"We believe that tribes deserve to be meaningfully consulted before development happens on their ancestral lands."
"These bills, on the other hand, are a checklist for industry."
"As long as the present mining law exists, the legislation we are talking about today, it only makes matters worse."
"the mining industry uses up our public lands, ignores tribes' concerns, spills their toxic waste into our communities and waterways, and leaves their messes for the rest of us to clean up . . . the Re..."
"no question that our 150-year-old mining laws need reform."
"As the chairman mentioned, it is difficult to overstate the importance of the work of our committee."
"We are at the center of Federal efforts toward environmental justice, and we are a vital--and that concept has been made a vital component of any response to the climate crisis."
"All told, our committee has passed scores of bills out of the House, and 149 passed Senate and became law--149."
"We want to attract and keep the best, and these skilled and dedicated public servants are needed now more than ever."
"It feels a little like deja vu. A few weeks ago, we sat in this room while my colleagues across the aisle spent hours scapegoating our environmental review processes."
"Not one Republican voted for that Inflation Reduction Act or any other legislation."
"What we don't need is permitting reform that guts and takes away the protections that NEPA gives to communities like mine."