{"database": "press", "table": "releases", "rows": [["https://walden.house.gov/media-center/press-releases/greg-walden-helps-advance-eight-bills-modernize-energy-infrastructure", "Greg Walden helps advance eight bills to modernize energy infrastructure, improve environmental laws, and promote job growth in Oregon", "2017-06-28", "2017", "2017-06", "Republican", "House", "OR", "Greg Walden", "W000791", "walden.house.gov", null, null, "legacy", "Greg Walden helps advance eight bills to modernize energy infrastructure, improve environmental laws, and promote job growth in Oregon \n Highlights positive impact of legislation for Oregonians \nClick here or on the image above to view Walden\u2019s remarks from today\u2019s hearing\nWASHINGTON, D.C. \u2013 Rep. Greg Walden (R-Hood River), Chairman of the House Energy and Commerce Committee, today helped advance eight pieces of legislation to modernize energy infrastructure, improve environmental laws, and promote job growth in Oregon. During today\u2019s legislative session, Walden highlighted the positive impact these bills would have for Oregonians. A full transcript of Walden\u2019s remarks is included below:\n\u201cWhile a great deal of the news this year has been focused on health care, both the Subcommittee on Energy and Subcommittee on Environment have been quietly working on legislation that truly makes a difference for folks across the country. We\u2019ve examined barriers to modernizing the nation\u2019s energy infrastructure and looked at opportunities to modernize our environmental laws with an eye on doing what\u2019s best for consumers, the environment, and businesses across the country. To date, the committee has held over 10 energy infrastructure hearings and roundtables and has heard from scores of witnesses. All of this work has brought us here today and I\u2019m looking forward to working with my colleagues on both sides of the aisle to advance these eight bills to the full House for consideration on the floor.\n\u201cWhile these bills may not grab the headlines or the attention they deserve, let\u2019s be real folks, we\u2019re doing some big things here today that will have a tremendous impact on consumers, the environment, and the economy in the years ahead.\n\u201cWe\u2019ve worked in a bipartisan manner on legislation to authorize the Brownfields Program for the first time since 2006. We\u2019re moving forward on a\u00a0bipartisan\u00a0solution to finally have the federal government fulfill its obligations to manage spent nuclear fuel. We\u2019re modernizing our siting and permitting processes for natural gas pipelines and hydropower facilities. We\u2019re taking important steps to ensure the reliability of our electric grid while strengthening states\u2019 capabilities to secure the nation\u2019s energy infrastructure against physical and cybersecurity threats. And we\u2019re also providing states the flexibility needed to implement important air quality standards on an efficient and realistic timeline.\n\u201cIn my home state of Oregon, these bills will help us unlock hydropower\u2019s potential, take steps towards cleaning up the Hanford Site, and strengthen the Brownfields Program to redevelop contaminated sites. All that we do here, we do for our constituents back home that sent us to Washington and entrusted us with the confidence to get things done.\n\u201cI\u2019m proud of this committee\u2019s record when it comes to working with one another in a bipartisan manner. While we may not agree on all the bills before us today, I know each one of us wants to do what\u2019s best for consumers back home. If we put consumer\u2019s interest first, we will develop solid, sustainable public policy, because that means we\u2019ve created consumer driven markets that work, expanded consumer choices and supported a more vibrant, job-producing economy.\u00a0\n\u201cI believe the eight bills before us today fit that consumer-first, market-driven mentality. I stand ready to work with my colleagues on both sides of the aisle to enact these reforms that build on our nation\u2019s energy abundance, modernize our nation\u2019s energy infrastructure and environmental laws, and promote domestic manufacturing and job growth.\u201d\nOf the bills advanced in the Energy and Commerce Committee today, three are of particular importance to Oregon. Walden has emphasized the potential of these bills to grow hydropower in Oregon, improve the management of nuclear waste in the Pacific Northwest, and promote the Brownfields Program that has had great success in Walden\u2019s district.\nThe Hydropower Modernization Act would help expand hydropower in Oregon by streamlining the permitting process for hydro projects. Hydropower accounts for more than 40% of Oregon\u2019s energy production, and Walden is working to ensure its continued growth as part of the Pacific Northwest\u2019s energy mix.\nWalden\u2019s committee also advanced the Nuclear Waste Policy Amendments Act. In a recent opinion piece, Walden touted the importance of this legislation to help cleanup nuclear waste across the country, including at the Hanford Site, which sits just 40 miles north of Walden\u2019s district. You can read his full op-ed here.\nAnother important piece of legislation passed through the Energy and Commerce Committee today is the Brownfields Enhancement, Economic Development, and Reauthorization Act. \u00a0This bill authorizes the Brownfields Program for the first time since 2006 and\u00a0makes it easier for smaller communities like those in Walden\u2019s district to participate in the process of brownfields cleanup and redevelopment.\nAll three of these bills now head to the full House of Representatives for a vote. For a complete background on all eight pieces of legislation advanced in Walden\u2019s committee today, please click here.\n###", 1, "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z", "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z"]], "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://walden.house.gov/media-center/press-releases/greg-walden-helps-advance-eight-bills-modernize-energy-infrastructure"], "units": {}, "query_ms": 1.310412771999836, "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"}