Environment & Energy Congressional Round-Up | January 13, 2025 - January 17, 2025

Highlights:

The House passed the Promoting Opportunities to Widen Electrical Resilience (POWER) Act of 2025 (H.R.164). Reps. Val Hoyle (D-Ore.) and Mike Ezell (R-Miss.) reintroduced the bill to bolster the capacity of not-for-profit electric utilities to incorporate hazard mitigation and resilience measures when rebuilding grid infrastructure after major disasters. 

The House passed the Federal Disaster Assistance Coordination Act (H.R.152) with 405-5 votes. Led by Rep. Mike Ezell (R-Miss.), the bill would accelerate and improve disaster recovery efforts under the Federal Emergency Management Agency by streamlining disaster assistance application processes. 

Rep. Jim Costa (D-Calif.) introduced a pair of bills to support long-term surface and ground water resource management. The Groundwater Recharge Technical Assistance Act (H.R.337), which Reps. David Valadao (R-Calif.), Mike Thompson (D-Calif.), and Zoe Lofgren (D-Calif.) co-lead, would strengthen drought resilience in the West by providing an annual $3 million to support groundwater recharge projects. The Every Drop Counts Act (H.R.338), cosponsored by Reps. David Valadao (R-Calif.) and Russ Fulcher (R-Idaho), would increase drought preparedness and water supply reliability by increasing the funding eligibility of water storage projects under the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act. 

Sens. Catherine Cortez Masto (D-Nev.) and Tim Sheehy (R-Mont.) reintroduced the Western Wildfire Support Act (S.91) to provide communities with wildfire prevention, mitigation, and recovery resources. EESI explores other wildfire mitigation tools on our podcast, The Climate Conversation.

To catch up on all of the recent environmental and energy legislation in Congress, read the PDF here.