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Today, the Trump Administration announced a plan to roll back the Environmental Protection Agency and Department of Transportation's fuel and emissions standards first implemented under the Obama Administration. In response, Rep. Raúl M. Grijalva issued the following statement:

Today, Acting Environmental Protection Agency Administrator Andrew Wheeler testified before the Senate Environmental and Public Works Committee. Before the hearing, Tucson resident Linda Robles appeared in a press conference to denounce the EPA's refusal to ban trichloroethylene (TCE)–despite it being a known carcinogen.

Yesterday, Rep. Raúl M. Grijalva spoke on the House floor in opposition to an amendment from Rep. Paul Gosar (R-AZ) that would prohibit funding for the management of Ironwood Forest National Monument.

WASHINGTON, DC– This week, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency announced that it will award $389,155 in grants to environmental projects along the Arizona-Sonora border through its Border 2020 Initiative. According to the EPA, the grants will fund projects that "reduce emissions and wait times at ports of entry, increase waste diversion and composting, and improve emergency response capacity." In response, Rep. Raúl M. Grijalva issued the following statement:

WASHINGTON, DC– Today, in response to the release of President Trump's infrastructure plan and budget, Rep. Raúl M. Grijalva issued the following statement:

WASHINGTON, D.C.–Rep. Raúl M. Grijalva issued the following video statement in response to President Trump's 2018 State of the Union address.

Washington, D.C. – Rep. Grijalva released the following statement after being named to serve on a conference committee that will attempt to combine the House and Senate versions of the GOP's tax scam. Rep. Grijalva joins four other House Democrats appointed by Leader Pelosi to serve on this committee.

TUCSON – Rep. Raúl M. Grijalva (D-Ariz.), Ranking Member of the House Natural Resources Committee released the following statement on the 3-2 approval of the Keystone XL pipeline through Nebraska.

WASHINGTON - Rep. Grijalva made the following statement after the non-partisan Government Accountability Office (GAO) released a report outlining the potential economic consequences of climate change throughout the United States. Based on its findings, GAO recommended the Executive Office of the President to use this information in order to develop risk management plans to mitigate the unique economic risks that each region of the country is facing. The report finds that the extreme weather and fires that have hit our country over the last decade have cost the federal government close to $350 billion, with increasing costs expected in the future.

TUCSON – Congressman Raúl M. Grijalva (D-AZ) hosted a press conference yesterday with local environmental advocates highlighting the threat to Ironwood Forest National Monument and other national monuments across the country posed by the Trump administration. On April 26th, President Trump signed an Executive Order requiring Secretary of Interior, Ryan Zinke to review the monument statuses of 27 national monuments, including Ironwood Forest National Monument. The Order is part of broader GOP attempts to undermine the Antiquities Act, and roll back environmental protections to open up public lands to mining interests, all despite public opposition to such efforts. Ironwood Forest National Monument is one of four national monuments under review in Arizona alone. Covering more than 188,000 acres, it is home to the last remaining population of Desert Bighorn Sheep and a wide diversity of flora and fauna. A poll conducted this year found that Arizonans overwhelmingly support keeping national monument designation protections in place.

WASHINGTON D.C. – Congressman Raul M. Grijalva (D-AZ) released the following statement after the Department of Homeland Security announced that it would override several environmental laws – including the Clean Water Act, Clean Air Act, Antiquities Act, and Endangered Species Act – in order to expedite the building of a section of President Trump's border wall in the San Diego area. In April, Congressman Grijalva along with the Center for Biological Diversity filed a lawsuit against the Trump administration over their plans to construct a wall. The lawsuit seeks to require the U.S. Department of Homeland Security and U.S. Customs and Border Protection to prepare a supplemental "programmatic environmental impact statement" for the U.S.-Mexico border enforcement program.

Washington, D.C. – Congressman Raul Grijalva (D-AZ) released the following statement after reintroducing the Border Security and Accountability Act of 2017, a comprehensive approach to border security that places the needs of Borderlands communities at the center of all security efforts. Among other features, the Act establishes a humane and accountable border security strategy, modernizes border infrastructure and increases personnel at Ports of Entry, and protects the unique ecosystems of the Borderlands. The Act comes as the House of Representatives is considering a package of security appropriation bills that include border wall funding. Click here for full text of the bill.

Washington, D.C. - Congressman Raúl M. Grijalva (D-AZ) sent the following letter to Arizona Governor, Doug Ducey urging him to commence the Disaster Declaration process and seek immediate federal assistance to address imminent threats of water sewage exposure to thousands of Arizona residents. On July 24th, the City of Nogales Sewer Department discovered a large section of The International Outfall Interceptor (I.O.I.) - which conveys approximately 10 million gallons of raw sewage to the International treatment plant - had been exposed in Nogales. With the recent identification of a breach of a pipeline just north of Nogales, this constitutes an immediate danger to public health and may meet the criteria of a state of emergency.

WASHINGTON D.C- Today, Rep. Raul Grijalva (D-AZ), Rep. Jared Polis (D-CO), Rep. Jared Huffman (D-CA), and Rep. Pramila Jayapal (D-WA) unveiled climate legislation that would transition the United States to 100 percent clean and renewable energy by 2050. The "100 by '50 Act" is the first bill introduced in the U.S. House of Representatives that fully envisions a complete transition off fossil fuels for the United States.

WASHINGTON D.C. – Congressman Raúl M. Grijalva (D-AZ) released the following statement after EPA Administrator Scott Pruitt announced a 42-page proposal that among other things would dismantle the Clean Water Rule of 2015. The Clean Water Rule of 2015, brought up-to-date the Clean Water Act of 1972 and clearly defined what waterways could be overseen by the federal government. The Clean Water Rule was developed after the EPA met with more than 400 stakeholders and after receiving more than one million public comments. Under this new directive, rivers and streams would no longer be federally protected from pollution.

WASHINGTON D.C. – Congressman Raúl M. Grijalva (AZ-03) released the following statement after the U.S Forest Service announced that it will be signing off on one of the two federal permits needed in order to begin operating the controversial Rosemont Mine, an open-pit copper mine in Southern Arizona. Rep. Grijalva has been a vocal opponent of Rosemont Mine, whose grave environmental impacts in the region would far outweigh any potential economic gains.

TUCSON – Congressman Raúl M. Grijalva (D-AZ) today joined the Center for Biological Diversity in suing the Trump administration over its proposed border wall and other border security measures, calling on federal agencies to conduct an in-depth investigation of the proposal's environmental impacts. Rep. Grijalva released the following statement:

WASHINGTON, D.C. – U.S. Representatives Raúl M. Grijalva (D-AZ) and Jared Huffman (D-CA) today requested an immediate meeting with White House and Department of Justice officials to demand accountability for alarming treatment of Water Protectors and peaceful demonstrators at the Dakota Access Pipeline in North Dakota, and to denounce the closure of the Oceti Sakowin camp. The lawmakers, who jointly led 21 Members of Congress in urging President Obama to deescalate the tension at Standing Rock in a November 14 letter, noted today that circumstances since then have only deteriorated:

TUCSON – Congressman Raúl M. Grijalva (D-AZ) released the following statement today in response to reports that tear gas, freezing water and rubber bullets were used Sunday night against a crowd of approximately 400 Water Protectors and demonstrators at the Dakota Access Pipeline. The altercation injured more than 150 demonstrators and one law enforcement officer.

