Drought in the Western United States

Floor Speech

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Mr. NEWHOUSE. Madam Speaker, I want to thank Mr. Westerman for partnering with the Western Caucus to try to bring some attention to this really critical issue for our States out West and for all of our communities. So thank you very much.

Water. It is perhaps our most vital resource in the American West, and unfortunately all of our States and our communities know all too well what the impacts are of severe drought and water shortages.

With over 90 percent of the West in a catastrophic drought, the Biden administration and House Democrats have truly failed to act.

As chairman of the Congressional Western Caucus, I represent Members whose districts, like my own, are literally running out of water, water that is used to produce food to feed the world or to generate clean and renewable energy, water used to nourish our lands and our environment, water to cook and clean and to drink. We can no longer sit idly by as this historic drought ravages our communities.

In April, the Biden administration announced the formation of an interagency working group tasked with finding solutions to address the drought that plagues the West. This working group, led by the Departments of Interior and Agriculture, has yet to provide clear objectives or produce any sort of plan.

Earlier this month, members of the Western Caucus and Republicans from the House Natural Resources Committee sent a letter to the administration calling on them to provide to us the solutions and the ideas that they have for relief from the drought's impacts. As of this date they have not delivered.

So as drought conditions become more common, we must find modern solutions. For over 30 years--well before my election to Congress--as a farmer in the Yakima Valley, as a State legislator, and as director of the Department of Agriculture for the State of Washington, I have worked in partnership with State, local, Tribal, and national leaders to bring forth collaborative solutions that improve water storage and delivery in my home State of Washington. I am proud of that work, but we have much to do.

As we continue developing and deploying water conservation efforts, certainly there is more work that needs to be done. We must find short- term as well as long-term solutions to address this issue that threatens our economies and our environment and truly our way of life.

Drought is not a partisan issue, and I urge the administration and my colleagues, my Democratic colleagues from the other side of the aisle to acknowledge the West's urgent needs and to work with us to provide actual relief, not just talk to our communities who truly are struggling.

I thank Mr. Westerman of the Natural Resources Committee for drawing attention to this critical issue, for shedding some light on it, and, hopefully, by educating more people as to the seriousness of this critical issue we can truly make some progress in bringing some solutions forward that will help people all through the Western United States.

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