, and Related Agencies funding bill. The legislation takes an aggressive anti-environment, pro-pollution stance with crippling cuts to the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and policy provisions that will endanger public health, strain the economy, and increase costs. The bill also slashes funding for national parks and arts programs. Democrats unanimously rejected the legislation during today’s full committee markup.

The fiscal year 2025 Interior, Environment, and Related Agencies bill includes $38.5 billion, which is $72 million below the fiscal year 2024 enacted level and $4.4 billion below the budget request. The bill also provides $2.75 billion for the Wildfire Suppression Operations Reserve Fund.

The legislation:

• Hinders the U.S. response to the climate crisis and fails to address the growing number and severity of extreme weather events by cutting efforts to reduce carbon emissions and community resiliency programs.
• Slashes funding for national parks and cultural institutions, threatening Americans’ ability to enjoy public lands and museums.
• Exacerbates environmental discrimination against rural and poor communities by defunding environmental justice initiatives.
• Promotes dirty energy by requiring fossil fuels lease sales while prohibiting growth in clean energy projects.
• Hastens ecosystem decline by allowing harmful and dirty mining activities and by removing Endangered Species Act protections for numerous species.
• Incites hate and discrimination by prohibiting funds for advancing diversity, equity, inclusion, and accessibility, and censoring commemoration of LGTBQI+ pride.

“June marked the 13th consecutive month of record-shattering temperatures across the globe, yet the bill House Republicans put before our committee completely disregards this reality and ignores the urgent need for us to do more to address the climate crisis, not less. Cutting the Environmental Protection Agency’s funding by a whopping 20 percent is irresponsible and severely impacts needed investments in environmental justice, enforcement, and climate change. Republicans’ bill also makes drastic cuts to land management agencies such as the National Park Service and cultural institutions such as the Smithsonian and National Gallery of Art,” Interior, Environment, and Related Agencies Appropriations Subcommittee Ranking Member Chellie Pingree (D-ME-01) said. “Unfortunately, once again, House Republicans have loaded up the bill with widely unpopular policy riders that cripple environmental protection, undermine climate change policies, and incite hate and discrimination. A majority of Americans support the United States taking steps to become carbon neutral by 2050 and they support taking responsibility for future generations. The austere and reckless cuts in this bill do not align with their values. We need to rise to this challenge and not squander the opportunity to make the planet better for our children and grandchildren.”

Congresswoman Pingree’s full remarks as prepared for delivery are here.

“Rather than making sound investments to protect the air we breathe and the water we drink, preserve our national parks, and ensure the environment we all share and live in remains clean and protected, the majority’s bill benefits the most egregious polluters and climate science deniers. The bill jeopardizes public health and safety, hinders our responses to the climate crisis, and endangers rural and low-income communities,” Appropriations Committee Ranking Member Rosa DeLauro (D-CT-03) said. “House Republicans are more focused on lining the pockets of billionaires and big oil companies than protecting our planet for future generations. On top of these dangerous cuts, Republicans are slashing funding for the national parks and the arts, some of the most popular federal investments across the United States. Sharp cuts to the National Park Service mean fewer seasonal employees and furloughing existing permanent employees, making it more difficult and cumbersome for our constituents to visit and enjoy our nation’s crown jewels. Cuts to the Smithsonian Institution will likewise curb Americans’ access to the world’s largest museum, education, and research complex. This harmful bill damages our public lands, promotes dirty energy, jeopardizes biodiversity, and hinders our response to the climate crisis.”

Congresswoman DeLauro’s full remarks as prepared for delivery are here.

A summary of House Republicans’ 2025 Interior, Environment, and Related Agencies funding bill can be found here. A fact sheet of the bill is here.

The text of the bill, before the adoption of amendments in full Committee, is here. The bill report, before the adoption of amendments in full Committee, is here. Information on Community Project Funding in the bill is here.

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