Washington, D.C. – President Obama should take concrete steps to reduce the tensions at the Dakota Access Pipeline, argued Representatives Raúl M. Grijalva (D-AZ), Jared Huffman (D-CA), and 21 members of Congress today in a letter to the White House. The lawmakers recommend that the federal government deny the easement for the Dakota Access Pipeline to cross Lake Oahe, deploy observers to ensure water protectors and journalists are safe and their rights are upheld, and urge the state of North Dakota to stand down from its escalation of the use of force. The letter follows today's announcement by the Army Corps of Engineers that the agency will continue consultations with the Standing Rock Sioux Tribe before making a final decision on the fate of the controversial Dakota Access Pipeline.

WASHINGTON, D.C. – Congressman Raúl M. Grijalva (D-AZ) sent a letter to Arizona Governor Doug Ducey urging immediate action to protect Arizona's water supplies from lead and copper exposure. Grijalva's letter comes after the Environment Protection Agency (EPA) provided Governor Ducey's office with a list of prudent steps the State should take to ensure proper compliance with the Lead and Copper Rule, a provision of the Safe Drinking Water Act that helps safeguard drinking water supplies from lead and copper contamination.

WASHINGTON, DC – Congressman Raúl M. Grijalva (D-AZ) released a statement today after the Guatemalan Supreme Court (Corte Suprema de Justicia) upheld a July 15, 2015 provisional injunction against Reno-based company Kappes, Cassiday and Associates (KCA) and its subsidiary Exploraciones Mineras de Guatemala (EXMINGUA). That ruling ordered the suspension of the company's mining activities at El Tambor mine in La Puya, Guatemala. The ruling clearly states that EXMINGUA has been operating without a valid permit from the municipal government, did not consult with affected communities before the project began in accordance with Guatemalan and International law, and that the company's Environmental Impact Assessment was plagued with serious deficiencies.

WASHINGTON, DC – Congressman Raúl M. Grijalva (D-AZ) today led 52 of his Congressional colleagues in sending a letter to Attorney General Loretta Lynch requesting she prohibit British Petroleum (BP) from claiming $15.3 billion of their $20 billion settlement for the Deepwater Horizon explosion and oil spill as a business expense, which would allow the negligent oil company to secure a tax windfall of up to $5.35 billion at the expense of the American people. BP has been found "grossly negligent" in causing the Deepwater Horizon disaster that killed 11 people and created the largest marine oil spill in U.S. history.

WASHINGTON, DC – Congressman Raúl M. Grijalva (D-AZ) released the following statement today after the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) announced more than $15 million in funding for environmental improvements on tribal lands in Arizona. Grant recipients include the Havasupai Tribe, the Tohono O'odham Nation and the Gila River Indian Community.

Washington, D.C. – Raúl M. Grijalva, Ranking Member of the House Natural Resources Committee, was joined by tribal leaders from across Northern Arizona on Monday for a press conference in Flagstaff to introduce the Greater Grand Canyon Heritage National Monument Act, a bill establishing a new national monument that reflects the long history and deep cultural roots of the region's Native American tribes.

Washington, D.C. – Today, Congressman Raúl M. Grijalva (D-AZ) praised the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) for finalizing a new Worker Protection Standard (WPS), which protects farmworkers who harvest our food from the harmful effects of pesticides.

WASHINGTON–Congressional Progressive Caucus (CPC) Co-Chairs Reps. Raúl M. Grijalva (D-AZ) and Keith Ellison (D-MN), along with 62 House Democrats, today sent a letter to Environmental Protection Agency Administrator Gina McCarthy urging the EPA to issue a strong National Ambient Air Quality Standard (NAAQS) for ozone of 60 parts per billion.

TUCSON, AZ - Congressman Raúl Grijalva (D-AZ) issued a statement today following the release of new data by The Solar Foundation, which shows Arizona to have the third fastest growing solar sector in America and the second highest overall installed solar capacity out of all 50 states.

WASHINGTON – U.S. Reps. Raul Grijalva, Ann Kirkpatrick and Ruben Gallego, D-Ariz., sent a letter to President Obama today calling for the establishment of a Grand Canyon Watershed National Monument to preserve the greater Grand Canyon region and protect it from existing and future threats.

Washington, D.C. – Rep. Raúl M. Grijalva, Ranking Member on the House Natural Resources Committee, highlighted House Republicans' failure to address pay disparity, unemployment or other top priorities in their rush to force premature approval of the Keystone XL pipeline during this morning's floor debate. Grijalva has been a leading voice in urging House Democrats to sustain President Obama's impending veto of the bill and published an op-ed making that case to his colleagues in The Guardian on Wednesday

Washington, D.C. – Ahead of tomorrow's vote on H.R. 3, the House Republican bill to force premature approval of the controversial Keystone XL tar sands pipeline, Rep. Raúl M. Grijalva, Ranking Member on the House Natural Resources Committee, urged his colleagues to support President Obama's promised veto after the bill's expected passage.

WASHINGTON, DC – Congressman Raúl Grijalva (D-AZ) was joined by 17 of his Congressional colleagues today in sending a letter to President Obama, congratulating him on the success of the third National Climate Assessment (NCA) released on May 6, 2014, and urging that steps be taken to ensure future NCAs build on the success of this year's report.

WASHINGTON, DC – Congressman Raúl M. Grijalva (D-AZ), the incoming Ranking Member of the House Natural Resources Committee, today announced his hiring of Meghan Conklin as Democratic Staff Director for the 114th Congress. Ms. Conklin is currently a Senior Professional Staff Member on the Senate Committee on Energy and Natural Resources focusing on public lands, forestry and water issues.

WASHINGTON, DC – Today, Congressman Raúl Grijalva (D-AZ) was elected Ranking Member of the House Natural Resources Committee, which is charged with preserving America's public lands, nation's parks, fisheries, wildlife, as well as oversight over Native American affairs and mineral land laws.

TUCSON, AZ – Today, Congressman Raúl Grijalva (D-AZ) sent a letter to Secretary of Interior Sally Jewel, demanding answers and accountability after findings by a recent Inspector General (IG) report that the Bureau of Ocean Energy Management, Regulation and Enforcement (BOEMRE) suppressed contradictory findings by three engineers during an investigation into the BP Atlantis deepwater oil production facility.

TUCSON, AZ – Congressman Raúl Grijalva (D-AZ), Ranking Member on the Congressional Natural Resources Subcommittee on Public Landsand Environmental Regulation, released the following statement today announcing his intent to seek the Ranking Member position of the full Natural Resources Committee in the 114th Congress upon Rep. Peter DeFazio departing to Transportation and Infrastructure Committee:

TUCSON, AZ – Congressman Raúl Grijalva (D-AZ) released the following statement after the U.S. District Court in Arizona upheld the U.S. Department of Interior's 20-year ban on new uranium mining claims across one million acres of public lands adjacent to the Grand Canyon.

WASHINGTON, DC – Today, Congressman Raúl Grijalva (D-AZ) voted against H.R. 2, legislation comprised of 14 GOP-led energy bills to reduce environmental protections and minimize the U.S. response to climate change. Rep. Grijalva released the following statement:

WASHINGTON, D.C. – Today, Congressman Raúl Grijalva (D-AZ), Ranking Member on the House Natural Resources Subcommittee on Public Lands and Environmental Regulation, released a statement on a new report by the Land and Water Conservation Fund Coalition. The report, which highlights 50 years of environmental protection under the Land and Water Conservation Fund Act (LWCF), comes on the 50th anniversary of the landmark legislation's passage in Congress.

