Press Releases

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.

WASHINGTON, D.C.—In letters sent today to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA), which oversees the United States Forest Service, and Department of the Interior (DOI), which encompasses eleven bureaus, including the National Park Service, House Appropriations Interior and Environment Subcommittee Ranking Member Chellie Pingree (D-Maine) demanded answers and transparency from the Trump Administration over the mass termination of federal employees.

Yesterday’s Federal Register shows that the White House has taken another step to carry out its Project 2025 agenda to unlawfully steal federal funds promised to Americans. They have done so by shifting the technical budget decisions called “apportionments” – or the tool used by the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) to distribute the funds as enacted into law by Congress – away from the normal budget process. OMB Director Russ Vought has done this so that he, President Trump, and unchecked billionaire Elon Musk can use these once non-controversial budget decisions as a tool for illegally stealing funds.

House Appropriations Committee and Labor, Health and Human Services, and Education Subcommittee Ranking Member Rosa DeLauro is warning of the fatal consequences of self-appointed president Elon Musk’s sabotaging of the National Institutes of Health. By slashing NIH’s workforce, President Trump and unchecked billionaires are blocking the development of cures and treatments for diseases and health conditions that affect millions of American families.

House Appropriations Committee and Labor, Health and Human Services, and Education Subcommittee Ranking Member Rosa DeLauro is warning of the fatal consequences of unelected billionaire and self-appointed president Elon Musk’s crippling of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). By slashing CDC’s workforce, President Trump and unchecked billionaires are leaving Americans more exposed to disease, illness, and death.

Today, Congresswoman Marcy Kaptur (OH-09), Ranking Member of the House Appropriations Subcommittee on Energy and Water Development, and Senator Patty Murray (D-WA), Senate Appropriations Committee Vice Chair and Subcommittee on Energy and Water Development Ranking Member, issued the following statement in response to reports regarding thousands of probationary employee firings across the Department of Energy, including employees at the National Nuclear Security Administration (NNSA). The Members are demanding an immediate briefing to Congress by Secretary Chris Wright.

WASHINGTON, D.C.—Congresswoman Chellie Pingree (D-Maine), Ranking Member of the House Appropriations Interior and Environment Subcommittee, says the Trump Administration’s reported firing of 3,400 U.S. Forest Service (FS) employees will severely hinder the agency’s ability to fight wildfires.

Today, House Appropriations Interior and Environment Subcommittee Ranking Member Chellie Pingree warned the Trump Administration that its ill-conceived federal hiring freeze will jeopardize National Park Service (NPS) operations at national parks like Acadia. Pingree called on Secretary of the Interior Doug Burgum to immediately resume all seasonal hiring for the NPS and emphasized that the seasonal workforce is essential to safely and successfully operating parks for more than 325 million annual visitors.