Climate Change Hearing Requests
In the last Congress, Ranking Members Waxman and Rush sent 21 letters to Chairmen Upton and Whitfield requesting that the Committee hold hearings on climate change, including the latest science about the potentially catastrophic impacts of climate change and the urgent need for action to reduce greenhouse gas emissions. Chairmen Upton and Whitfield did not respond to these requests.
In the 113th Congress, Ranking Members Waxman and Rush continue to push for Committee action on climate change and have sent four letters requesting hearings on this topic. To date, the Committee has not held any hearings on climate change in the 113th Congress.
A summary and full text of each letter is below.
113th Congress
April 9, 2013
Ranking Members Waxman and Rush Renew Request for Hearings on Science of Climate Change
Energy and Commerce Committee Ranking Member Henry A. Waxman and Energy and Power Subcommittee Ranking Member Bobby L. Rush sent a letter to Chairmen Fred Upton and Ed Whitfield to reiterate their request for hearings to hear from respected climate scientists about the urgent need to reduce carbon pollution and the likely impacts of unabated climate change on human health, the environment, and the economy.
March 15, 2013
Ranking Members Waxman and Rush Request Testimony from Scientists on Urgent Threat of Climate Change
Energy and Commerce Committee Ranking Member Henry A. Waxman and Energy and Power Subcommittee Ranking Member Bobby L. Rush sent a letter to Chairmen Fred Upton and Ed Whitfield requesting a hearing with scientists and other experts on the need for action to address climatechange, following a hearing earlier this month featuring testimony from utilities on the EPA’s proposed carbon standards for new power plants.
March 11, 2013
Ranking Members Waxman and Rush Call for Hearing on U.S. Greenhouse Emissions Trends
Ranking Members Waxman and Rush requested a hearing on U.S. trends in greenhouse gas emissions. The hearing request seeks to correct assertions by Chairman Whitfield in recent Committee proceedings that additional legislative or regulatory actions to combat carbon emissions are unnecessary. Although carbon emissions from fossil fuel combustion fell in 2012, the United States is not on track to reduce all greenhouse gas emissions by the amount needed to avert dangerous climate change.
February 26, 2013
Ranking Members Waxman and Rush requested a hearing on the Government Accountability Office’s (GAO) inclusion of climate change to its High Risk List.
112th Congress
December 11, 2012
Ranking Members Waxman and Rush Call for Hearing on Rate of Decarbonization and Global Warming
Ranking Members Waxman and Rush requested a hearing on the PriceWaterhouseCoopers (PwC) Low Carbon Economy Index report on the necessary rate of decarbonization to limit global warming.
November 19, 2012
Ranking Members Waxman and Rush Call for Hearing on Sobering World Bank Climate Report
Ranking Members Waxman and Rush requested a hearing on an important, new World Bank report that details the “devastating” impacts of climate change. The report, ”Turn Down the Heat: Why a 4°C Warmer World Must be Avoided,” detailed what the world would be like with warming of 4 degrees Celsius before the end of the century.
November 14, 2012
Ranking Members Waxman and Rush requested a hearing on an important, new report that examines the connections between national security and climate change. The report, released by the National Research Council of the National Academies, found that the government should immediately begin to develop a strategy to monitor threats connected to climate change, as potentially disruptive environmental events are expected to increase in frequency and intensity.
October 31, 2012
Ranking Members Waxman and Rush requested a hearing on Hurricane Sandy, extreme weather events, and climate change. Hurricane Sandy is the type of extreme weather event that climate scientists say will become more common if we fail to reduce our carbon pollution.
September 14, 2012
Ranking Members Waxman and Rush requested a hearing on ocean acidification and its damage to sensitive marine ecosystems and species. The warming and acidification of the oceans are causing rapid declines in oyster production, endangering the already critically injured North Atlantic right whale, and affecting deep sea marine life.
September 10, 2012
Ranking Members Waxman and Rush Request Hearing on Impact of Climate Change on Electricity Sector
Ranking Members Waxman and Rush requested a hearing on the impact of climate change on the nation’s energy generation. Recent reports indicated record-breaking heat and drought conditions are forcing power plant operators to use less water to operate hydroelectric, coal-fired, and nuclear power plants, resulting in the shutdown of some nuclear plants as cooling water becomes either too warm or too scarce.
July 13, 2012
Ranking Members Waxman and Rush requested a hearing on the dangers of climate change. Specifically, the members requested a hearing on the recent wildfires and extreme weather events the United States has experienced and the role global climate change has played in these events.
