{"database": "press", "table": "releases", "rows": [["https://baumgartner.house.gov/media/press-releases/baumgartner-leads-bicameral-push-keep-spokane-niosh-research-facility-open", "Baumgartner Leads Bicameral Push to Keep Spokane NIOSH Research Facility Open", "2025-06-24", "2025", "2025-06", "Republican", "House", "WA", "Michael Baumgartner", "B001322", "baumgartner.house.gov", "baumgartner", "https://baumgartner.house.gov/media/press-releases", "scraper", "WASHINGTON- Congressman Michael Baumgartner (WA-5) led a bicameral oversight letter to Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr., urging the Trump administration to preserve the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health\u2019s Spokane Research Laboratory (NIOSH SRL). The letter, sent on June 18, 2025, marks the third oversight effort Congressman Baumgartner has led to protect critical federal research infrastructure in the West.\n\nThe letter was co-signed by Senators Mike Crapo (R-ID) and Jim Risch (R-ID), along with Representatives Cliff Bentz (OR-2), Dan Newhouse (WA-4), and Mike Simpson (ID-2), demonstrating strong regional support for maintaining the lab\u2019s mission in support of western workers and industries.\n\n\u201cNIOSH\u2019s Spokane lab is the backbone of innovation and safety in the hardrock mining industry for the Western United States,\u201d said Congressman Baumgartner. \u201cShutting it down, without a plan to reassign its vital research, would be a mistake and a disservice to the Trump administration\u2019s America First energy and mineral strategy.\u201d\n\nThe lawmakers raised concerns over reports that the NIOSH SRL facility is facing closure, with no reassignment of its research responsibilities to other federal agencies. The letter emphasizes the lab\u2019s essential role in supporting metal and non-metal mining operations\u2014industries critical to the economies of the western United States and to our national security.\n\nThey also note that while staff have reportedly been reassigned to facilities in the eastern U.S., particularly West Virginia, no such plans were made for the Spokane lab.\n\nMining industry leaders have echoed these concerns, underscoring the SRL\u2019s reputation as a trusted and independent source of research and safety innovation in a sector that cannot afford to cut corners.\n\n\u201cThe SRL is one of the lowest-cost laboratories NIOSH operates,\u201d the letter states.\n\n\u201cWe fully support President Trump\u2019s efforts to streamline government and eliminate waste,\u201d said Baumgartner. \u201cBut eliminating a low-cost, high-impact lab like this one goes against that goal.\u201d", 1, "2026-03-30T01:40:41Z", "2026-04-07T01:08:28Z"]], "columns": ["url", "title", "date", "year", "month", "party", "chamber", "state", "member_name", "bioguide_id", "domain", "scraper", "source", "date_source", "text", "has_text", "collected_at", "updated_at"], "primary_keys": ["url"], "primary_key_values": ["https://baumgartner.house.gov/media/press-releases/baumgartner-leads-bicameral-push-keep-spokane-niosh-research-facility-open"], "units": {}, "query_ms": 0.8622310124337673, "source": "dwillis/congress-press", "source_url": "https://github.com/dwillis/congress-press", "license": "MIT", "license_url": "https://github.com/dwillis/congress-press/blob/main/LICENSE"}