On the Hill in January and February 2025: A Breakdown of Climate, Energy, and Environmental Hearings

Lawmakers kicked off the 119th Congress with a total of 28 climate, energy, and environment-related committee hearings throughout January and February. The House of Representatives held 22 of these hearings, while the Senate held six. Eight of the 22 standing and select House committees and three of the 20 standing and select Senate committees covered climate, energy, and environmental issues, from agriculture and mining to the National Labs and increasing energy production.

With Congressional offices gearing up for the 2026 reauthorization of the country’s surface transportation legislation, the House Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure set an “aggressive hearing schedule,” as described by Chair Sam Graves (R-Mo.), for 2025. Titled America Builds, the committee says the series will identify needs and priorities to inform the next version of the bill. The Committee packed five America Builds hearings alone into the first two months of this Congress, covering highways, freight and passenger rail, ports and other maritime infrastructure, and the Clean Water Act’s impact on transportation projects.

Only the House Committee on Natural Resources held more environmental- and energy-related hearings, with seven under its belt in January and February. It was followed by House Transportation and Infrastructure (six hearings), the Senate Committee on Environment and Public Works (three hearings), and the House Committee on Appropriations (three hearings). 

Also up for reauthorization this Congress is the Farm Bill, which was last reauthorized for five years in 2018 and has since been extended through September 30, 2025. Both the Senate Committee on Agriculture, Nutrition, and Forestry and the House Agriculture Committee held hearings ahead of the bill’s reauthorization. Across three hearings, produce, grain, and livestock associations, farm owners, and state farm bureaus gathered to testify on the challenges threatening U.S. agriculture and urge Congress to pass a new, bipartisan Farm Bill. Witnesses pointed legislators to key issues such as extreme and unpredictable weather, supply chain disruptions, trade wars, crop insurance availability, workforce availability, the disappearance of small family farms, and economic difficulties for beginning farmers. Other witnesses also touted the effectiveness of the Farm Bill’s conservation programs in cutting farming costs and ensuring long-term land productivity.

Other recurring topics of interest at the committee level included energy production and reliability (four hearings), critical minerals and mining (two hearings), and the National Labs (two hearings). 

The first week of the 119th Congress saw the outbreak of disastrous wildfires that burned around the Los Angeles, California, area for 24 days and consumed public attention for longer. While Congressional offices quickly introduced or reintroduced a flood of wildfire prevention and mitigation bills, committees remained largely quiet on the topic. Only the House Judiciary Committee took up the issue to examine the role of regulation on wildfire prevention and recovery, as well as its impact on insurance. 

To keep up with Congressional hearings in the future, get EESI’s weekly Environmental and Energy Congressional Round-Up by subscribing to our biweekly newsletter, Climate Change Solutions.

Author: Nicole Pouy