WASHINGTON – Congressman Raúl Grijalva (D-AZ), Ranking Member of the Natural Resources Subcommittee on Public Lands and Environmental Regulation, released the following statement in response to reports that British Petroleum (BP) had ended its internal oil spill claims program for more than 10,000 Gulf Coast residents who were impacted by the 2010 Deep Water Horizon oil spill:

National Monument Will Honor Latino History, Generate Economic Benefits for Local Economies

Rep. Raúl M. Grijalva will visit Kofa High School in Yuma on Wednesday to meet with students, including two Nuestro Rio program participants, to discuss the importance and political future of the Colorado River. Nuestro Rio is an organization representing more than 21,000 Latinos across the Southwest who promote sustainable use of Colorado River resources.

The damage caused by climate change is already disproportionately affecting communities of color and low-income communities. The lessons of Hurricane Katrina have not reached the halls of Congress. We can create jobs and protect our environment at the same time.

Rep. Raúl M. Grijalva today asked the Department of the Interior (DOI) inspector general to investigate the public costs of an ongoing right-wing campaign to pressure DOI officials into ceding control of federal land to states. Grijalva's letter, which also asks DOI to assess potential lobbying disclosure violations by the American Legislative Exchange Council (ALEC), is available at http://1.usa.gov/1eyVYZM.

At a recently concluded press conference on Capitol Hill, Rep. Raúl M. Grijalva – the ranking member of the House Subcommittee on Public Lands and Environmental Regulations – released a letter he sent to the Government Accountability Office this morning requesting a review of the State Department's procedures for conducting environmental impact statements. The request comes as conflict-of-interest concerns continue to build around Environmental Resources Management, the contractor chosen by the Department to review the Keystone XL pipeline.

Rep. Raúl M. Grijalva will head a press conference with congressional colleagues and environmental leaders this Tuesday at 1:00 p.m. Eastern time at the House Triangle in front of the U.S. Capitol to discuss the Keystone XL pipeline proposal and recently uncovered corporate conflicts of interests in the preparation of documents used to support it.

Rep. Raúl M. Grijalva today applauded the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) on its newly proposed Worker Protection Standard (WPS) to safeguard the health of agricultural workers exposed to pesticides. Grijalva led a letter signed by 51 of his colleagues to EPA Administrator Gina McCarthy Feb. 6 urging the agency to move forward with needed reforms.

Rep. Raúl M. Grijalva sent a letter signed by 51 of his colleagues today to Gina McCarthy, the administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), calling on her to finalize updates to agricultural worker safety and training standards. The EPA has been developing a rule to mandate better signage and more frequent awareness training for agricultural workers to bring the industry into line with other economic sectors.

This process has featured multiple documented conflicts of interest, corporate failure to disclose relevant business ties, and a State Department more interested in greasing the skids than doing due diligence. We thought we'd seen the last of this in the George W. Bush era, when profits came before science and wealthy corporate interests called all the shots.

Ranking Member of the House Natural Resources Committee Peter DeFazio (D-OR) and Public Lands Subcommittee Ranking Member Raúl M. Grijalva (D-AZ) released a letter today co-signed by 109 House Democrats urging Secretary of the Interior Sally Jewell to protect and conserve national treasures under the Antiquities Act. The letter was sent on the same day that Sec. Jewell is hosting a community meeting in New Mexico to discuss protecting the Organ Mountains.

Reps. Raúl M. Grijalva, Louise M. Slaughter and Betty McCollum responded today to the Food and Drug Administration's (FDA) decision to reevaluate the use of triclosan and triclocarban – dangerous antibacterial chemical ingredients found in soaps and body washes – unless industry can provide evidence that they are safe and effective.

Rep. Raúl M. Grijalva today released a letter co-signed by 85 House Democratic and Republican colleagues urging Secretary of the Interior Sally Jewell to continue offering Endangered Species Act (ESA) protection to gray wolves across the United States. The letter, available at http://1.usa.gov/1d9UUpD, says the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service should reconsider the proposal it released in June to continue ESA protections only for the Mexican gray wolf, which is classified as a distinct subspecies.

Rep. Raúl M. Grijalva today sent a letter co-signed by 24 other House Democratic colleagues to President Obama highlighting serious corporate conflicts of interest in the preparation of the pending Keystone XL environmental impact statement (EIS). The company conducting the analysis, Environmental Resources Management, seemingly failed to disclose previous contracts with TransCanada – the company seeking to build Keystone – in its bid to the State Department.

Rep. Raúl M. Grijalva today highlighted the recent Environmental Protection Agency finding that the proposed Rosemont Mine should not be given a Clean Water Act permit to operate in the Santa Rita Mountains near Tucson. Grijalva has publicly agreed with Save the Scenic Santa Ritas, a local advocacy group, that not enough scientific analysis has been done to justify building the mine.

Rep. Grijalva sent a letter to Secretary of the Interior Sally Jewell and Secretary of Agriculture Tom Vilsack Oct. 3 urging them to halt mining, drilling and other extractive activities on federal lands -- including national parks, monuments and forests

As the federal government closes down today, let's remember the eight hundred thousand1 federal employees unnecessarily out of a job. Let's remember the air traffic safety inspectors, National Park Service and public lands employees, Small Busines

Rep. Raúl M. Grijalva, the ranking member of the House Subcommittee on Public Lands and Environmental Regulation, will tour and hold a press conference on Wednesday, Sept. 4, at the Palomino Valley National Adoption Center to discuss the current state and

Reps. Raúl M. Grijalva and Ron Barber today sent a letter to Secretary of Agriculture Tom Vilsack urging the Forest Service, which is under the authority of the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA), not to release a final Environmental Impact Statement (

Rep. Raúl M. Grijalva this morning expressed his deepest sorrow and sympathy for the families of the 19 firefighters killed battling the Yarnell Hill fire southwest of Prescott, Ariz. "Firefighters dedicate their careers to keeping the rest of us safe, an

Rep. Raúl M. Grijalva was honored as one of America's Great Outdoors Congressional Champions at a June 26 ceremony in Washington, D.C., as part of Great Outdoors America Week.

El Congresista Raúl M. Grijalva (D-Tucson) fue reconocido como uno de los campeones de la Gran Semana al Aire Libre en América (junio 24-27, 2013).

