On the Hill in May and June 2024: A Breakdown of Climate, Energy, and Environmental Hearings | Article

In May and June of 2024, Congress held a total of 57 environmental, energy, and climate-related hearings. The Republican-led House of Representatives held 34 of those hearings, while the Senate, with a Democratic majority, held 23. Reflecting the increasingly cross-cutting nature of climate, energy, and environmental issues, 16 different committees in both chambers held hearings on these topics, including nine of the 26 House committees and seven of the 24 Senate committees.

The hearings spanned subjects ranging from disaster mitigation and improving state reuse and recycling programs to ushering in beginning farmers. However, fiscal year (FY) 2025 appropriations, which provide budget authority for federal agencies, was the most popular topic, with 22 hearings discussing the Biden-Harris Administration’s proposed budget requests for the upcoming fiscal year.

The House Committee on Natural Resources held the most hearings in May and June, totaling 14, several of which addressed FY 2025 appropriations and budget requests. Next, the Senate Committee on Energy and Natural Resources held six hearings, the House Committee on Energy and Commerce held five, and the Senate Committee on Environment and Public Works held four. The House Committee on Science, Space, and Technology and the House Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure held two hearings each.

Climate continued to permeate topics not traditionally associated with environmental issue areas. The Senate Budget Committee—whose principal responsibility is to inform Congressional action on spending, revenue, and debt limits—was particularly concerned with the broader economic implications of climate change. The Committee held four hearings in May and June, touching on water scarcity, defense and national security, fossil fuel companies’ ongoing disinformation campaign on climate change, and unstable property insurance markets.

Committees in both the House and Senate examined critical minerals and the mining workforce. The Senate Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions Committee held hearings entitled Digging Deeper for Health and Safety: Examining New Standards and Practices in Mining and Digging Deeper: Building Our Critical Minerals Workforce. House Energy and Commerce highlighted securing rare-earth mineral supply chains to safeguard national security.

May and June hearings also addressed the growing demand for electric power. This demand, driven in part by investments in artificial intelligence (AI), was underscored by House Energy and Commerce in their hearing, Powering AI: Examining America's Energy and Technology Future. The Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee echoed this in a more general hearing on the opportunities and risks associated with recent electric grid load growth.

To keep up with these hearings, get EESI’s weekly Environmental and Energy Congressional Round-Up by subscribing to our biweekly newsletter, Climate Change Solutions.

Author: Lindsey Snyder