Welcome to the House Committee on Energy and Commerce

WASHINGTON, D.C.  – Congressman Morgan Griffith (VA-09), Chairman of the Subcommittee on Environment, delivered the following opening statement at today’s hearing titled  The Fiscal Year 2026 Environmental Protection Agency Budget. Subcommittee Chairman Griffith's opening statement as prepared for delivery: “I’m glad to have Environmental Protection Agency Administrator Lee Zeldin, a friend and former colleague, back in the House today to testify before the Subcommittee on Environment on President Trump’s fiscal year 2026 budget request. “This is certainly an important time for the EPA. “After four years of economically disastrous, legally questionable, and expensive policies of the Biden-Harris Administration, it is a welcome sight to see President Trump and Administrator Zeldin focused on rebuilding the American economy and fixing the problems of the previous administration.  “I remember when Administrator Zeldin was in the House, representing the eastern part of Long Island, he was willing to work across the aisle in a pragmatic way to try and address environmental issues like protecting the Long Island sound or addressing emerging contaminants like PFAS. “It is great to see him bringing these same problem-solving skills to EPA, and to be frank, there are a lot of problems there to solve. “I’m pleased to see that the Administrator recognizes that there is a middle ground to tread, where environmental protection does not need to come at the expense of good jobs and a strong economy. “I know that the Administrator is already working to closely examine the previous EPA’s spending spree on Green New Deal-style programs that provided unprecedented levels of taxpayer funds to environmental groups and consultants and to undo burdensome regulations that increased energy costs and made it more difficult to make things in America. “The reconciliation bill passed out of this Committee last week is an important step in saving taxpayer money and redirecting EPA to focus on its core mission of cleaning up the environment and protecting human health. “In February, Administrator Zeldin announced the broad pillars that the Agency will focus on under his “Powering the Great American Comeback” plan. “In March, Administrator Zeldin announced 31 regulatory actions to support greater energy production, a more robust auto manufacturing sector, a more predictable permitting process, and a more state-based enforcement system. “I’m glad to see that EPA is taking another look at a lot of the rulemakings from the last Administration, particularly those regarding air pollution. “As many of those rulemakings didn’t take into account industry’s ability to meet compliance timelines or which pollution mitigation technologies were able to be installed. “EPA has a duty to enforce the statutes that Congress passed, though I do believe encouraging co-operative compliance with industry will lead to better environmental outcomes and less economic disruption. “In recent years, EPA’s budget has been about $10 billion per year. “However, under the so-called Inflation Reduction Act EPA received an astounding $41.5 billion, or more than four times its historical budget, to spend on electric vehicles, environmental justice, and renewable energy programs. “From its founding and up until the past few years, EPA mostly operated as a scientific investigator and regulatory agency, and with the exception of the water infrastructure and Superfund programs, it did not administer lots of large grants. “President Trump’s proposed budget would reduce EPA spending to a more sustainable level after years of out-of-control spending on programs and rules that bore little relation to EPA’s traditional mission of regulating pollution, setting science-based standards for potentially hazardous substances, and cleaning up waste sites. “It seems that the goals of EPA in the last few years were an attempt to force a change that Americans are not buying. “I look forward to hearing more details from Administrator Zeldin about the reorganization and reform efforts he is making at EPA. “The Environment Subcommittee stands ready to work with you, Administrator Zeldin, to help get EPA back on track. “At this Subcommittee’s first hearing of the Congress, we examined the implementation of the 2016 amendments to the Toxic Substances Control Act, often referred to as the TOS-CA law. “We heard how the process for reviewing new and existing chemicals are in need of reform, particularly the ways in which EPA evaluates potential chemical risks. “We also held a hearing in March on ways to maximize brownfield cleanups to support economic development. “As we work on brownfield reauthorization, I hope to collaborate with EPA on ways to possibly setup some sort of pre-clearance permitting pilot program. “Our national security, our economic competitiveness, the health of our families, and strength of our communities all depend on an EPA that is working hard and efficiently for the American people.  “Thank you again for appearing before us today, Administrator Zeldin, I look forward to your testimony.” ###