Rep. Raúl M. Grijalva today called President Obama's newly announced climate change prevention plan "a good first step" and said he was encouraged by the president proactively addressing the issue. Grijalva, the top Democrat on the Subcommittee on Pub

In the latest sign of strong momentum for Rep. Raúl M. Grijalva to be the next ranking member of the House Natural Resources Committee, four former Oregon lawmakers, including former Rep. Jim Weaver, signed a letter circulated yesterday by environmental g

In the latest sign of strong momentum for Rep. Raúl M. Grijalva to be the next ranking member of the House Natural Resources Committee, the national League of United Latin American Citizens (LULAC) passed a resolution over the weekend declaring its unqual

Reps. Raúl M. Grijalva, Ed Markey and Rush Holt yesterday introduced the Abandoned Mine Lands Cleanup and Taxpayer Fairness Act, a bill to modernize U.S. mining law and establish a royalty program to increase taxpayer return on investment. The bill is a r

Rep. Raúl M. Grijalva today sent a letter, co-signed by a bipartisan group of 29 other House Members, to Interior Secretary Sally Jewell asking for review and reform of the Bureau of Land Management's (BLM) Wild Horse and Burro Program. An identical l

The Border Environment Cooperation Commission and the Environmental Protection Agency's (EPA) Region 9 U.S.-Mexico Border 2020 Program have announced a Requests for Proposals (RFP) for projects along the border that will help meet the Program's en

Rep. Raúl M. Grijalva today expressed deep disappointment with the Bureau of Land Management's (BLM) newly finalized Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) on a power transmission line projected to pass through several sensitive riparian areas along the

Rep. Raúl M. Grijalva today questioned the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service's (FWS) newly proposed rule to remove Endangered Species Act (ESA) protections for most gray wolves in the lower 48 states.

Rep. Raúl M. Grijalva today introduced a House Resolution recognizing the legacy of the Civilian Conservation Corps on the occasion of its 80th anniversary. Reps. Betty McCollum, Keith Ellison, Rick Nolan, and Ann McLane Kuster are original cosponsors.

The National Academies report highlights and expands upon many of my concerns with the Bureau's Wild Horse and Burro Program. BLM cannot continue to spend 70 percent of the program's budget on roundups and long-term corralling. These unsustainable

Rep. Raúl M. Grijalva today expressed serious concerns about Rep. Paul Gosar's newly introduced Arizona Land Sovereignty Act (H.R. 1495), which would prohibit presidents from designating any new national monuments in Arizona. Presidents have had the a

Rep. Grijalva today congratulated Youth & Wildlife Conservation as Las Cienegas Grasslands and the Arizona Youth Conservation Engagement Pathway Pilot Project on being among the 22 recipients of new Interior Department grants to train and employ youth on

Rep. Raúl M. Grijalva today sent a letter to President Obama urging him to deny a permit for the proposed Keystone XL pipeline. The letter – co-signed by 29 Members of Congress, all Democrats – highlights the impact the pipeline would have on

Reps. Raúl M. Grijalva, Rush Holt and Colleen Hanabusa today wrote the heads of the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), White House Council on Environmental Quality and Army of Corps of Engineers (ACE) to ask for a review of Clean Water Act implementin

Rep. Raúl M. Grijalva today highlighted a new $300,000 grant for the City of Goodyear, Ariz., to help recharge the West Salt River Aquifer. The grant is one of 44 projects in 11 states that will receive a total of $20.8 million in WaterSMART Water and Ene

Rep. Raúl M. Grijalva today sent a letter to Interior Secretary Sally Jewell urging her to cancel a pending rule that would cancel endangered species status for most U.S. wolf populations. The letter is attached and the text is available below.

House Republicans voted today to allow secret payments from oil companies to foreign nations as part of their efforts to expand new drilling deals between the United States and foreign countries. The legislation passed by the Republican majority on the Ho

Rep. Raúl M. Grijalva, the ranking member of the House Subcommittee on Public Lands and Environmental Regulations, introduced the Saguaro National Park Boundary Expansion and Study Act of 2013 yesterday afternoon. Reps. Ron Barber and Ann Kirkpatrick are

The National Park Foundation has selected Saguaro National Park to receive one of its 34 "America's Best Idea" grants given this year to nominated parks across the country. The $14,995 grant will benefit the Cactus Ranger youth program at the park by

Rep. Raúl M. Grijalva (AZ-03), the ranking member of the House Subcommittee on Public Lands and Environmental Regulations and a member of the Safe Climate Caucus, spoke on the House floor yesterday afternoon on the importance of finding ways to mitigate t

Rep. Raúl M. Grijalva today introduced six bills focused on the management, conservation, and long-term stewardship of federal land in Arizona and throughout the country. Separately from today's package, Grijalva introduced the Southern Arizona Public

Rep. Raúl M. Grijalva will host a ribbon-cutting ceremony at his new Avondale district office on Monday, March 11, at 6:00 p.m. The event is free and open to the press and the public, and will feature remarks by Rep. Grijalva and introductions to his dist

Rep. Raúl M. Grijalva will receive this year's Western National Parks Association's (WNPA) Edward B. Danson Award for his efforts to protect national parks and public lands at a ceremony with actor Ted Danson and other speakers in Tucson this Satu

Reps. Raúl M. Grijalva (D-Ariz.) and Ed Whitfield (R-Ky.), along with a bipartisan group of 19 other Members of Congress, sent a letter to Interior Secretary Ken Salazar today outlining concerns with the management of wild horses and burros on federal lan

Rep. Raúl M. Grijalva introduced a package of bills earlier this week that, taken together, represent his vision for regional job creation and land conservation. Grijalva is returning to Washington today from the Democratic Caucus retreat in Virginia, whe

A report released this morning by the Government Accountability Office (GAO), originally requested by Rep. Raúl M. Grijalva (D-Ariz.) and Sen. Tom Udall (D-N.M.), highlights billions of dollars in lost public royalty revenue from oil and gas extraction on

Rep. Raúl M. Grijalva, the ranking member of the House Subcommittee on National Parks, Forests and Public Lands, sent a letter to Secretary of Homeland Security Janet Napolitano today asking her to consider the national security implications of the propos

Rep. Raúl M. Grijalva, the ranking member of the House Subcommittee on National Parks, Forests and Public Lands, sent a letter to Department of the Interior Inspector General Mary Kendall this morning requesting a report on Murray Energy Corporation, whos

Republican members of the House Natural Resources Committee today voted against a series of amendments offered by Democrats to address catastrophic wildfire risk across the country and provide much needed relief to communities impacted by extreme weather

Rep. Raúl M. Grijalva today announced he will host a series of upcoming community forums for students, families, education leaders, non-profits and others interested in President Obama's newly announced immigration enforcement policy. Attendance will

Rep. Raúl M. Grijalva today spoke out against a Republican attempt – formally known as Title XIV of H.R. 2578 – to allow Department of Homeland Security personnel to waive three dozen environmental laws within 100 miles of any U.S. border. A v

The Bureau of Land Management (BLM) earlier today issued published the long-awaited Draft Environmental Impact Statement (DEIS) on the SunZia Transmission Line Project. BLM is the lead federal agency coordinating right of way permitting.

Rep. Raúl M. Grijalva, the ranking member on the House Subcommittee on National Parks, Forests and Public Lands, today invited Americans to visit many of the nation's great national parks, monuments and other public spaces free of charge April 21-29 f

Rep. Raúl M. Grijalva today praised President Obama's newly announced effort to limit financial speculation and market manipulations that drive up the cost of gasoline. Obama yesterday announced a new five-point plan that includes administrative actio

Reps. Raul M. Grijalva and Keith Ellison, co-chairs of the Congressional Progressive Caucus (CPC), are decrying House Republican leaders' decision to move debate on the CPC's Budget for All to late Wednesday night to avoid public attention.

