[{"_1":2,"_87":-5,"_88":-5},"loaderData",{"_3":4,"_26":27},"root",{"_5":6,"_17":10,"_18":19,"_20":21,"_22":10,"_23":-5,"_24":-5,"_25":10},"user",{"_7":8,"_9":10,"_11":10,"_12":-5,"_13":-5,"_14":15,"_16":-5},"roles",[],"isAuthenticated",false,"isPremium","planName","subscriptionStatus","featureFlags",{},"insightsBudget","isDevelopmentHost","userPreferences",{},"recaptchaSiteKey","6LcvOJcUAAAAAHsB-gPGfGktcRlKpH7OTIU_dMTD","isImpersonating","impersonation","affiliateStatus","isFreedomPortal","routes/v2/article/layout",{"_28":29,"_30":31},"notFound",true,"relatedArticles",[32,75],{"_33":34,"_35":36,"_37":38,"_39":40,"_41":42,"_43":44,"_45":46,"_47":48,"_49":50,"_51":52,"_53":54,"_55":56,"_57":58,"_59":60,"_61":62,"_63":64,"_65":66,"_67":68,"_69":70,"_71":72,"_73":72,"_74":72},"mediaId",6255120,"mediaKeyId","3168106-8b6293e0528616d186aaf16f3039ada0","parentId",3168106,"title","Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee reports two DOE nominations favorably and hears four nominees for Interior and Energy posts","audioSeconds",1133,"startMs",1641000,"endMs",2774000,"viewUrl","/Search/View?dp=1&key=3168106-8b6293e0528616d186aaf16f3039ada0&start=1641&end=2774","thumbnailUrl","https://assets.pipeline.soar.com/3168106-8b6293e0528616d186aaf16f3039ada0/thumbnail_1641000.jpg","articleUrl","/articles/6255120/Senate-Energy-and-Natural-Resources-Committee-reports-two-DOE-nominations-favorably-and-hears-four-nominees-for-Interior-and-Energy-posts","mediaUrl","https://secure.pipeline.soar.com/6255120-d66a608dc8480533401f838f87eeac9f/orig.mp4?Expires=1770681951&Signature=hc7JMD0hk7jtHaO5WlGTO4rmALVEmAOi4Ca799sHcg3JmItifO4LFyne3Nabjw2v3dnenbdHIc4yfX~WcXHP9lhIzFkCuEeQzO45wlRsOH3JY1Y6buYUiQFpRWxsVJgqghpynioa1Ws0jMdYEe7-l8UceK7a~rE~jQQbuZzMCAZgRCLOtdm~wNs6TTxSL3bTbrt-ZDbwjgp5tKukpsnZ6jnQjelt3zkY8YkoWmnwI3i48FbIl67M7qKZ7gdhuOzrEt8u-uzWgZv19tGEcY91kYU59ifkB1esTU-MGTL36puPvP1bhgv0K2QoiXI7iECsglhrfg3281~e7rdKlU6pFg__&Key-Pair-Id=KUT5TJCACFTXG","author","U.S. Senate Committee on Energy & Natural Resources","date","2025-04-30T00:00:00Z","article","The Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee on May 7 held roll-call votes to report two nominations for Department of Energy posts and then conducted a nominations hearing for four nominees to senior Interior and Energy positions.

During a short business meeting the committee took roll-call votes on the nominations of Mr. Wells Griffith to be Under Secretary of Energy and Dr. Dario Gill to be Under Secretary of Energy for Science. The committee reported Mr. Griffith's nomination favorably by a roll-call tally the clerk recorded as 14 ayes and 6 nays; the clerk later recorded Dr. Gill's nomination as reported favorably with 15 ayes and 5 nays. The clerk captured that roll-call tallies were taken for each floor nomination and the chair ordered both nominations reported favorably to the Senate.

After the votes the committee moved into a scheduled nominations hearing for four nominees: Dr. Andrea Travnik (nominee to be Assistant Secretary of the Interior for Water and Science), Ms. Leslie Beyer (nominee to be Assistant Secretary for Land and Minerals Management), Mr. Ted Gerrish (nominee to be Assistant Secretary for Nuclear Energy, Department of Energy), and Mr. Tristan Abbe (nominee to be Administrator of the Energy Information Administration). The committee swore in the nominees and each gave opening statements. Senators asked questions about western water infrastructure, tribal consultation, public lands management, nuclear licensing and financing, hydropower operations on the Colorado River, and the Energy Information Administration's capacity to produce a congressionally directed critical minerals outlook.

Dr. Travnik said if confirmed she would prioritize Western water infrastructure, engagement with the seven Colorado River basin states, and work on the critical minerals list maintained by USGS: \"If confirmed as the assistant assistant secretary for water and science, I'll bring my core values and natural resources and management experiences to the role. I look forward to leading and working again with the dedicated teams of engineers, hydrologists, and scientists at the Bureau of Reclamation and the US Geological Survey.\" Ms. Beyer described her experience in energy and land management and said she would seek to balance multiple uses of public lands and follow congressional directives: \"If confirmed, I pledge to be a responsible steward of more than 245,000,000 acres of surface, 700,000,000 acres of subsurface, and over 3,000,000,000 acres offshore.\"

Mr. Gerrish told senators nuclear power must be advanced through licensing, prototype demonstration, and financing tools; he said building and licensing a first new reactor is a priority. Mr. Abbe, the nominee for EIA administrator, emphasized objectivity and modernization, telling senators he would work to clear unfinished projects, recruit technical talent, and produce the congressionally required critical minerals outlook if confirmed.

