Welcome to the House Committee on Energy and Commerce

WASHINGTON, D.C.  – Today, Congressman Brett Guthrie (KY-02), Chairman of the House Committee on Energy and Commerce, and Congressman Bob Latta (OH-05), Chairman of the Subcommittee on Energy, announced a hearing titled Strengthening American Energy: A Review of Pipeline Safety Policy .  “Safe and secure pipeline infrastructure is a vital part of ensuring our nation’s energy dominance,”   said Chairmen Guthrie and Latta . “This hearing will provide us with the opportunity to discuss priorities for pipeline safety reauthorization and examine what steps need to be taken to build and operate pipelines safely and effectively. It’s critical that these pipelines can continue to operate reliably and meet the energy demands of communities across our country.”   Subcommittee on Energy hearing titled Strengthening American Energy: A Review of Pipeline Safety Policy   WHAT : Subcommittee on Energy Hearing on pipeline safety policy and examine reauthorization of the Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration’s (PHMSA) pipeline safety program. DATE : July 8, 2025 TIME : 10:30 AM ET LOCATION : 2123 Rayburn House Office Building This notice is at the direction of the Chairmen. The hearing will be open to the public and press and will be live streamed online at  energycommerce.house.gov . If you have any questions concerning the hearing, please contact Calvin Huggins with the Committee staff at Calvin.Huggins1@mail.house.gov . If you have any press-related questions, please contact Ben Mullany at  Ben.Mullany@mail.house.gov . ###

WASHINGTON, D.C.  – Congressman Brett Guthrie (KY-02), Chairman of the House Committee on Energy and Commerce, and Congressman Earl L. “Buddy” Carter (GA-01), Chairman of the Subcommittee on Health, announced a hearing titled Legislative Proposals to Maintain and Improve the Public Health Workforce, Rural Health, and Over-the-Counter Medicines. “The reauthorization of important programs, such as the Over-the-Counter Monograph Drug User Fee Program and vital public health programs, play a critical role in the Committee’s continued efforts to improve health care for Americans,” said Chairmen Guthrie and Carter. “Expanding patient access to safe over-the-counter drugs, allocating resources for rural providers, and supporting health care workforce development are among the many priorities of the Health Subcommittee, and we look forward to continuing the conversation and exploring future opportunities on ways to help Americans live healthier lives.”   Subcommittee on Health hearing titled Legislative Proposals to Maintain and Improve the Public Health Workforce, Rural Health, and Over-the-Counter Medicines.   WHAT : Subcommittee on Health hearing on Preserving Access to Timely and Affordable Care. DATE : Wednesday, July 9, 2025 TIME : 10:15 AM ET LOCATION : 2123 Rayburn House Office Building This notice is at the direction of the Chairmen. The hearing will be open to the public and press and will be live streamed online at  energycommerce.house.gov . If you have any questions concerning the hearing, please contact Annabelle Huffman with the Committee staff at Annabelle.Huffman@mail.house.gov . If you have any press-related questions, please contact Katie West at Katie.West@mail.house.gov . ###

WASHINGTON, D.C.  – Congressman Brett Guthrie (KY-02), Chairman of the House Committee on Energy and Commerce, delivered the following opening statement at today’s Committee on Rules hearing on the One Big Beautiful Bill Act . Chairman Guthrie's opening statement as prepared for delivery: “Good afternoon, Chairwoman Foxx and Ranking Member McGovern. Thank you for holding today’s hearing.  “The One, Big, Beautiful Bill Act cuts wasteful spending, defends our nation’s energy dominance, supports the rapid innovation of American industry, and preserve and protects Medicaid for the Americans who are most in need.    “We will send a bill to President Trump’s desk that delivers on American leadership across industries, spurs technological innovation, and supports individual workers.   “We will unleash American energy dominance through strategic investments, while also putting an end to wasteful subsidies.  “We will spur technological innovation by renewing American wireless leadership through spectrum auction authority that protects national security.   “This legislation begins to refill our dangerously low Strategic Petroleum Reserve and creates new investments to generate reliable energy that will secure our grid and power AI.  “This bill also raises $85 billion of new revenue through a historic agreement reauthorizing the FCC’s spectrum auction authority, while protecting U.S. national security.  “Our priority has been to strengthen, secure, and sustain Medicaid for expectant mothers, children, people with disabilities, and the elderly.  “Our legislation stops billions of dollars of waste, fraud, and abuse in the Medicaid program by beginning to close loopholes, ensuring states have the flexibility to remove ineligible recipients from their rolls, and removing beneficiaries who are enrolled in multiple states.   “H.R. 1 ends coverage for deceased beneficiaries, limits the ability of enrollees to obtain duplicative coverage, and ensures individuals with million-dollar homes are no longer eligible to qualify for Medicaid coverage.  “These are all commonsense policies that will return taxpayer dollars to middle-class American families. “Republicans seek to return to the core intent of the Medicaid program, which was created to protect health care for Americans who otherwise could not support themselves.  “Democrats expanded the program far beyond this core mission, allowing spending to grow into the trillions if not addressed.  “Our commonsense work requirements and community engagement policies for able-bodied adults who choose not to work encourage individuals to re-enter the workforce and regain their independence.  “This provision speaks to Republicans’ commitment to strengthening Medicaid to ensure it is available for those who need it most, and this is an issue that resonates favorably with a majority of Americans across the board.   “H.R. 1 fulfills President Trump’s promise of generational growth, prosperity, and health for the American people. It fulfills our commitment to lowering taxes for working families, unleashes American energy, safeguards Medicaid for the patients that need it most, and supports the rapid innovation of American technology.   “It’s time pass this vital legislation, and see it signed into law.  “Thank you, and I yield back."  ###

