At a House Natural Resources Committee hearing on Wednesday, Rep. Grace Napolitano (D-CA) questioned Sec. Deb Haaland about the job the secretary is doing.
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NewsTranscript
00:00 I ask unanimous consent to submit for the record this resolution by the voice
00:06 of the Arctic Inuit Pet and signed by the Inuit Pet community of the Arctic
00:10 Slope, the Arctic Slope Regional Corporation and the North Slope Borough
00:14 opposing the NPRA role citing the lack of engagement by the department. Without
00:21 objection. The chair now recognizes the gentlelady from California, Miss
00:28 Napolitano, you're recognized. Thank you, Mr. Chair.
00:31 Miss Secretary, welcome again and first of all let me state that I associate my
00:39 remarks with Miss Ocasio-Cortez. I believe you're doing your best.
00:45 Madam Secretary, the department is working to implement the funding we
00:49 secured under the infrastructure law for large-scale water projects but one
00:54 investment is frankly not enough. It must be continuous funding to grow, construct,
01:00 maintain and operate more facilities. That is why I am proud to have
01:04 introduced large-scale water recycling reauthorization and investment act to
01:09 reauthorize funding for water recycling and reuse projects in the West. It's
01:14 imperative we work to address the climate change not to protect our water
01:18 supplies and increase the presence of regional large-scale water
01:22 projects for the benefit of future US climate change. Secretary Halen, could you
01:28 speak how the department is prioritizing water recycling under fiscal 25 budget?
01:35 Thank you very much, Congresswoman, and again I want to say how happy we were to
01:41 be in your district and appreciate you hosting us when we visited there. So as
01:48 you know, last fall we launched a new large-scale water recycling program and
01:52 made initial funding from bill available to incentivize projects at a larger
01:57 scale aimed at creating new water supplies that are less vulnerable to
02:00 drought and climate change. With respect to funding details, the FY 2025 budget
02:07 continues to support all of the water smart programs including water recycling
02:12 for four million dollars and desalination for seven million dollars.
02:18 Thank you. I trust others are going to be seeking funding under these this program.
02:25 Another thing I'd like to ask is water recycling and reuse projects are a
02:30 critical component in water security as we move forward, especially in the
02:35 Colorado River Basin. The Bureau, basin states, tribes are engaging in ongoing
02:41 communications and negotiations regarding the post 2026 operations.
02:45 Until then we're operating under the 2007 interim guides and the drought
02:51 contingency plan. Do you explain to the committee how funds for the drought
02:54 contingency plan are being implemented and how the discussions have been going
02:58 with tribes in and along the basin? And all tribes have been concluded and active.
03:10 Excuse me. The Colorado River Basin, of course we know that it's crucial to 30
03:15 tribal nations there. We're very proud of the work that the Bureau of Reclamation
03:19 has done to bring people together and to make sure that tribes have a voice in
03:24 how we move these issues forward. We have fostered an unprecedented level of
03:30 collaboration and partnership with tribes as well as the states and Mexico
03:35 in our efforts to protect the short-term stability of the system and lead efforts
03:40 to stabilize it into the future. This is the first time, Congresswoman, in history
03:47 that tribes have been given a meaningful seat at the table and I really am
03:53 grateful to my team for making sure that that has happened. Thank you for doing
03:59 that. It's important to note that the large-scale water project is something
04:04 new in the West and I think many more states may be looking at it for the
04:08 future protection of droughts and I yield back.
04:13 The gentlelady yields back. The chair now recognizes the gentleman from Oregon, the
04:18 subcommittee chair of the Water, Wildlife and Fisheries Subcommittee, Mr.
04:21 Bents. You're recognized for five minutes. Thank you, Mr. Chair, and thank you, Madam