Murkowski Morning Meeting For Thursday, April 30, 2015

Note to readers: Though it came after yesterday’s edition of the Morning Meeting, we wanted to share with you the results of Senator Murkowski’s pushback against the Environmental Protection Agency, where she was able to get the EPA Administrator to admit that because Alaska is unique, the EPA will “seriously consider exempting the state entirely” from costly power plant emission guidelines. At the close of the hearing – which Murkowski ran as Chair of the Interior Appropriations Subcommittee – she demanded the EPA simply listen to those in Alaska and across the country who are frustrated at the impossible, confounding and expensive standards the EPA frequently proposes. Click here to watch video.

What DC is Reading

• Washington Post: Republicans Reach Budget Deal to Spend Less, Balance Budget
• The Hill: As Controversy Continues, Thousands of New Lerner Emails Found
• Investor’s Business Daily: Health Care Bill’s Tax Shock Is Far Worse Than Predicted

U.S. Senate Events

Alaskans Leading on Energy Policy

Alaskan Impact: Alaskans pay too much for energy and work hard to devise state-federal solutions – which is particularly important when discussing energy efficiency. So today Senator Murkowski invited Gene Therriault of the Alaska Energy Authority to the Senate Energy Committee today, where he told them “being able to take full advantage of energy efficiency requires public-private partnerships and practical policies.” The bills considered in today’s hearing offer an opportunity to reduce energy usage and costs for Alaskans.

6:00a.m. AKST

Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee Hearing

Topic: Full Committee Hearing on Energy Efficiency Legislation.

Witnesses:

• Kathleen B. Hogan, Deputy Assistant Secretary for Energy Efficiency, U.S. Department of Energy Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy
• Tony Crasi, Owner and Founder, The Crasi Company, Inc. on behalf of the National Association of Home Builders
• Ted Gayer, Vice President and Director of Economic Studies, The Brookings Institution
• Gene Therriault, Vice Chairman, National Association of State Energy Officials and Deputy Director, Energy Policy and Outreach, Alaska Energy Authority

(Click image to watch video.)

Senator Murkowski: “Energy efficiency legislation saves both energy and money— it’s good for consumers, it’s good for all.”

Watch the entire hearing by clicking here.

Military Activity in the Arctic

Alaskan Impact: As Alaskans keep an eye on the rising aggression from Russia, Senator Murkowski recently met with General Phillip M. Breedlove to discuss what he’s seeing in Europe and Russia, specifically in the Arctic region, from a military perspective. As head of all U.S. forces in Europe, General Breedlove’s area of responsibility stretches across six of the eight Arctic nations. Today General Breedlove testified in front of the Senate Armed Services Committee on the budget request for U.S. European Command.

5:30a.m. AKST

Senate Armed Services Committee Hearing

Topic: Full committee hearing on “United States European Command Programs and Budget.”

Witness:

• U.S. Air Force General Philip Breedlove, Commander, U.S. European Command/ Supreme Allied Commander, Europe

Watch the hearing by clicking here.

U.S. House Events

Protecting Alaskans’ Privacy

Alaskan Impact: Alaskans believe the government has no business snooping around our property and tracking who we call on our home phones or cell phones—and that our privacy rights are guaranteed by the Constitution. This is why Senator Murkowski has urged Congress to rethink far-reaching federal surveillance policies and address concerns about the potential infringement of civil liberties, like NSA’s bulk collection of Americans’ communications records. Today the House Judiciary Committee review the USA FREEDOM Act, a bipartisan bill designed to restore American citizens’ privacy rights.

6:00a.m. AKST

House Judiciary Committee Hearing

Topic: Markup of: H.R. 2048, The USA FREEDOM Act.

Watch the entire hearing by clicking here.