Yearly Archives: 2016

WASHINGTON, D.C. – Today, the U.S. Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs (HSGAC) Committee unanimously approved legislation introduced by U.S. Senator Angus King (I-Maine) and a bipartisan group of his colleagues which would improve how the federal government manages its buildings and other property across the country. The Federal Property Management Reform Act of 2016, introduced by Senators King, Tom Carper (D-Del.), Rob Portman (R-Ohio), Heidi Heitkamp (D-N.D.), Ron Johnson (R-Wis.), and James Lankford (R-Okla.), would establish a framework for federal agencies to better manage existing space in a more cost-effective manner and help facilitate the disposal of unneeded federal property. The Federal Property Management Reform Act of 2016 will now move to the Senate floor for consideration by the full Senate. “Maine taxpayers shouldn’t have to foot the bill for government property that goes unused, and the Committee’s unanimous approval of our bill is a solid step toward ensuring they won’t,” Senator King said. “With far too many unused or underutilized federal buildings draining vital resources, our common-sense legislation will make sure that the federal government manages its properties more efficiently and that taxpayer dollars are spent more effectively. I applaud the Committee for its vote today and look forward to advancing this legislation in the Senate.” Specifically, the Federal Property Management Reform Act would require federal agencies to maintain an up-to-date inventory of the property it owns, incentivize agencies to dispose of excess property by allowing them to retain and reinvest sale proceeds, and establish a Federal Property Council to develop uniform guidance for agency property managers to follow and share best practices in property management among agencies. The federal government’s real property holdings are vast and diverse, incorporating hundreds of thousands of buildings and permanent structures across the county, and making it the largest property owner in the United States. In fact, every year since January 2003, the Government Accountability Office (GAO) has placed real property management on its list of “high risk” government activities, citing long-standing problems with excess and underutilized property; deteriorating and aging facilities; unreliable property data; and a heavy reliance on costly leasing instead of ownership to meet new needs. The Federal Property Management Reform Act of 2016 passed by the committee today would: Require agencies to maintain a current inventory of real property, including information about the cost and use of their facilities and how these properties fit into the agencies broader management plan. Codify and expand the duties of the Federal Real Property Council to ensure this body develops guidance and ensures the implementation of strategies for better managing federal property; Incentivize agencies to dispose of excess property through retention of the net proceeds of sale as long as those proceeds are used to further disposal activities, investments in federal buildings personnel or for deficit reduction; Codify the broader management framework of the Administration’s National Strategy for the Efficient Use of Real Property, ensuring these actions become a permanent framework for agency property management; Build off efforts previously championed by Sen. Carper in the Federal Buildings Personnel Training Act of 2010. Senator King has previously partnered with Senator Carper to improve federal property management. Last year, the Senators introduced and ushered into law an amendment to the National Defense Authorization Act that authorized a pilot program to encourage more efficient federal property management by streamlining the process by which the U.S. Army disposes of unused or underutilized properties.

Congressman Mike Pompeo (R-Kan.) released the following statement in response to the U.S. Supreme Court’s decision to halt enforcement of President Obama's Clean Power Plan

Congressman French Hill (AR-02) released the following statement after the U.S. Supreme Court granted a stay, stopping the Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA) implementation of the Clean Power Plan

U.S. General Services Administration (GSA) announced significant new investments that are a part of the President’s proposed fiscal year 2017 budget request. The proposed budget is focused on tackling our nation's greatest challenges by making smart ...

U.S. Senator Dick Durbin (D-IL) and U.S. Representative Tammy Duckworth (D-IL) asked the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to review the effectiveness of a regulation that controls lead and copper in water and establish a limit for lead in drinking...

Senator Ayotte with Michelle Firmbach Nadeau, Senior Manager, Public Affairs; John LaRiviere, General Manager & Director Special Waste and Bill Roberts, Senior Vice President of Operations, Wheelabrator Technologies

Montana communities use these Army Corps grants, which are made possible through the Water Resources Development Act Section 595 program. The grants can be used to upgrade wastewater treatment facilities, water supply infrastructure, environmental rest...

Legislation that would strengthen requirements for notifying customers about unsafe levels of lead and other contamination of public drinking water passed the House with overwhelming bipartisan support, Congressman Ryan Costello (PA-06) announced Thur...

U.S. Representative Bill Flores (R-Texas) released the following statement regarding the U.S. Supreme Court issuing a stay on the Obama administration’s Clean Power Plan

Gov. Peter Shumlin issued the following statement after the Supreme Court put on hold the Obama Administration’s Clean Power Plan while litigation against the plan proceeds.

