12.12.17

Murkowski: Streamlining the Federal Permitting Process is Essential to Modernizing U.S. Energy Infrastructure

U.S. Sen. Lisa Murkowski, R-Alaska, today chaired an oversight hearing to examine the permitting processes for energy and resource infrastructure projects at the Department of the Interior (DOI) and the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC). The hearing focused on permitting challenges and opportunities to improve the responsiveness, transparency, and predictability of permit reviews. "We all recognize that we need to make investments to upgrade and modernize our aging infrastructure," Mu… Continue Reading

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12.07.17

Congressional Delegation Congratulates Alaskan Joe Balash on Confirmation as Assistant Secretary of the Interior

U.S. Sens. Lisa Murkowski, Dan Sullivan, and Rep. Don Young, all R-Alaska, today issued the following statements after the U.S. Senate voted 61-38 to confirm Alaskan Joe Balash to be the next U.S. Assistant Secretary for Land and Minerals Management at the Department of the Interior Click image or here to view Senator Sullivan's floor statement "Today I'm pleased to see that after weeks of partisan gridlock, Joe Balash was finally confirmed as a U.S. Assistant Secretary of the Interior for L… Continue Reading

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12.07.17

Murkowski Statement on New FERC Chairman

U.S. Sen. Lisa Murkowski, R-Alaska, today issued the following statement after the swearing-in of Kevin McIntyre to begin a five-year term on the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC), starting today as the Commission's chairman. "I'm pleased to learn that Mr. McIntyre was sworn in this morning, bringing FERC to a full complement of Commissioners for the first time since 2015. For more than two years, I have been working toward the day when FERC would once again have a full bench. We work… Continue Reading

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12.07.17

Murkowski Named to Reconciliation Conference Committee

U.S. Sen. Lisa Murkowski, R-Alaska, was selected today to serve on the Conference Committee for H.R. 1, the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act. The conference committee will reconcile House and Senate legislation to reform the tax code and open a small portion of the non-wilderness 1002 Area in northeast Alaska to responsible energy development. "I'm grateful to Leader McConnell and my colleagues for the opportunity to represent Alaska and the nation as we bring this important bill through the last parts of… Continue Reading

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12.06.17

Murkowski: Monument Decisions Are Responsive to Local Input

U.S. Sen. Lisa Murkowski, R-Alaska, released the following statement after President Trump signed presidential proclamations reducing the size of two national monuments, Bears Ears and the Grand Staircase-Escalante, both located in Utah. The administration also released Secretary Zinke's final national monuments review and recommendations to the president. "The Antiquities Act has been misused in recent administrations to make sweeping withdrawals that ignore local concerns," Murkowski said. "L… Continue Reading

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12.05.17

Committee Reviews Key Interior and DOE Nominees

U.S. Sen. Lisa Murkowski, R-Alaska, today chaired a hearing of the Energy and Natural Resources Committee to consider two of President Trump's nominees for the Department of the Interior (DOI) and the Department of Energy (DOE). The nominees were Dr. Tim Petty to be Assistant Secretary of the Interior for Water and Science and Dr. Linda Capuano to be Administrator of the Energy Information Administration (EIA). "Having these nominees before our panel brings us another step closer to getting ful… Continue Reading

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12.05.17

Murkowski Bill to Improve Southeast Rural Health Passes Senate

U.S. Senator Lisa Murkowski praised the Senate's passage of her legislation, the Southeast Alaska Regional Health Consortium Land Transfer Act of 2017, which provides a land transfer of 19.07 acres in Sitka. S. 825, co-sponsored by Senator Sullivan, allows for much needed expansions by Southeast Alaska Regional Health Consortium (SEARHC) at the Mt. Edgecumbe Sitka Campus. These extensions would enhance the level of healthcare services available to Southeast Alaska by providing a future site for… Continue Reading

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12.02.17

Senate Passes Legislation to Open Alaska’s 1002 Area

U.S. Sens. Lisa Murkowski, Dan Sullivan, and Rep. Don Young, all R-Alaska, today released the following statements after the Senate passed H.R. 1, the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act, which includes Murkowski's title opening a small portion of the non-wilderness 1002 Area of the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge (ANWR) for responsible energy development. "Tonight is a critical milestone in our efforts to secure Alaska's future," Murkowski said. "Opening the 1002 Area and tax reform both stand on their own,… Continue Reading

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12.02.17

Senate Passes Comprehensive Tax Reform Bill

U.S. Senator Murkowski (R-AK) cast her vote in favor of the Hatch-Murkowski Tax Cuts and Jobs Act, comprehensive tax reform that aims to encourage the economic growth needed to create jobs and generate wealth, while reducing taxes. The legislation contains a section written by Senator Murkowski that opens a small portion of the non-wilderness 1002 Area of the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge (ANWR) for responsible energy development. The combination of developing more of our natural resources and… Continue Reading

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12.01.17

Murkowski Welcomes EPA’s Decision Not to Impose Duplicative Mining Regulation

U.S. Sen. Lisa Murkowski, R-Alaska, today released the following statement in support of the Environmental Protection Agency's (EPA) decision to not impose duplicative and burdensome financial assurance regulations on hardrock mines under the Superfund statute. EPA's decision properly recognizes concerns raised by Congress, states, and small businesses, both well before and after the Obama administration released the draft CERCLA 108(b) rule in December 2016, as well as the strong requirements a… Continue Reading