Rep. Raúl M. Grijalva will tour the Agua Caliente solar facility near Dateland, Ariz., on March 14 to congratulate site managers on being named Solar Project of the Year by Renewable Energy World, a leading industry magazine, and PV Project of the Year at

Rep. Raúl M. Grijalva will host grants workshops for businesses, education leaders, non-profits and others interested in pursuing federal grant opportunities in San Luis on March 13 and in Avondale on March 15. Attendance is free and open to the public. D

Rep. Raúl M. Grijalva, a member of the House Natural Resources Committee and the ranking member of the Subcommittee on National Parks, Forests and Public Lands, sent a letter to Interior Department Acting Inspector General Mary Kendall this week requestin

Rep. Raúl M. Grijalva, the ranking member of the House Subcommittee on National Parks, Forests and Public Lands, today called for a full Natural Resources Committee hearing to determine whether a high-ranking Department of the Interior (DOI) official rece

Rep. Raúl M. Grijalva, the ranking member of the House Subcommittee on National Parks, Forests and Public Lands, today highlighted an amendment to the transportation bill under consideration by the House of Representatives to overturn Interior Secretary K

Rep. Raúl M. Grijalva has been awarded a perfect legislative score by the League of Conservation Voters for his work in the first session of the 112th Congress. The full report card explaining the award, his votes, and the legislation he supported and opp

Rep. Raúl M. Grijalva today encouraged public applications for membership on the Arizona Resource Advisory Council (RAC), which helps Bureau of Land Management officials set public land use policy. The state council currently has five vacancies in a varie

After a screening of a new film to be shown to visitors of the Grand Canyon, Interior Secretary Salazar today announced that his department will withdraw one million acres north and south of Grand Canyon National Park from new uranium mining claims...

Rep. Raúl M. Grijalva will co-host a public meeting Nov. 7 in Tucson to discuss Arizona's water supply and a recent U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) study predicting significant hardship as the population continues to grow. According to the study, Arizon

Rep. Raúl M. Grijalva today praised the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) release of a final environmental impact statement (EIS) recommending a 20-year withdrawal from new mining claims of approximately 1 million acres surrounding the Grand Canyon. The EIS

Rep. Raúl M. Grijalva, ranking member of the House Subcommittee on National Parks, Forests and Public Lands, today highlighted a series of House Republican votes against guaranteeing jobs from a proposed copper mine in Arizona going to local labor, agains

Rep. Raúl M. Grijalva, the ranking member of the House Subcommittee on National Parks, Forests and Public Lands, today asked 14 major oil, gas, coal and hardrock mining companies to turn over information on their profits from extraction efforts on federal

Rep. Raúl M. Grijalva yesterday sent a letter to Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack highlighting serious concerns about the preparation of a draft environmental impact statement (DEIS) at the Rosemont Mine project south of Tucson. Grijalva cites, among oth

Raúl M. Grijalva, ranking member of the House Subcommittee on National Parks, Forests and Public Lands, today challenged the senators and representatives responsible for the Northern Arizona Mining Continuity Act of 2011, introduced earlier today, to ex

Rep. Raúl M. Grijalva, ranking member of the House Subcommittee on National Parks, Forests and Public Lands, and Sen. Tom Udall, a member of the Senate Committee on Environment and Public Works, have formally requested a Government Accountability Office (

The following grants, loans and contracts were recently awarded or made available in Southern Arizona. For more information, subscribe to Rep. Grijalva's grants newsletter at http://grijalva.dchou01.house.gov/grants.

Rep. Raúl M. Grijalva today sent a letter to Secretary of the Interior Ken Salazar urging an immediate halt to a new Bureau of Land Management (BLM) plan to spay and geld wild horses, which could lead to the brutal death of many horses and contribute to their eventual extinction in the United States. The letter, co-signed by 64 other Members of Congress, outlines concerns with BLM wild horse oversight practices and highlights the extremity of the new spaying plan.

The following grants were recently awarded or made available in Southern Arizona. For more information, subscribe to Rep. Grijalva's grants newsletter at http://grijalva.dchou01.house.gov/grants.

The following grants were recently awarded in Southern Arizona. For more information, subscribe to Rep. Grijalva's grants newsletter at http://grijalva.dchou01.house.gov/grants.

Rep. Raúl M. Grijalva, the ranking member of the House Subcommittee on National Parks, Forests and Public Lands, will hold a press conference Friday, July 8, at 9:00 a.m. to highlight concerns about a Republican bill to allow Department of Homeland Security personnel to waive environmental rules within 100 miles of the U.S. border. Rep. Ed Markey, ranking member of the House Natural Resources Committee, and representatives of several national environmental groups – including the Sierra Club, Pew Environment Group, Wilderness Society, Center for American Progress and Defenders of Wildlife – will be on hand to voice their concerns with the bill and to rally opposition.

Rep. Raúl M. Grijalva will hold a press conference in Tucson June 27 at Global Solar, the world's eighth largest producer of photovoltaic solar panels, to talk about the importance of supporting the domestic renewable energy industry. The event will focus on renewable energy tax credits, the need for the federal loan guarantee program that has already brought Abengoa Solar to Southern Arizona, and the importance of increasing domestic supply for renewable power hardware and labor.

Congressman Raúl M. Grijalva today condemned statements from Sen. John McCain accusing undocumented immigrants of causing the recent wildfires in Arizona, one of which has burned more than 200,000 acres. McCain claimed at a weekend press conference, "There is considerable evidence that some of the fires have been caused by illegal border crossers."

Rep. Raúl M. Grijalva today cheered Interior Secretary Ken Salazar's announcement that he will recommend the withdrawal of one million acres of public land near the Grand Canyon from mining activity for the next 20 years. Grijalva, the ranking member of the House Subcommittee on National Parks, Forests and Public Land, has been a leading advocate of the withdrawal option and has introduced bills every Congress since 2008 permanently to withdraw the land from hardrock mining.

A Department of the Interior decision on the future of uranium mining near the Grand Canyon – expected to be announced in the coming days – was based in part on analysis by a mining industry consultant who would personally profit if the current moratorium on new uranium claims is lifted. A report by Earthworks and the Environmental Working Group, available at this link or at http://static.ewg.org/pdf/conflict_at_the_canyon.pdf, explains how a February study released by the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) relied heavily on a paper by the consultant and downplayed the risks of mining proposals near the Grand Canyon.

Rep. Raúl M. Grijalva, co-chair of the Congressional Progressive Caucus, today announced a weekly video update series on the issues facing Congress and the nation. In the inaugural update, Grijalva discusses the death of Osama bin Laden and its effect on foreign policy; the federal budget debate; and the facts behind rising gas prices.

Rep. Raúl M. Grijalva today sent a letter signed by 62 other Members of Congress to Secretary of the Interior Ken Salazar urging him to institute a 20-year moratorium on uranium mining around the Grand Canyon. Salazar instituted a two-year moratorium in July of 2009 on approximately 1 million acres surrounding the canyon in order to further study long-term policy options, and is expected to make a final decision in the near future.

Rep. Raúl M. Grijalva, the co-chair of the Congressional Progressive Caucus (CPC), today highlighted provisions in the CPC People's Budget proposal that end taxpayer subsidies for oil drilling and create a new tax on speculation in oil or other commodities as increasing gas prices dominate the economic headlines. Grijalva pointed out that Goldman Sachs recently "named ‘excessive speculation' the culprit for inflating oil prices ‘$20 higher than supply and demand dictate,' and advised its clients to sell off their oil-related assets because they were being overvalued due to speculation," according to an item from the Center for American Progress.

