House Republicans debut energy and permitting reform package
March 23, 2023
Last week, House Republicans formally introduced the Lower Energy Costs Act (H.R. 1). This comprehensive legislative package is aimed at increasing American energy production and enacting permitting reform to reduce regulatory burdens associated with the development of infrastructure projects. By designing the Lower Energy Costs Act as H.R. 1, Speaker Kevin McCarthy (R-CA) has signaled......
ASCE Hosts Biden Administration Officials for Resilience Events
February 09, 2023
The first term of the Biden Administration has demonstrated a commitment to not only combatting the effects of climate change, but also ensuring that critical infrastructure systems are able stand up to increasingly severe storms and weather events. The passage of the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law included billions in investments to rebuild and modernize the nation’s......
Congress Prioritizes Water Resources Legislation in Lame Duck
December 15, 2022
Since returning to Washington in November following the 2022 midterm election, Congress has been focused on wrapping up its legislative to do list prior to the end of the year, and of the 117th Congress. While priorities such as an omnibus appropriations bill for the 2023 fiscal year remain under discussion, Congress has used its......
Lame-Duck Look Ahead: Energy Permitting Reform Bill
October 13, 2022
In early August, it was announced that Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee Chairman Joe Manchin (D-WV) had reached a deal with Congressional leaders to take up energy infrastructure permitting reform legislation. This deal was made in exchange for his support of the climate change and clean energy reconciliation package known as the Inflation Reduction......
House Appropriations Approves FY 23 Bills
June 30, 2022
This week the House Appropriations Committee completed work on Fiscal Year (FY) 2023 appropriations. During the week, the full committee marked up the remaining six appropriations bills, including Energy and Water; Commerce Justice and Science; Interior and Environment; and Transportation, Housing and Urban Development. Therefore, all 12 of the FY 23 bills now await consideration......
ASCE Observes National Dam Safety Awareness Day
May 31, 2022
On Tuesday, May 31, 2022, the American Society of Civil Engineers (ASCE) observed “National Dam Safety Awareness Day”. Nationwide, more than 92,000 dams serve a variety of functions and provide numerous services including irrigation, water conservation, flood protection. Ensuring the safety and sustainability of the nation’s dams is a top infrastructure priority for ASCE, and......
May 09, 2022
Guest Blog by EyeVi Technologies The United States infrastructure report card is nothing to write home about. According to the 2021 ASCE Report Card for America’s Infrastructure, the overall score for America’s infrastructure is a C-. This more than imperfect grade is reflected well in the satisfaction rate of amongst everyday Americans with their infrastructure.......
April 28, 2022
This post was written by Cathy Gillen and Matthew McGinn This week, Washington celebrated Water Week 2022, highlighting the critical importance of water policy. Water sector professionals gathered in person and remotely to advocate for critical water policy initiatives, hear from lawmakers on the current state of water policy, and discuss ongoing challenges. This year......
House Committees Hold Hearings on Climate Adaptation
March 10, 2022
This week, two House committees held hearings to discuss strategies on adaptation and resilience in the face of climate change. On Tuesday, March 8, the House Science, Space and Technology Committee held a hearing entitled “Federal Climate Adaptation and Resilience for the 21st Century” with witnesses representing various federal agencies. The House Select Committee on......
Select Committee on the Climate Crisis Holds Hearing On Grid Resilience
February 17, 2022
On Tuesday, February 15 the House Select Committee on the Climate Crisis held a hearing entitled “Keeping the Lights On: Strategies for Grid Resilience and Reliability”. The focus of this hearing was investments and policies in the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act to improve grid resilience, and to discuss future investments and policy needs. While......