Program Update: Advocacy – November 2010

The House and the Senate reconvened this month for the last session of the 111^th Congress following mid-term elections.  During the few weeks left in this session, Congress will have to deal with the FY11 Federal Budget.  Congress avoided a government shut down by passing a bill to extend the Continuing Resolution (CR) through December 18^th.  This two week reprieve will allow Congress to either pass an omnibus FY11 bill or a year-long CR at the FY10 levels.

The elections resulted in a shift in majority in the House, but the Democrats remained in control of the Senate. Accompanying a new House majority will be changes in House party and committee leadership. Representative John Boehner (R-OH) will take over as the Speaker of the House and Rep. Eric Cantor (R-VA) will be the House Majority Leader for the 112^th Congress. The committee power shift, including that among House Appropriations, Energy and Commerce, Natural Resources and Science and Technology committee members, will impact committee agendas and organization.  In fact, this week Republicans announced they will dismantle the House Select Committee on Energy Independence and Global Warming.  Chaired by Rep. Edward Markey (D-MA), the committee has held 75 hearings since its creation at the beginning of the 110^th Congress, with attention to issues including climate change and the Deepwater Horizon Oil Spill.  In the Senate, Republicans significantly narrowed the Democratic majority, though Democrats will still maintain power in the 112^th Congress.  This new political landscape may mean small legislative accomplishments in the new Congress, including a limited energy bill and a decrease in discretionary spending.

Ocean Leadership’s policy team continues their engagement with NOAA’s leadership on NOAA’s climate service initiative.  On November 15, Ocean Leadership released another letter outlining our members’ recommendations on NOAA’s Strategic Vision and Framework document.  Climate service was a focal point of a two-day meeting of NOAA’s Science Advisory Board (SAB).  Dr. Scott Doney’s confirmation hearing to be NOAA’s next Chief Scientist was held November 30 by the Senate Commerce, Science and Transportation Committee.  Also this week, President Obama announced Kathryn D. Sullivan, PhD, as he’s selection for the Assistant Secretary of Commerce (Observation and Prediction) position at NOAA.  Dr. Sullivan is the inaugural director of the Battelle Center for Mathematics and Science Education Policy in the John Glenn School of Public Affairs at Ohio State University. Dr. Sullivan has three years’ service as Chief Scientist at NOAA, where she oversaw research and technology programs agency-wide.

The National Commission on the BP Deepwater Horizon Oil Spill and Offshore Drilling and its Chief Counsel Fred Bartlit, held a two-day hearing on preliminary findings regarding the Macondo well blowout.  The hearing focused on causes of the rig explosion and provided an opportunity for Commissioners to hear from industry executives, technical experts and regulators.  In their closing remarks, Commission co-chairs acknowledged the systemic nature of problems in the Gulf and the impending challenge in converting related information from the Gulf Oil Spill to policy recommendations.  Ocean Leadership submitted a recommendation letter to the National Oil Spill Commission for consideration in their final report which is expected in January.

Meanwhile, a decision was made this week to reverse the course of offshore drilling in unexplored areas in the eastern Gulf of Mexico.  Secretary of the Interior, Ken Salazar, announced that the revised Interior Department drilling plan was “based on our nation’s experience with the Deepwater Horizon oil spill.”  In addition to the eastern Gulf of Mexico, the new drilling plan will not allow for drilling in the unexplored areas of the Atlantic Coast through 2017.  Instead, drilling efforts will now concentrate on allocating resources to areas that are currently active.  The plan, however, keeps the option of lease sales in the Arctic open before 2017.   The federal government also released the final Implementation Strategy for Sub-Sea and Sub-Surface Oil and Dispersant Detection, Sampling, and Monitoring report which outlines the step take to integrate agency, academic, and private scientific efforts.

Related Posts:

• Program Update: Advocacy – July 2011
• Program Update: Advocacy – October 2010
• Program Update: Advocacy – August 2010
• Program Update: Advocacy – April 2012
• Program Update: Advocacy – March 2012