Rep. Raúl M. Grijalva yesterday sent a letter to National Park Service (NPS) Director Jon Jarvis asking him to review and redraft the Interagency Bison Management Plan (IBMP) that has led to the slaughter of 3,500 bison since its adoption in 2000. American bison were driven to near extinction by hunters in the 1800s, but have made an impressive recovery thanks in part to the conservation efforts of NPS and others.

Today is a day to remember the tremendous progress we've made in the past 40 years of environmental legislation and protection. It's also a day to remember that we have much more work to do to really bring this country into the twenty-first century.

On the one-year anniversary of the Deepwater Horizon oil spill that devastated the Gulf of Mexico, Rep. Raúl M. Grijalva said the region and the country deserve clear answers about how BP and other responsible parties are repairing the damage to the ecosystem and economy – and why oil companies continue to receive record tax giveaways that don't help the economy.

El diputado Federal Raúl M. Grijalva ha lanzado una versión en español de el "Presupuesto del Pueblo," un presupuesto que el Grupo Progresivo del Congreso (CPC) ofreció al debate sobre el presupuesto federal para el año fiscal 2012. El "Presupuesto del Pueblo" es disponible en el sitio internet del CPC.

Rep. Raúl M. Grijalva, co-chair of the Congressional Progressive Caucus (CPC), today introduced the fiscal year 2012 People's Budget on behalf of the CPC at a press conference near the steps of the Capitol. The budget will be debated on the floor of the House on Thursday alongside other FY12 budget proposals, including Republican Rep. Paul Ryan's proposal that would end Medicare and Medicaid in their current forms and make deep cuts to education.

Rep. Raúl M. Grijalva today questioned the House Republican majority's vote to approve H.R. 910, the Dirty Air Act, which forbids the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to regulate pollutants it deems "greenhouse gases." The bill declares that greenhouse gases are not air pollutants, attempting to overturn a 2007 Supreme Court ruling to the contrary in EPA v. Massachusetts.

The Christopher Columbus Fellowship Foundation, an independent federal agency, is offering eight awards of as much as $50,000 to applicants who demonstrate innovation in agricultural science. Applications for the award are due March 15.

Rep. Raúl M. Grijalva, who recently introduced HR 855 to set aside approximately 1 million acres around the Grand Canyon from mining claims, is urging members of the public to attend a series of upcoming meetings around Arizona to discuss the Canyon's fate with Bureau of Land Management (BLM) officials. Grijalva has led the fight in Congress to preserve the Grand Canyon from potential uranium mining.

Rep. Raúl M. Grijalva, ranking member of the House Subcommittee on National Parks, Forests and Public Lands, today highlighted his 100 percent score on a new League of Conservation Voters "Special Edition" Congressional score card released to highlight the House Republican budget resolution for fiscal year 2011. The report is based on a total of 25 votes cast on the continuing resolution (CR) and related amendments; the bill passed the Republican-controlled House Feb. 19 on a party line vote.

A wide range of groups including the U.S. Forest Service (USFS), timber companies and several conservation organizations yesterday announced their support for an agreement to restore 1.5 million acres of forest in Northern Arizona. Rep. Raúl M. Grijalva, ranking member of the House Subcommittee on National Parks, Forests and Public Lands, today applauded the agreement and announced his support for the Four Forest Restoration Initiative.

Rep. Raúl M. Grijalva will hold a press conference Wednesday, Feb. 23, at 10 a.m. in Tucson to discuss the state and national implications of the fiscal year 2011 budget resolution recently passed by the Republican-controlled House of Representatives. The event will take place at ZUZI! Theater located at the Historic Y at 738 N. 5th Ave.

The Department of the Interior (DOI) earlier today released a draft proposal to regulate uranium mining near the Grand Canyon, offering four potential scenarios for public comment. Rep. Raúl M. Grijalva, ranking member of the House Subcommittee on National Parks, Forests and Public Lands, urged DOI officials to continue the current policy of withdrawing approximately one million acres surrounding the national park from mining activities.

Rep. Raúl M. Grijalva today praised a House panel for taking up his ongoing investigation of the federal response to the 2010 Deepwater Horizon oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico. The House Science and Technology Subcommittee on Investigations and Oversight, headed by Rep. Paul Broun (R-Ga.), sent letters Feb. 14 to recently departed White House climate advisor Carol Browner and other federal officials asking questions and citing references closely mirroring Grijalva's Jan. 25 letter (article via Huffington Post) to President Obama on federal cleanup projects and spill impact research.

The president's proposed budget makes significant cuts to several important federal efforts. The Low Income Home Energy Assistance Program (LIHEAP) would see funding drop from $5.1 billion to $2.5 billion, which has rightly prompted concerns about why families struggling to keep warm in winter are being asked to shoulder more financial burden than Wall Street executives. Cutting dirty energy subsidies has to be a priority. Are we going to continue paying oil and gas companies to charge poor families more for winter heating than they can afford?

Rep. Raúl M. Grijalva, ranking member of the House Subcommittee on National Parks, Forests and Public Lands, today questioned the U. S. Department of Agriculture's (USDA) proposed rule to reduce wildlife protections in place since 1982. The proposal would allow local forest supervisors to make critical decisions about wildlife management, reducing the role of federal experts and policymakers for the first time in almost 30 years.

The Humane Society Legislative Fund has given Rep. Raúl M. Grijalva, ranking member on the House Subcommittee on National Parks, Forests and Public Lands, a perfect rating on its newly released Humane Scorecard for the recently concluded 111th Congress. The score reflects Grijalva's support or co-sponsorship of 15 bills, including the Restore Our American Mustangs (ROAM) Act that he introduced with Rep. Nick Rahall.

Rep. Raúl M. Grijalva, ranking member on the House Subcommittee on National Parks, Forests and Public Lands, today called on the White House to release unredacted versions of documents handed over late last year in response to his Nov. 30 request for information about the federal response to the Deepwater Horizon oil spill. The Dec. 3 response from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), housed at the Department of Commerce (DOC), included heavily blacked-out portions of conversations between government officials, in some cases extending to entire pages.

Rep. Raúl M. Grijalva today congratulated Abengoa Solar on the finalization of its $1.45 billion guaranteed loan from the Department of Energy to build what will be the world's largest solar plant near Gila Bend, Ariz. The projected 250-megawatt Solana plant is expected to create approximately 1,700 construction jobs and more than 60 permanent jobs when the facility is complete.

Some of the country's first all-electric Nissan Leaf vehicles arrived in Phoenix this week. The city is an early participant in the Recovery Act-funded Electric Vehicle (EV) Project, which will deploy thousands of electric vehicles and charging stations in cities across the country.

Rep. Raúl M. Grijalva, who chairs the House Subcommittee on National Parks, Forests, and Public Lands, today called for a significant increase in government regulators' ability to levy financial and other penalties against oil companies that violate safety and environmental standards in the wake of a Wall Street Journal article highlighting numerous "close calls" at rigs that barely avoided disasters.

As a new story in The Hill newspaper lays out, Rep. Raúl M. Grijalva has been leading the push in Congress for nearly a year to get information about a large oil platform suspected of operating without proper permitting or engineering documents. The Atlantis platform owned by BP – the same company that leased the Deepwater Horizon rig that exploded and flooded the Gulf of Mexico with leaking oil – came under scrutiny when a former rig worker claimed the company was not following multiple safety and certification regulations. Recently available evidence suggests that many of the whistleblower's claims have merit.