June 4, 2012
Ranking Members Waxman and Rush Call for Hearing on Carbon Capture and Sequestration Developments
Ranking Members Waxman and Rush requested a hearing on new information on the potential role of carbon capture and sequestration (CCS) to control carbon pollution and to provide for the clean use of coal in the future.
May 14, 2012
Reps. Waxman, Rush, and DeGette Call for Hearing on Natural Gas Flaring
Ranking Members Waxman, Rush, and DeGette renewed a request for a hearing on the practice of natural gas flaring at oil production facilities in the U.S. and its potential energy and environmental impact. The request followed a recent report that the U.S. shale boom caused global gas flaring to rise in 2011, reversing a downward trend. The United States now falls in the top 10 countries for natural gas flaring, along with Russia, Nigeria, and Iraq.
April 30, 2012
Ranking Members Waxman and Rush requested a hearing on findings by the International Energy Agency (IEA) that suggested the transition to a low-carbon energy system is happening too slowly to prevent the worst impacts of climate change.
April 12, 2012
Ranking Members Waxman and Rush Call for Hearing on Role of Global Climate Change in March Heat Wave
Ranking Members Waxman and Rush requested a hearing on the link between global climate change and the unprecedented March heat wave across the contiguous United States. Data from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration indicated that March 2012 was the warmest March on record with temperatures breaking more than 15,000 records.
March 21, 2012
Ranking Members Waxman and Rush Call for Hearing on Carbon Dioxide Emissions’ Effects on Oceans
Ranking Members Waxman and Rush requested a hearing on the rapid acidifying of oceans due to rising emissions of carbon dioxide. Studies from Columbia University, the University of Bristol, and others concluded that, due to carbon dioxide emissions, ocean acidification is occurring much faster than at any other point in Earth’s history, perhaps causing unprecedented marine ecosystem change.
February 22, 2012
Ranking Members Waxman and Rush Call for Hearing on NOAA Data on Rising Temperatures Worldwide
Ranking Members Waxman and Rush requested a hearing on new data from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) that showed the 2011-2012 winter has been much warmer than average, consistent with overall rising temperatures on a global scale.
January 26, 2012
Ranking Members Waxman and Rush requested a hearing on a recent report by the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC), which found that increases in concentrations of greenhouse gases have contributed to recent climate extremes. A hearing would allow members to hear expert testimony on the economic and human effects of climate change, tied to the record droughts, heavy rains, weather-related disasters, and heat waves that occurred across the United States this year.
January 19, 2012
Ranking Members Waxman and Rush requested a hearing on new reports of thawing permafrost in the Northern Hemisphere and the potentially dangerous levels of methane and carbon it could release into the atmosphere.
November 18, 2011
Ranking Members Waxman and Rush requested a hearing on a new analysis by the International Energy Agency (IEA) that found failure to take action to prevent climate change in the next five years will likely commit the world to large temperature increases and likely devastating effects.
November 10, 2011
Ranking Members Waxman and Rush requested a hearing on a new analysis by Yale University and Middlebury College economists, entitled Environmental Accounting for Pollution in the United States Economy. The analysis found that the economic costs of air pollution from coal-fired and oil-fired power plants outweigh the economic value these sources add to the economy, which indicates that stronger pollution control regulations would strengthen our national wellbeing.
November 4, 2011
Ranking Members Waxman and Rush Request Hearing on Impact of Global Warming on Crop Yields
Ranking Members Waxman and Rush requested hearings on important new developments in climate change science. The latest science indicated that crop yields, agricultural areas, and consumers are experiencing the adverse effects of climate change and are expected to face more acute challenges as temperatures continue to rise.
October 28, 2011
Ranking Members Waxman and Rush Call for Hearing on New Analysis of Climate Change Science
Ranking Members Waxman and Rush requested a hearing to examine an important new analysis by the Berkeley Earth Surface Temperature Project. This analysis, led by Richard Muller, a prominent climate skeptic, found that “global warming is real.”
October 13, 2011
Rep. Waxman and Rep. Rush Call for Hearing on North Dakota Natural Gas Flaring
Ranking Members Waxman and Rush requested a hearing to assess natural gas flaring practices in North Dakota and their potential energy and environmental consequences. The request followed a recent news report on the wasteful process of burning natural gas in North Dakota.
May 23, 2011
Reps. Waxman and Rush Request Hearing on Climate Change Science
Ranking Members Waxman and Rush requested a hearing on two new reports on climate change from the National Academy of Sciences and the Vatican, which found that climate change is occurring and that urgent action is needed to address its dangers.