WASHINGTON, D.C. – Today, Congressman Brett Guthrie (KY-02), Chairman of the House Committee on Energy and Commerce, issued the following statement after President Trump signed the TAKE IT DOWN Act into law. “I want to thank President Trump and First Lady Melania Trump for their steadfast leadership, as well as the millions of Americans affected by online exploitation, for their courage. As the Chairman of the House Committee on Energy and Commerce, I am proud that we delivered on our commitment to advance this important legislation to protect victims of online exploitation. I want to honor Eli Heacock, and express my gratitude to his mom, Shannon Cronister-Heacock, for having the courage to share her son’s devastating story. The scourge of sexual exploitation online has upended the lives of innocent victims all across our country. The TAKE IT DOWN Act is an important step forward in protecting kids from new, 21st century threats to their well-being,” said Chairman Guthrie. “This bill would not have been possible without the bravery of families like the Heacocks, and the TAKE IT DOWN Act works to ensure tragedies like this never happen again.” ###

WASHINGTON, D.C. – Today, Congressman Brett Guthrie (KY-02), Chairman of the House Committee on Energy and Commerce, and Congressman Gary Palmer (AL-06), Chairman of the Subcommittee on Oversight and Investigations, announced a hearing titled Examining Ways to Enhance Our Critical Mineral Supply Chains . “Critical minerals are essential to America’s energy independence and our national security. By securing reliable and resilient supply chains for critical minerals, we are strengthening our global competitiveness, boosting domestic production and manufacturing, and reducing our reliance on foreign adversaries,” said Chairmen Guthrie and Palmer. “This hearing will provide us an opportunity to examine vulnerabilities within our current supply chains and explore ways to mitigate those risks.” Subcommittee on Oversight and Investigations hearing titled Examining Ways to Enhance Our Critical Mineral Supply Chains WHAT : Subcommittee on Oversight and Investigations hearing on critical mineral supply chains. DATE : Wednesday, May 21, 2025 TIME: 10:00 AM ET LOCATION : 2123 Rayburn House Office Building This notice is at the direction of the Chairman. The hearing will be open to the public and press and will be livestreamed online at energycommerce.house.gov . If you have any questions concerning this hearing, please contact Calvin Huggins at Calvin.Huggins1@mail.house.gov . If you have any press-related questions, please contact Kaley Stidham at Kaley.Stidham@mail.house.gov . ###

WASHINGTON, D.C.  – Today, Congressman Brett Guthrie (KY-02), Chairman of the House Committee on Energy and Commerce, Congressman Gus Bilirakis (FL-12), Chairman of the Subcommittee on Commerce, Manufacturing, and Trade, and Congressman Gary Palmer (AL-06), Chairman of the Subcommittee on Oversight and Investigations, sent a letter to 23andMe regarding the handling of Americans' sensitive data following the company's decision to file for bankruptcy. KEY EXCERPT: “According to 23andMe’s privacy statement, in a bankruptcy, customers’ ‘Personal Information may be accessed, sold or transferred as part of that transaction and this Privacy Statement will apply to [customer] Personal Information as transferred to the new entity.’ Additionally, a judge recently ruled 23andMe has the right to sell the sensitive medical and genetic information of its 15 million customers, which is considered to be the company’s most valuable asset. With the lack of a federal comprehensive data privacy and security law, we write to express our great concern about the safety of Americans’ most sensitive personal information.” Background: On March 23, 2025, 23andMe initiated Chapter 11 bankruptcy proceedings, which could have ramifications for the highly sensitive information of millions of Americans. While Americans’ personal health information is protected under the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA), these protections only apply if the information is collected by a HIPAA covered entity. Generally, direct-to-consumer companies, like 23andMe, are not covered by HIPAA. Customers have reported issues accessing and deleting their data from their 23andMe accounts. The Chairmen have requested answers to the following questions: If 23andMe were to sell the personal information of its customers either as a standalone asset or as part of a broader sale of the company, what post-sale data privacy and security protections would be in place for its customers’ personal information? Please describe how the representations made in 23andMe’s privacy statement will continue to apply—and be enforced—if the personal information of 23andMe’s customers is sold to a third party. Please include in this response information about what, if anything, would hold a third-party buyer to 23andMe’s privacy statement or prevent it from subsequently using, transferring, or otherwise selling, such information in the future. Does 23andMe plan to change its privacy statement at any time prior to selling any customers’ personal information? If so, please explain the change 23andMe plans to implement and when those changes will go into effect. Does 23andMe intend to vet prospective buyers to which it may sell its customers’ personal information? If so, please detail the vetting process and whether it will include the prospective buyer’s history of implementing data security protections and compliance with sectoral, state, or any other data privacy and security laws. If not, please explain why. Please detail the categories of customer information 23andMe has, and of that what 23andMe is considering selling. Has 23andMe notified its customers of the company’s bankruptcy announcement? If so, please attach the customer notification. If not, please explain why. Has 23andMe provided its customers with a guide for how to delete, or request to delete any information currently in 23andMe’s possession? If so, please provide a copy of that guide and specify when it was provided to customers. If not, please explain why, and explain whether 23andMe will contact each of its customers and provide an opportunity to delete their personal information prior to a potential sale of the company or personal information maintained by the company. Please detail the number of requests 23andMe received from its customers to delete their personal information between when 23andMe filed for bankruptcy and the date of the response to this letter. Of those requests, please provide a breakdown of how many requests were made by customers through their 23andMe online accounts and how many were made via customer service calls because customers were unable to successfully delete their information through their online accounts. Of those requests, please detail the number of fulfilled requests. Will 23andMe offer for sale any information in which a customer has requested the deletion of such information? If so, does 23andMe’s privacy policy consider selling information a legitimate purpose for retaining information past a customer's request to delete their information? Will 23andMe deidentify its customers’ personal information prior to selling it or the company? If so, please detail which information will be deidentified. If not, please explain why the company is electing not to deidentify information. CLICK HERE to read the full letter. CLICK HERE to read the story from CNBC. ###

