{"database": "press", "table": "releases", "rows": [["https://zinke.house.gov/media/press-releases/congressman-zinke-responds-biden-launching-columbia-river-task-force-remove", "Congressman Zinke responds to Biden launching Columbia River Task Force to remove Snake River dams", "2024-06-18", "2024", "2024-06", "Republican", "House", "MT", "Ryan K. Zinke", "Z000018", "zinke.house.gov", "zinke", "https://zinke.house.gov/media/press-releases", "scraper", "(Washington, D.C.) - Today the Biden Administration announced that the Council on Environmental Quality (CEQ) has launched the Columbia River Task Force to implement Biden\u2019s long promised plan to remove dams on the Snake River system that supply western Montana with affordable and reliable electricity. These dams provide between 60-70% of the electricity in the Pacific Northwest. Hydropower is the most abundant, affordable, and cleanest source of energy available in Montana, heavily relied upon for baseload power.\n\n\u201cPresident Biden\u2019s new \u201ctask force\u201d prioritizes fish over people and once again puts radical environmental lawyers in the driver\u2019s seat to run over rural Montana,\u201d said Congressman Zinke. \u201cHydropower is the only net-zero energy we have in Montana and ripping that out to appease the zealots in Seattle and Silicon Valley is bad for the environment, bad for the economy and bad for our energy security. I\u2019ve worked closely with Montana\u2019s rural electric co-ops and my colleagues in Congress to introduce legislation to stop this idiotic plan from going forward and it\u2019s well past time the Senate steps up to the plate and protects our water, electricity, and livelihoods.\u201d\n\nCongressman Zinke has been a champion in ensuring the Snake River Dams remain intact. Zinke has cosponsored seven bills to prevent dam removal and save clean energy in Montana.\n\nThe Abandoning Inconsistent and Rash Environmental Solutions (ACRES) Act\n\nCosponsors: Reps. Russ Fulcher (ID-01), Cliff Bentz (OR-02), Rep. Dan Newhouse (WA-04),and Matt Rosendale (MT-02).\n\nSupporting organizations: National Rural Electric Cooperative Association, Port of Benton, and Pacific Northwest Waterways Association.\n\nSummary: Prohibits the breaching of federally operated dams if such breach would result in the replacement energy resource occupying additional acreage of more than 5 percent.\n\nBill text here.\n\nThe Breaking Irresponsible Energy and Commercial Habits (BREACH) Act\n\nCosponsors: Reps. Russ Fulcher (ID-01), Cliff Bentz (OR-02), Rep. Dan Newhouse (WA-04),and Matt Rosendale (MT-02).\n\nSupporting organizations: Public Power Council, National Rural Electric Cooperative Association, Port of Benton, and Pacific Northwest Waterways Association.\n\nSummary: Prohibits the breaching of federally operated dams if such a breach would result in an increase in carbon emission by more than 10 percent, would make the body of water impacted by the breach less navigable for commercial interests, and would result in an increase of at least 10 percent of the price of products shipped via the body of water.\n\nBill text here.\n\nThe Ratepayer Funding Alternative Act\n\nCosponsors: Reps. Russ Fulcher (ID-01), Cliff Bentz (OR-02), and Rep. Dan Newhouse (WA-04).\n\nSupporting organizations: Public Power Council, National Rural Electric Cooperative Association, Port of Benton, and Pacific Northwest Waterways Association.\n\nSummary: Directs DOE to develop fish and wildlife program funding alternatives to mitigate the cost to BPA ratepayers and report to Congress within 6 months of enactment on what alternative funding options are available.\n\nBill text here.\n\nThe Pinniped Predator Deterrence Act\n\nCosponsors: Reps. Cathy McMorris Rodgers (WA-05), Russ Fulcher (ID-01), Cliff Bentz (OR-02), and Rep. Dan Newhouse (WA-04).\n\nSupporting organizations: National Rural Electric Cooperative Association, Port of Benton, and Pacific Northwest Waterways Association.\n\nSummary: Requires and authorizes USACE to acquire technology that uses acoustic sound technology to deter pinniped predators above and below the Bonneville Dam.\n\nBill text here.\n\nThe QUERIES Act\n\nCosponsors: Reps. Cathy McMorris Rodgers (WA-05), Russ Fulcher (ID-01), Cliff Bentz (OR-02), and Rep. Dan Newhouse (WA-04).\n\nSupporting organizations: Public Power Council, National Rural Electric Cooperative Association, Port of Benton, and Pacific Northwest Waterways Association.\n\nSummary: To direct the Comptroller General of the United States to submit to Congress an updated report on the roles, responsibilities, and practices of the Council on Environmental Quality.\n\nBill text here.\n\nResolution expressing the sense of the House of Representatives that hydropower is a vital component to an all-of-the-above approach to energy development which is critical to U.S. national security\n\nCosponsors: Reps. Cathy McMorris Rodgers (WA-05), Russ Fulcher (ID-01), Cliff Bentz (OR-02), and Rep. Dan Newhouse (WA-04),\n\nSupporting organizations: National Rural Electric Cooperative Association, Port of Benton, and Pacific Northwest Waterways Association.\n\nResolution text here.\n\nResolution expressing disapproval of the Columbia Basin Restoration Initiative entered into by the Biden Administration\n\nCosponsors: Rep. Dan Newhouse (WA-04), Reps. Cathy McMorris Rodgers (WA-05), Russ Fulcher (ID-01), Cliff Bentz (OR-02), and Matt Rosendale (MT-02).\n\nSupporting organizations: Cowlitz PUD, National Rural Electric Cooperative Association, Port of Benton, and Pacific Northwest Waterways Association.\n\nResolution text here.", 1, "2026-03-30T01:40:41Z", "2026-04-07T21:11:47Z"]], "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://zinke.house.gov/media/press-releases/congressman-zinke-responds-biden-launching-columbia-river-task-force-remove"], "units": {}, "query_ms": 2.0230747759342194, "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"}