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11.30.17

Alaska Delegation Praises Passage of Tribal Employment and Training Legislation

U.S. Senators Lisa Murkowski, Dan Sullivan, and Congressman Don Young released the following statements praising the unanimous Senate passage of H.R. 228, legislation to strengthen and reform a comprehensive Native employment and training program commonly known as the "477 Program." The legislation, championed by a united Alaska delegation, marks Young's second to reach the President's desk during the 115th Congress. "The 477 Program has proven to be an innovative and effective tool in providin… Continue Reading

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11.29.17

Senator Murkowski Statement on Senate Tax Reform Legislation

After thoroughly reviewing the good work of the Finance Committee, I intend to support the reconciliation legislation that is now before the Senate. Because the bill includes provisions originating in the Energy and Natural Resources Committee, Alaskans can expect to see me co-managing it with my colleagues, Budget Chairman Mike Enzi and Finance Chairman Orrin Hatch. The bill before us has a number of features that are very attractive to Alaskans. It lowers tax rates, doubles the child tax cre… Continue Reading

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11.20.17

Donnelly and Murkowski Push for National Health Service Corps Expansion to Combat Opioid Abuse

U.S. Senators Joe Donnelly (D-IN) and Lisa Murkowski (R-AK) today called on Senate leaders to do more to combat substance use disorders and the workforce shortage facing treatment providers in rural and underserved communities. Donnelly and Murkowski sent a letter asking for more resources to be dedicated to the addiction treatment workforce shortage and for the reauthorization and expansion of the National Health Service Corps (NHSC) student loan repayment and forgiveness program to include add… Continue Reading

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11.20.17

Murkowski Releases FY2018 Interior, Environment Appropriations Bill

Today U.S. Senator Lisa Murkowski (R-AK) released her Fiscal Year 2018 Interior, Environment, and Related Agencies Appropriations Act recommendation, which supports key programs to protect the health of our economy. Known as the chairman's mark, the draft recommends responsible funding levels and serves as the basis of the subcommittee's appropriations bill negotiations for the new fiscal year. "This bill will empower Americans to build our economy and create healthy communities for our familie… Continue Reading

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11.16.17

Alaska Delegation Requests State Department to Focus on Transboundary Issues

The Alaska Congressional Delegation joined together with the State of Alaska to urge Secretary of State Rex Tillerson to address the downstream risks that mining in British Columbia may pose to Alaskan communities and habitats surrounding transboundary rivers. Senators Lisa Murkowski, Dan Sullivan, Congressman Don Young, Governor Bill Walker and Lieutenant Governor Byron Mallott wrote a letter (attached) to Secretary Tillerson, seeking his Department's engagement in their efforts to ensure that … Continue Reading

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11.16.17

Legislation to Unlock 1002 Area’s Vast Energy Resources Advances in Senate

Today, the Senate Committee on Energy and Natural Resources advanced reconciliation language pursuant to its instruction in H. Con. Res. 71, the Concurrent Resolution on the Budget for Fiscal Year 2018, to raise $1 billion in federal revenues. Following a bipartisan 13-10 vote in favor of the reconciliation language that would end the years-long moratorium on oil and gas development in a small portion of the 1002 Area of the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge (ANWR), Alaska's congressional delegati… Continue Reading

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11.15.17

Energy Committee Advances Chairman’s Mark to Meet FY2018 Budget Instruction

Washington, D.C. - The Senate Committee on Energy and Natural Resources today advanced reconciliation legislation pursuant to the committee's instruction to raise $1 billion in federal revenues in H. Con. Res. 71, the Concurrent Resolution on the Budget for Fiscal Year 2018. "Our bipartisan vote today is another positive step forward for Alaska and our nation, and I thank my colleagues for their strong support," Murkowski said. "Opening a small part of the non-wilderness 1002 Area for responsib… Continue Reading

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11.15.17

Senators Introduce Bipartisan Legislation to Expand Breastfeeding Protections at Work

Today, Oregon's Senator Jeff Merkley and Sen. Lisa Murkowski (R-AK), joined by Sens. Edward J. Markey (D-MA), Richard Blumenthal (D-CT), Elizabeth Warren (D-MA), Kirsten Gillibrand (D-NY), Maggie Hassan (D-NH), Bob Casey (D-PA), Ron Wyden (D-OR) and Al Franken (D-MN), announced the introduction of the Supporting Working Moms Act of 2017. This bipartisan legislation would help ensure that more working mothers can continue to breastfeed their babies after they return to work. This bill builds on… Continue Reading

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11.15.17

Murkowski: We Must Rebuild a Smarter, More Resilient Electric Grid in Puerto Rico and the U.S Virgin Islands

U.S. Sen. Lisa Murkowski, R-Alaska, yesterday chaired an oversight hearing to examine the ongoing recovery efforts in Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands following Hurricanes Irma and Maria. Committee members also discussed the short-term, mid-term, and long-term efforts to rebuild stronger, more resilient and reliable electric grids on the islands. "The totality of recovery work that still needs to be done in Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands is overwhelming," Murkowski said. "Restor… Continue Reading

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11.10.17

Murkowski Honors Our Veterans

U.S. Senator Lisa Murkowski (R-AK) shared the following message with Alaskans on Veterans Day: "This Veterans Day, and every day, I am thankful for the men and women who have served in our military branches and have sacrificed so much for our nation's freedom and protection. Veterans are our fathers, mothers, sons, and daughters. They are our co-workers, neighbors, community leaders, and our friends. We cannot thank them enough for being role models of courage, sacrifice, and service. We should… Continue Reading