WASHINGTON, D.C. – This week, Congressman Brett Guthrie (KY-02), Chairman of the House Committee on Energy and Commerce, Congressman Gary Palmer (AL-06), Chairman of the Subcommittee on Oversight and Investigations, and Congressman Morgan Griffith (VA-09), Chairman of the Subcommittee on Environment, wrote letters to eight Greenhouse Gas Reduction Fund (GGRF) grant recipients. “The Committee has had concerns about the GGRF program—including the program’s unusual structure and a potential lack of due diligence in selecting award recipients. A recent Oversight and Investigations Subcommittee hearing examined these issues and the speed with which money was pushed out the door by the Biden Administration’s EPA, which raised additional questions about certain GGRF recipients.” said Chairmen Guthrie, Palmer, and Griffith. “ This investigation is key to evaluating whether these funds were awarded fairly and impartially to qualified applicants and determining how the federal funds are being used.” Background:  The Inflation Reduction Act (IRA) authorized the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to create and implement a $27 billion GGRF program. Of this appropriation, $20 billion was awarded to just eight grant recipients; with $14 billion awarded to three grant recipients under the National Clean Investment Fund (NCIF) program and $6 billion awarded to five grant recipients under the Clean Communities Investment Accelerator (CCIA) program.    Letters: National Clean Investment Fund Program Recipients Coalition for Green Capital Climate United Fund Power Forward Communities   Clean Communities Investment Accelerator Program Recipients Justice Climate Fund Opportunity Finance Network Inclusiv Native CDFI Network Appalachian Community Capital Read the story here . ###

WASHINGTON, D.C.  – Yesterday, Congressman Brett Guthrie (KY-02), Chairman of the House Committee on Energy and Commerce, along with Congressman Bob Latta (OH-05), Chairman of the Subcommittee on Energy, penned a letter to Secretary Jennifer Granholm questioning the Department of Energy’s involvement in the Biden-Harris Administration’s decision to prevent new offshore oil and gas production, leading to higher prices for consumers and harming U.S. energy security. KEY LETTER EXCERPT: “Closing off swaths of U.S. offshore areas to energy production, as the Biden-Harris Administration reportedly intends to do, will lead to higher energy prices for American families, the loss of American jobs, and greatly diminish our country’s energy security. As the Secretary of Energy, you have an obligation to weigh in on this matter and insist on a full review of the energy security and economic impacts before any decisions are finalized. “The United States stands at an energy crossroads, facing mounting global security threats and soaring demand for power. Instead of leading the world in energy production, we’ve allowed misguided “green” policies to hamstring our potential. It’s time to unleash American energy dominance again—the federal government must become an ally, not an obstacle, to our nation’s energy security. We look forward to your prompt response to this request, no later than January 10, 2025.” Read the story  here . BACKGROUND: This morning, the Biden Administration announced that more than 625 million square miles of coastline would be off-limits for energy production. Republican Members of the House Committee on Energy and Commerce have continuously called on the Biden-Harris Administration to end its attack on American energy production before leaving office on January 20th. The letter requests an explanation of the DOE’s involvement in the decision and whether the White House or the Department of Interior consulted with the DOE about the plans to close off access to offshore resources. Any decision to shut down access to significant American energy resources impacts U.S. energy policy and should be reviewed by the DOE. The Biden Administration’s energy policies have continued to create major harm to America’s energy production and workforce. A unilateral ban on energy production in large swaths of the U.S. coastline will have lasting impacts on American energy production and security.