Merkley Remarks at FY27 Interior Department Budget Hearing with Secretary Burgum

Merkley Remarks at FY27 Interior Department Budget Hearing with Secretary Burgum April 22, 2026 Washington, D.C. – Today, Oregon’s U.S. Senator Jeff Merkley—the Ranking Member of the Senate Interior-Environment Appropriations Subcommittee—delivered the following remarks as prepared for delivery at the hearing reviewing the President’s Fiscal Year 2027 budget request for the U.S. Department of the Interior with Secretary Doug Burgum: Senator Merkley’s remarks, as prepared for delivery, are below: “Thank you, Chair Murkowski. “And welcome, Secretary Burgum. “The Department of the Interior carries a profound responsibility. “It is entrusted with: stewarding our nation’s public lands, honoring our commitments to Tribal nations, and safeguarding natural resources for future generations. “But today, that mission is being undermined in so many ways. “Let me start with the rule of law. “The Committee has requirements for reorganizations and reprogrammings. “In our most recent bill passed in January, we added a requirement to provide ‘advance notification.’ “That requirement is not optional. “Yet, we only learned about the merger of the offshore wind regulatory and permitting agencies through the news. “This is not a policy disagreement – this is disregard for the rule of law. “We also require congressional approval for reorganizations and reprogrammings, and decades of Republican and Democratic administrations followed that requirement. “Your department’s refusal to cooperate with this Committee’s oversight role is unacceptable. “You have given us reason for distrust. “We recently learned that the Department of Justice is paying TotalEnergies $1 billion to cancel projects that would have produced much needed cheaper, cleaner power. “And in return you are asking Total to export more natural gas abroad, to our competitors. Think about that. “You are using taxpayer dollars to pay for-profit companies not to produce clean energy and in return asking them to increase gas prices for households here in America! “At a time when communities are seeing their utility bills climb, we should be investing in clean energy and innovation, not paying for-profit companies to double-down on dirty fossil fuels. “We were told that this administration is rooting out waste, fraud, and abuse. “But when taxpayer dollars are being used to pay off industry and make our air dirtier, that scrutiny seems to disappear. “Where is DOGE now? “Interior’s actions are rolling out the red carpet for oil and gas projects, yet the Interior Department has actually made it policy to hold renewable energy to a higher standard than polluting oil and gas projects. “And Interior review is really just code for mothballing projects until the developers lose interest, or run out of money. “The President has even openly said that he does not want to see more wind turbines built. And your Department falls over itself to carry out his fixation against wind turbines even if that means higher rates for Americans and losing global competitiveness in clean energy development. “Your budget proposes to eliminate all funding for renewable energy permitting and research. “Nothing is sacred to this administration. “That is laid bare when we look at funding for Tribal programs. “The proposed budget cuts core Tribal programs by one-third. “That’s $1.5 billion ripped from Tribal governments and Tribal schools for: road repair, agriculture, firefighting, job training, and more. “For Tribal school construction alone, the budget proposes an 85 percent cut—reducing it to just $35 million across Indian Country. “Many of these schools are more than 100 years old—much older than most non-tribal schools in the country—and far less likely to have received the upgrades and investments students deserve. “And what’s especially troubling is that this isn’t new. “The administration made a very similar proposal last year—and it was met with loud opposition by Tribal leaders and in Congress. “Bringing it back again says this is not an oversight – it is a choice. “It says that this is the administration’s vision for Indian Country. “This pattern of reckless cuts extends across the department. “Take the Fish and Wildlife Service. “The budget proposes roughly a 10 percent cut to the National Wildlife Refuge System, places that tens of millions of Americans rely on each year for outdoor recreation, including hunting, fishing, and wildlife viewing. “The budget also eliminates funding for multinational species conservation—programs that work with other countries to: combat wildlife trafficking, protect iconic species like elephants and rhinos, and disrupt the terrorist and criminal networks that profit from it. “So we are cutting back at home, and ceding our leadership abroad, at the very moment these challenges require cooperation and leadership. “Turning to the National Park Service, we see the budget request repeating yet more terrible and widely unpopular proposals. “On top of the already 2,500