The Animal Welfare Institute has given Rep. Raúl M. Grijalva, who chairs the House Subcommittee on National Parks, Forests and Public Lands, a perfect rating on its newly released Compassion Index scorecard for the 111th Congress. The score reflects Grijalva's support or co-sponsorship of eight bills, including the Restore Our American Mustangs (ROAM) Act that he introduced with Rep. Nick Rahall.

Rep. Raúl M. Grijalva today congratulated the City of Tucson on a new $5 million grant from the Department of Transportation (DOT) for upgrading the city bus fleet's environmental quality.

According to a recent featured story in the Washington Post, Rep. Raúl M. Grijalva was passed over for Secretary of the Interior during the Obama transition because of his unwillingness to approve offshore drilling projects without first strengthening Bush-era environmental standards. The story, which ran Oct. 13, indicates that current Interior Secretary Ken Salazar was more in line with the president's urge toward a "balanced" energy portfolio that included more offshore drilling.

Rep. Raúl M. Grijalva today hailed the news that his call for federal action on plugging and removing abandoned oil rigs, which produce no oil or gas and generate no economic activity, has led to a noticeable increase in the Gulf of Mexico oil service industry's economic prospects.

Rep. Raúl M. Grijalva today congratulated Maria Elena Giner on her appointment as General Manager of the Border Environmental Cooperation Commission (BECC), which oversees funding for water and other infrastructure projects on both sides of the Mexican-American border. Grijalva served as a reference for Giner's application and said upon her appointment that he considers her "an excellent champion for the improvement projects our communities will need in the months and years ahead."

Rep. Raúl M. Grijalva today released the following statement regarding the break of the International Outfall Interceptor (IOI), a major sewage line that runs from Nogales, Sonora under the Nogales Wash to a treatment plant in Rio Rico, Ariz. The break occurred late yesterday, and the causes are still being investigated.

Rep. Raúl M. Grijalva today highlighted a newly released report by the National Commission on the BP Deepwater Horizon Oil Spill and Offshore Drilling indicating that White House officials directed federal agencies not to publicize estimates of the size of the Deepwater Horizon oil spill, an issue Grijalva raised in Sept. 29 letters asking for information from three agencies that have been studying the spill. The new report, Grijalva said, "raises serious concerns about undue interference with the public's right to know what happened in the Gulf and what the impact will be for the economy."

Rep. Raúl M. Grijalva, who chairs the House Subcommittee on National Parks, Forests, and Public Lands, sent letters yesterday to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), the U.S. Geological Survey and the U.S. Coast Guard requesting information about the widely touted Obama Administration report from early August indicating that approximately 74 percent of the oil spilled in the Deepwater Horizon disaster was no longer an environmental threat. The report has since faced questions and criticism from many independent researchers, especially because NOAA officials admitted after the report was released that it was not peer reviewed prior to publication.

Rep. Raúl M. Grijalva today highlighted the $615 million Arizona has so far received through the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act as part of the law's $90 billion investment in clean energy technology nationwide. A new, publicly available report released by the Department of Energy (DOE) details the many projects now underway across the state.

Rep. Raúl M. Grijalva today hailed the Department of the Interior (DOI) announcement that oil and gas companies must permanently plug any Gulf of Mexico wells that have been idle for at least five years. The announcement comes after Grijalva wrote an August 2 letter to Interior Secretary Ken Salazar calling attention to idle rigs in the region and prompting Salazar to push responsible companies to dismantle outdated rigs using local labor.

In light of oil giant BP's new claim that it will not make full restitution to Gulf workers hurt by April's Deepwater Horizon disaster unless Congress agrees not to further regulate deepwater drilling, Rep. Raul M. Grijalva today said the company "is now openly blackmailing the American government and should be held responsible not just for the damage it caused, but for its consistently indifferent attitude to that damage."

In the wake of today's oil rig explosion at the Vermilion 380 platform in the Gulf of Mexico, Rep. Raúl M. Grijalva repeated his call for a drilling moratorium in the Gulf pending full safety inspections of each rig. Grijalva has been investigating oil rig safety since before the April 20 Deepwater Horizon – for a full record, visit his oversight Web page.

Rep. Raúl M. Grijalva, chair of the House Subcommittee on National Parks, Forests, and Public Lands, today announced that the U. S. Forest Service will offer fee waivers for day use areas around Arizona on August 14 and 15. Fees will also be waived at some campgrounds August 14.

According to a recent analysis, there are more than 1,000 oil rigs and drilling structures sitting idle in the Gulf of Mexico. These structures have not been affected by the recently announced drilling moratorium – rather, they were abandoned by their owners, sometimes many years ago, and allowed to decay or collapse into the ocean. Rep. Raúl M. Grijalva, who chairs the House Subcommittee on National Parks, Forests, and Public Lands, sent a letter to Interior Secretary Ken Salazar today urging him to push oil companies responsible for these idle rigs to remove them by employing residents of Gulf states affected by the Deepwater Horizon disaster. Current federal regulations mandate the removal of any rig that has been inactive for one year, but those regulations are not being fully enforced.

Rep. Raúl M. Grijalva today sent a letter to Secretary of the Interior Ken Salazar urging an immediate halt to wild horse roundups pending a review of Bureau of Land Management (BLM) practices that have led to dozens of horse deaths over the past year. The letter, co-signed by Natural Resources Committee Chairman Nick Rahall and 52 other Representatives, calls on Salazar to stop roundups "until the agency demonstrates that it has addressed the failings of the current program and can ensure the safety and well-being of the animals [BLM is] charged with protecting."

Rep. Raúl M. Grijalva today announced the introduction of H.R. 5995, the Closing Oil Spill Tax Loopholes Act, which would eliminate corporations' ability to write off the cost of oil spill damages and settlements on tax returns. BP recently announced it will deduct approximately $9.9 billion from its 2010 tax obligations because the Oil Pollution Act of 1990 allows companies to write off the cost of oil spill damages.

In anticipation of Vice President Joe Biden's July 27 visit to the Grand Canyon, Rep. Raúl M. Grijalva today sent a letter to the White House highlighting the ongoing environmental health threats posed by uranium mining near the canyon and calling on President Obama to overhaul the 1872 Mining Law. That law governs most natural resource extraction in the United States and has not been substantially updated since its original passage.

Rep. Raúl M. Grijalva, who co-chairs the House Subcommittee on National Parks, Forests, and Public Lands, today applauded the Fish and Wildlife Service (FWS) on its recently announced investigation of the murder of several endangered grey wolves in Arizona. The agency last week discovered the third dead Mexican wolf in the past month and has said the killings are being treated as intentional, which would be a violation of the Endangered Species Act.

Rep. Raúl M. Grijalva today applauded the July 15 House Natural Resources Committee vote to pass the Comprehensive Land, Energy and Aquatic Resources (CLEAR) Act, which responds to the Deepwater Horizon oil spill and reforms the nation's energy and mineral extraction system. The bill abolishes the Department of the Interior's (DOI) scandal-ridden Minerals Management Service and establishes three new agencies in its place with separate functions to prevent the conflicts of interest that prevailed in previous administrations.

