House Committee Grills Interior Secretary Haaland Over Energy Policies and $17.8 Billion Budget Request for 2025.

The House Natural Resources Committee grilled Interior Secretary Deb Haaland on her department’s energy and public land actions. The hearing was part of a broader discussion of the Interior Department’s $17.8 billion budget request for fiscal 2025. Arkansas Republican Bruce Westerman, the committee’s chair, accused the administration of ignoring local voices and pursuing a “radical agenda” in its policymaking. Other Republicans also criticized the rejection of the proposed 211-mile Ambler Road in Alaska, which would have provided access to potential copper, zinc and other mineral deposits.