“By staying U.S. EPA’s Clean Power Plan, the Supreme Court got it right. The State of Ohio has pointed out the serious legal shortcomings of the federal Clean Power Plan on numerous occasions. We will evaluate the decision and determine how it will...

Hawaii’s towns and landscapes are changing rapidly. The era of the sugar plantations is coming to a close. The once numerous crack seed, shave ice, and mom and pop stores on small town streets are giving way to big box stores, along with one-lane bri...

Congressman Tim Ryan today votes in favor of the Safe Drinking Water Act Improved Compliance Awareness Act (HR4470) – which he introduced with Congressmen Dan Kildee (D-MI) and Fred Upton (R-MI) last week. This bill is in response to safe drinking wa...

South Carolina REALTORS® (SCR) today released its 2015 annual market report. The data shows the real estate market in South Carolina experienced its best year since the end of the Great Recession in 2009

West Virginia Attorney General Patrick Morrisey hailed today’s decision blocking the Environmental Protection Agency as a monumental victory, explaining that it prevents the EPA from enforcing its illegal and unprecedented Power Plan until the court challenge concludes.

West Virginia Attorney General Patrick Morrisey hailed today’s decision blocking the Environmental Protection Agency as a monumental victory, explaining that it prevents the EPA from enforcing its illegal and unprecedented Power Plan until the court ...

A single serving of pasta cooked with North Carolina tap water in the home of a sick baby contained more lead than a dime-sized paint chip. An increase in spontaneous abortions and miscarriages was tied to undisclosed lead in the Washington, D.C.’s drinking water. And tap water at an Ohio mobile home community was found to have three times the allowable lead levels for months before residents were informed

Legislation introduced by Congressman Keith Rothfus [PA-12], the Satisfying Energy Needs and Saving the Environment (SENSE) Act (H.R. 3797), will be marked up in the Energy and Commerce Committee’s Subcommittee on Energy and Power this week. The mark...

U.S. Senator Deb Fischer (R-Neb.), a member of the Environment and Public Works Committee, released the following statement this evening regarding the Supreme Court’s decision to temporarily block the Obama administration’s Clean Power Plan

U.S. Senator Heidi Heitkamp issued the following statement after the Supreme Court on Tuesday halted the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s Clean Power Plan rules on power plants until legal challenges to the rules are resolved.

U.S. Senator Heidi Heitkamp today announced that rural and tribal areas across North Dakota will receive a total of $24.8 million in federal funding to help the state expand and improve its water supply infrastructure – more than any other state is b...

Senator John Hoeven today announced that the Bureau of Reclamation has awarded the Pick-Sloan Missouri Basin Program, Garrison Diversion Unit in North Dakota an additional $17.4 million in funding to build and improve water supply systems in a number o...

Senator John Hoeven, a member of the U.S. Senate Appropriations and Indian Affairs Committees, today announced that the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) has awarded $900,000 to the Spirit Lake Tribe. The funds are made available t...

U.S. Senator Joe Manchin (D-WV) today issued a statement after the Supreme Court ruled it would block the Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA) carbon rules for power plants while the courts consider a legal challenge from states and industry groups.

U.S. Senator Amy Klobuchar announced today that Walgreens will be installing safe medication disposal kiosks in their stores to help families get rid of unused prescription drugs. Klobuchar passed legislation in 2010 to provide consumers with safe and ...

Two major initiatives that could provide up to 40 new units of permanent supportive housing to those in the community experiencing chronic homelessness were announced today by members of the Roundtable on Housing and Homelessness

Budget Ensures $30 Million in Funding for Police Body Camera Programs and Provides $30 million in Funding for the Development of Prospect MAX Bus Rapid Transit in Kansas City.

Congressman Bruce Westerman (AR-04), a member of the House Committee on the Budget, issued the following statement Tuesday (Feb. 9) after the release of President Barack Obama’s proposed Fiscal Year 2017 budget.

Three O‘ahu residences have been added to the Hawai‘i Register of Historic Places by the Hawai‘i Historic Places Review Board. Compromised of experts including historians, architects, sociologists, cultural specialists, and archaeologists, the H...

The Chesapeake Bay Foundation (CBF) believes that Governor Tom Wolf's proposed $32.7 billion budget for 2016-17 lacks the resources to implement Pennsylvania's new, improved clean water Blueprint. Unless the Commonwealth invests more in clean water, Pe...