WASHINGTON, D.C. – Congressman Brett Guthrie (KY-02), Chairman of the House Committee on Energy and Commerce, along with Reps. Palmer (AL-06), Carter (GA-01), Bilirakis (FL-12), and Obernolte (CA-23), penned a letter to the Executive Director of Covered California (CoveredCA), Jessica Altman, to request further information related to the potentially unauthorized transmission of sensitive personal health information involving Covered California’s website. Key Letter Excerpt: “According to public reports and agency statements, tracking technology was embedded on Covered California's website beginning in February 2024, as part of a broader digital advertising effort, and in direct contravention of the tracking platform’s user agreement, which prohibits the use of such tools on pages that collect sensitive health information. Although the tags were reportedly removed in April 2025, following external scrutiny and a vendor transition, the extended period of data exposure raises serious questions about the adequacy of safeguards that Covered California had in place. Forensic testing by investigative reporters identified the trackers in operation and confirmed that user-entered health information was being transmitted to third parties without consent. These circumstances warrant examination of Covered California’s actions under federal privacy standards.” “Ensuring the confidentiality of health information is a foundational obligation for entities operating within the health insurance ecosystem. Federal privacy protections, particularly the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA), establish expectations for how covered organizations handle sensitive data. Recent reports and public filings raised questions about whether those expectations were met in this case, and whether existing oversight mechanisms are sufficient to detect and prevent improper disclosures.” Background: Forensic testing shows Covered California —the State of California’s official health insurance marketplace—has been sending sensitive user health data to third-party websites through several online data trackers. Prior to removal of the trackers, CoveredCA had more than 60 trackers active on its website; the average number of trackers on a government website is three. Some types of information sent to such websites include: Searches for doctors in network with specific plans/specializations Demographic information, including gender, ethnicity, and martial status Length of treatment a patent received by a provider Frequency of doctor visits If the user indicated they were blind, pregnant, a victim of domestic abuse, or used prescription medications. The State of California independently operates CoveredCA. As the state’s official ACA marketplace, CoveredCA falls under the purview of Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA). The disclosure of information such as pregnancy or prescription drug use without proper consent—even for “marketing purposes”—may violate HIPAA. This Congress, the Committee has sent letters to 23andMe and DeepSeek over potential data privacy concerns: The Committee also held a hearing last Congress on the Change Healthcare hack, where personal health information was also jeopardized. CLICK HERE to read Fox News coverage of the letter. CLICK HERE to view the full letter. ###

WASHINGTON, D.C.  – Today, Congressman Brett Guthrie (KY-02), Chairman of the House Committee on Energy and Commerce, Congressman Richard Hudson (NC-09), Chairman of the Subcommittee on Communications and Technology, sent a letter to President Donald J. Trump urging the administration to quickly remove burdensome regulations that have stopped the Broadband Equity, Access, and Deployment (BEAD) program from connecting any American to reliable broadband. KEY EXCERPT: “The Biden administration added unnecessary and burdensome requirements that made participation in the program more expensive and less attractive to broadband providers. These include labor and climate change requirements, as well as rate regulation of low-cost broadband plans that were unlawfully imposed.  “To address these issues, we introduced the Streamlining Program Efficiency and Expanding Deployment (SPEED) for BEAD Act, which outlines necessary reforms to BEAD. We appreciate that Secretary of Commerce Howard Lutnick is undertaking a review of the program and urge any reforms to be enacted as soon as possible.” BACKGROUND: On March 5, 2025,  Congressman Hudson introduced  the SPEED for BEAD Act to remove harmful regulations that have prevented the $42 billion program from laying even a single inch of fiber to support rural Americans. Also on March 5, 2025, the Committee on Energy and Commerce  held a hearing  to discuss the BEAD program titled  Fixing Biden’s Broadband Blunder. CLICK HERE to read the full letter. ###

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. ###