Rep. Raúl M. Grijalva today congratulated Abengoa Solar Inc. for receiving a $1.45 billion loan guarantee from the Department of Energy. Funded by the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act, the loan will make possible the financing, construction and start-up of the Solana Generating Station, which will be the largest in the world when construction is complete.

Rep. Raúl M. Grijalva today voiced his approval for Oil Spill Accountability and Environmental Protection Act's inclusion of a measure he originally introduced as HR 5355 that removes the financial liability cap for parties responsible for offshore oil spills. The bill was approved yesterday by the House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee.

Rep. Raúl M. Grijalva, Chairman of the House Subcommittee on National Parks, Forests, and Public Lands, today sent a letter to Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi, Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid and several committee chairs outlining his vision of a new oil drilling regulatory regime.

Rep. Raúl M. Grijalva, who last week introduced H.R. 5355 to remove the economic damages cap for businesses liable for offshore oil rig spills, thanked Sen. Robert Menendez today for attempting to modify S. 3305 to mirror his call for an end to arbitrary restrictions on damage compensation. Menendez had originally introduced the bill to change the cap from $75 million to $10 billion.

Rep. Raúl M. Grijalva sent a letter earlier today signed by 25 other Members of Congress to Interior Secretary Ken Salazar asking the Minerals Management Service (MMS) to interview several key personnel involved with the BP Atlantis oil rig, which has been accused of operating without important safety documents. In light of the potential cost to taxpayers of the ongoing Deepwater Horizon oil spill, Grijalva also introduced a bill, H.R. 5355, that would retroactively remove all liability caps for corporations responsible for offshore oil spills.

Washington, D.C. – The Department of the Interior today granted $4.88 million for a total of three groundwater and pipeline improvement projects near Yuma. The Bureau of Reclamation (BOR) is awarding the grants through the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act.

The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) earlier today announced that the Arizona 1 uranium mine in northern Arizona has violated multiple air quality and permitting regulations. Despite operating the mine since late last year, Denison Mines Corp. never obtained proper air monitoring permits and failed to inform the agency of the mine's start date, according to the agency's new Finding of Violation.

The twenty Native American Tribes, Nations and Communities of the Inter Tribal Council of Arizona (ITCA) have announced their joint opposition to the Resolution Copper mining proposal in northern Arizona, citing the extent of the project's expected damage to environmental and cultural resources and the lack of tribal consultation in the permitting process.

Rep. Raúl M. Grijalva today congratulated Tucson's Sion Power Corporation for receiving a $5 million grant from the Department of Energy (DOE) to develop a new battery to power electric vehicles for more than 300 miles between charges. The money comes from the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act through DOE's Advanced Research Projects Agency-Energy.

Rep. Raúl M. Grijalva today congratulated the City of Tucson and Pima County for each receiving $400,000 from the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to perform community-wide assessments of potential brownfields areas. Brownfields are environmentally contaminated sites that can be remediated and reused for commercial, industrial or residential property.

Rep. Raúl M. Grijalva yesterday introduced legislation that establishes legal guidelines for executive departments and agencies to follow when consulting with Native American tribes. HR 5023, the Requirements, Expectations, and Standard Procedures for Executive Consultation with Tribes (RESPECT) Act, mandates that agencies seek, discuss, and consider tribal views regarding any federal activity with tribal impacts, and directs agencies to seek mutually acceptable courses of action whenever possible.

Rep. Raúl M. Grijalva, Chairman of the House Subcommittee on National Parks, Forests and Public Lands, today questioned the Obama administration's recently announced environmental and energy policy. In light of the president's intention to pursue major new offshore oil and gas drilling, Grijalva said, the White House should more clearly explain its priorities to the American people.

Rep. Raúl M. Grijalva expressed his deep disappointment at the Obama administration's decision to fight in court on behalf of a Bush-era regulation that permits unlimited dumping of hard rock mining waste on Forest Service and Bureau of Land Management property. The May 30 government filing in Earthworks et al. v. Department of the Interior et al., currently before the U. S. District Court for the District of Columbia, indicates that although the White House had an opportunity to either reverse the rule or study its effectiveness, it has chosen to defend it in court.

Rep. Raúl M. Grijalva, Chairman of the House Subcommittee on National Parks, Forests and Public Lands, today announced his intention to hold a field hearing on the spread of a destructive invasive species known as buffelgrass, which has caused serious damage to Southwestern ecosystems. The hearing will take place Saturday, April 10, at 10:00 a.m MST at Tucson City Hall at 255 W. Alameda.

Rep. Raúl M. Grijalva, Chairman of the House Subcommittee on National Parks, Forests and Public Lands, today announced his intention to hold a hearing on the environmental future of the Grand Canyon. The hearing will take place Thursday, April 8, at 10:00 a.m MST at the Shrine of the Ages near Grand Canyon National Park headquarters.

Rep. Raúl M. Grijalva today called on the secretaries of Agriculture and Interior to conduct a thorough review of mining and hardrock dumping regulations on federal land as the administration nears a March 30 deadline to respond to a lawsuit challenging existing rules.

Rep. Raúl M. Grijalva applauded today's vote in the House of Representatives on passage of HR 1612, the Public Lands Service Corps Act of 2009. This legislation will help restore the nation's natural, cultural, historic, archaeological, recreational and scenic resources while training a new generation of public land managers and enthusiasts and promoting the value of public service.

Rep. Raúl M. Grijalva today announced that he and other lawmakers have asked the Minerals Management Service (MMS) to thoroughly investigate whether energy conglomerate BP is operating its Atlantis offshore oil platform – the largest in the world – without professionally approved safety documents, and to report its findings to Congress. The platform, located in the Gulf of Mexico, could be the victim of "catastrophic operator errors" if the documents are inaccurate or incomplete, according to BP internal communications.

Rep. Raúl M. Grijalva today said the newly announced $63 million grant from the Department of Transportation for Tucson's planned light rail system will "help Tucson turn a major corner in its efforts to rejuvenate the economy, build a cleaner infrastructure, attract more tourism and provide public transportation along some of the busiest corridors in the city."

The Inspector General's report confirmed my suspicions and concerns that the original capture of the last known living jaguar in Arizona by Arizona Game and Fish Department (AZGFD) employees was not authorized under the law. I am troubled to find that there is evidence linking a Game and Fish subcontractor, and possibly an employee, to criminal wrongdoing in this capture.

Rep. Raúl M. Grijalva today questioned the Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee's decision to vote on the Southeast Arizona Land Exchange and Conservation Act of 2009 without investigating the poor human rights record – including alleged illegal payments to a foreign army – of the bill's main beneficiary, mining conglomerate Rio Tinto. The bill grants Resolution Copper, a subsidiary of Rio Tinto and BHP Billiton, a lucrative land swap in central Arizona that would give the company mining rights it values at approximately $140 billion over the mine's projected life span. The company would receive the title to land previously removed from mining activities by President Eisenhower's administration.

Washington, DC – Rep. Raúl M. Grijalva today applauded the Department of Energy's newly announced award of more than $5 million in federal Energy Efficiency and Conservation Block Grants to the City of Tucson. The grant, one of thousands given to communities around the country, is funded by the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009.

Today, the U.S. House of Representatives passed H.R. 324, a bill introduced by Congressman Raúl M. Grijalva, to designate the Santa Cruz Valley as a National Heritage Area.