00:00It's back now to recognize the gentlelady of Florida, Ms. Lee, for five minutes.
00:04Thank you, Mr. Chairman, and welcome to you, sir. We appreciate you being with us today.
00:09I would like to start by acknowledging that we appreciate your commitment to returning the EPA
00:16to its intended and appropriate mission. You touched on something just a few moments ago
00:22that is so important, and that is that we can both protect the environment and grow the economy
00:28simultaneously. So your commitment and your vision that the EPA needs to get back to that function
00:36and focus on finding efficiencies, whether it relates to permitting, application review,
00:42or any of the other compliance standards that have operated as an inhibition to productivity
00:50and economic growth, that you're committed to doing that responsibly is very important.
00:54Among other things, you have emphasized a return to the EPA's core statutory responsibilities.
01:01Basing regulatory decisions on sound science is essential, whether the issue is air, water,
01:07or chemicals. We have seen repeated reliance on the Integrated Risk Information System, or IRIS,
01:14a program that was not authorized by Congress and has long been criticized for a lack of transparency
01:20and scientific rigor. Can you speak to how you intend to restore confidence in EPA chemical assessments
01:29and ensure greater transparency for those who are engaging with the agency?
01:35Number one, it's important to follow the science, to follow sound science, to consider
01:41all science and making the best decision possible.
01:46Now, one thing you touched on a moment ago that I think is really important, on the subject of
01:55powering the great American comeback and the five pillars, the American energy dominance,
02:02you referenced not just permitting reform, but that one essential component of that was interagency
02:09coordination so that people who are engaged in that process don't go through years of review only to then
02:17get to the end and encounter a different government agency. Share with us a little bit more about how you're
02:23working on that and why you think it's important.
02:27There are equities that different agencies have in a permitting process, and it would be a much better idea
02:35going forward when Congress is considering possible ways to do it legislatively or agencies are figuring out
02:42ways to do it in the meantime
02:43to work with those who are applying for the permit
02:48in a simultaneous efficient process.
02:52I've heard from members of Congress where there's a company over in Europe
02:56that does 70% of their business in China,
02:59and they want to bring a multi-billion dollar investment into the United States,
03:04but the reason why they're not going into that state here in the US
03:07is because they feel like it'll take too much time,
03:11that years down the road, and after they spend a fortune,
03:15they may still not get an approval at the end of the process.
03:19And if there's more certainty, less time, less cost,
03:23that decision for that business in Europe
03:25will be to come to bring their dollars here.
03:27It doesn't make sense to me
03:29that 20 months down the road, out of nowhere,
03:35Fish and Wildlife might be giving them a complaint
03:39of something that they need to deal with
03:42that you could have just told them a year and a half earlier.
03:46And the same thing on EPA's front.
03:48If there's any EPA equity in a permitting reform
03:50where we need an applicant to do something,
03:54we don't want to wait two years down the road and then gum up the works.
03:59Just be forthcoming with those applying for the permit out of the gate
04:02and let them know what EPA is going to need so that they can address it.
04:05And that's what we have been doing with permit applicants
04:08all across the country since that was confirmed.
04:12Similarly, one of the things that is of great interest to many of us here in Congress
04:16is ensuring that the United States does remain the artificial intelligence capital of the world.
04:22I would love to hear more about your perspective on how the EPA can be part of ensuring
04:28that we achieve that objective.
04:30For one, it's going to require more baseload power.
04:34What's interesting, when I was going through the confirmation process,
04:39meeting with Senate, EPW, Republicans, and Democrats,
04:44everyone was agreeing that we need to make America the AI capital of the world.
04:50And at least privately, everybody was agreeing that we're going to need more power
04:54in order to be able to do that.
04:55And I think that there is room here for Congress and for the administration
05:02to heed the call of the American public to help get that investment to win this race.
05:10And there are some people who might be your constituents,
05:12might be a bit spooked by how powerful AI is and what it might become.
05:16But if we don't lean into it, we're going to lose and China will eat our lunch.
05:22Thank you, Mr. Chairman. I yield back.
05:23China later yields back.
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