Committee members raised procedural and policy concerns during questioning. Senators pressed Dr. Travnik and Ms. Beyer about tribal consultation and whether expedited permitting guidance could meaningfully accommodate consultation timelines; nominees replied they would work to ensure consultation was meaningful while seeking permitting efficiencies. Senators also questioned Ms. Beyer about any approach to conveyance of public lands; she said only Congress can dispose of federal lands and that she would follow congressional direction if confirmed.

The committee then began the formal nomination hearing and entered questions for the record; the chair announced the record would remain open for statements until 6 p.m. on Thursday, May 8 and that senators' written questions were due by 6 p.m. that evening.","mediaType","Video","parentTitle","Full Committee Hearing to Consider Pending Nominations: April 30, 2025","oneSentenceSummary","The Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee on May 7 reported two Department of Energy nominations favorably and conducted a hearing on four nominees to senior Interior and Energy posts.","taxTitle","Energy and Natural Resources: Senate Committee, Standing Committees - House & Senate, Congressional Hearings Compilation, Legislative, Federal","taxId",1991,"location","","headline","shortSummary",{"_33":76,"_35":36,"_37":38,"_39":77,"_41":78,"_43":79,"_45":80,"_47":81,"_49":82,"_51":83,"_53":84,"_55":56,"_57":58,"_59":85,"_61":62,"_63":64,"_65":86,"_67":68,"_69":70,"_71":72,"_73":72,"_74":72},6255126,"Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee adopts amendments and advances S.714, the Critical Mineral Consistency Act, to the Senate floor",509,1667000,2176000,"/Search/View?dp=1&key=3168106-8b6293e0528616d186aaf16f3039ada0&start=1667&end=2176","https://assets.pipeline.soar.com/3168106-8b6293e0528616d186aaf16f3039ada0/thumbnail_1667000.jpg","/articles/6255126/Senate-Energy-and-Natural-Resources-Committee-adopts-amendments-and-advances-S714-the-Critical-Mineral-Consistency-Act-to-the-Senate-floor","https://secure.pipeline.soar.com/6255126-600da59f7c8874c1314c35a2fd0e4819/orig.mp4?Expires=1770681951&Signature=idBcheC20aI0mdr5NG0Oh-iAYZzRfLN4wbzBSeDLSb4Omum2i~Iv-3mQNXSEONw3TiEWzIBZaF5wosmGiOS-emaXszuxCxmTflM3cylarqlR4y1DLr5WMtQB5Fgudjh0XlMnTK-lX1T6OgzGpJLGZ4Ne4u47KP1prhV~0WlZegSL7kh6jNYvnCYZNB~gVsKneKhkGm4tRaevdz1~j2aK2vOrqkoRo-qI7Yu5pdSMg5-DHcN~~fPbf-USK9p4EbklF8sT3CN0wLju2~P7A4~BynztyyhfF5YvQuaHPq0Jk9tRdA0Vq1E~CnZVm--8JTUE-0yFtjLkQjs7EpnLdVsFLQ__&Key-Pair-Id=KUT5TJCACFTXG","The Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee on May 7 approved amendments to S.714, the Critical Mineral Consistency Act, and voted to report the bill to the full Senate.

The committee adopted a Lee–Heinrich substitute amendment and a title amendment by voice votes and then approved the bill as amended. Chairman Lee said the substitute ‘‘provides clearer and more specific language’’ and that it ‘‘achieves the policy objectives’’ shared with the House companion measure. Ranking Member Senator Heinrich said he supported the substitute and the amended bill.

The legislation is intended to harmonize the lists of critical minerals maintained by the Department of the Interior and the Department of Energy since enactment of the Energy Act of 2020. Committee members and staff said differing lists have produced confusion and unintended consequences for permitting, agency guidance, and industry planning.

Chairman Lee told senators the substitute text ‘‘does so in a better way than the text of the underlying bill’’ and said the committee would take a title amendment before voting on the bill. Senators then voiced ‘‘aye’’ for the substitute and for the title amendment. After the amendments were adopted, the committee voted on the measure as amended; the chair declared, ‘‘The ayes have it and the measure will be submitted to the Senate floor.’’

Supporters framed the change as a technical, bipartisan fix that would produce more consistent agency action and regulatory certainty. Senator Heinrich thanked the chairman ‘‘for being willing to address my concerns with his original bill’’ and said he ‘‘support[s] his substitute amendment and will vote for the bill as amended.’’

The committee did not record a roll-call tally for the bill vote in the hearing record; members adopted the amendments and advanced the measure by voice vote. The measure will be packaged and reported to the Senate floor by the committee for consideration by the full Senate.

Background: law and agency lists. The committee cited the Energy Act of 2020 as the statute under which each department currently maintains its lists of critical minerals; committee members said the lists are not harmonized and that misalignment has caused regulatory and planning problems for federal agencies and private developers. The substitute aims to make the two agency lists consistent and to clarify reporting requirements between Interior and DOE.

Next steps: the committee reported the bill to the Senate floor. If and when the Senate calendar takes up S.714, further floor amendment or debate is possible.","The Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee adopted a Lee–Heinrich substitute and a title amendment and voted to report S.714, the Critical Mineral Consistency Act, to the Senate floor after a voice vote. Sponsors said the bill will harmonize Interior and DOE critical-mineral lists to reduce confusion for industry and agencies.","actionData","errors"]

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Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee reports two DOE nominations favorably and hears four nominees for Interior and Energy posts

Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee adopts amendments and advances S.714, the Critical Mineral Consistency Act, to the Senate floor