NEMWI Weekly Update
June 21, 2021
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Senate Confirms Radhika Fox
to Head EPA’s Office of Water

The Senate last week confirmed Radhika Fox to be the head of the Environmental Protection Agency's (EPA) Office of Water by a vote of 55-43. Seven Republicans joined Democrats in support of Fox’s nomination. Fox previously served as CEO of the US Water Alliance, a nonprofit seeking to advance policies and programs that secure a sustainable water future for all. In her role, she worked closely with utilities, public officials, the business community, environmental organizations, community leaders, policy organizations, and researchers to implement sound policy for equitable access to clean and safe water. 

EPA’s Office of Water ensures drinking water is safe, and restores and maintains oceans, watersheds, and their aquatic ecosystems to protect human health, support economic and recreational activities, and provide healthy habitat for fish, plants and wildlife. Among other things, the Office of Water is responsible for implementing the Clean Water Act and Safe Drinking Water Act.
House Appropriations Committee Releases
FY22 Markup Schedule

The House Appropriations Committee has announced the schedule to markup the FY 2022 appropriations bills and plans to be finished with full Committee markups by July 16. While the FY 2022 bills have yet to be released, the Democratically controlled committee will likely write bills that closely follow President Biden’s proposed spending levels that include $770 billion for domestic and foreign aid programs (16.5 percent increase over FY 2021), and $753 billion for defense (1.6 percent increase over FY 2021). 

The schedule for several of the bill that the Northeast-Midwest Institute continues to track is as follows:

  • Agriculture & Rural Development – The Subcommittee will markup the bill on Friday, June 25, and the full Committee will markup the bill on Wednesday, June 30.
  • Commerce, Justice, & Science – The Subcommittee will markup the bill on Monday, July 12, and the full Committee will markup the bill on Thursday, July 15.
  • Energy & Water – The Subcommittee will markup the bill on Monday, July 12, and the full Committee will markup the bill on Friday, July 16.
  • Homeland Security – The Subcommittee will markup the bill on Wednesday, June 30, and the full Committee will markup the bill on Tuesday, July 13.
  • Interior & Environment – The Subcommittee will markup the bill on Monday, June 28, and the full Committee will markup the bill on Thursday, July 1. 
  • State & Foreign Operations – The Subcommittee will markup the bill on Monday, June 28, and the full Committee will markup the bill on Thursday, July 1. 
  • Transportation & Housing– The Subcommittee will markup the bill on Monday, July 12, and the full Committee will markup the bill on Friday, July 16.

The Senate Appropriations Committee has yet to announce its schedule.
AMCC and NEMWI To Host Webinar
on Manufacturing Executive Orders and Legislation

Please join the American Manufacturing Communities Collaborative (AMCC) and the Northeast-Midwest Institute (NEMWI) for a Briefing on Recent White House Executive Orders and Legislation Aimed at Advancing American Manufacturing on Tuesday, June 29 at 11 A.M. (EDT). 

In addition to an introduction by manufacturing community leaders and the White House Council of Economic Advisors’ Sue Helper and Senate Leader Schumer’s Lead Staffer Jon Cardinal, the briefing will feature Mark Muro of the Brookings Institution, Stephen Ezell from ITIF, and Dr. Ronald Williams, the Director of Strategic Entrepreneurship, Coppin State University.

Register NOW for the AMCC briefing on new manufacturing legislation and executive orders to be held on June 29 at 11am EDT. Register now using this link.
Senate Committee Holds Hearing on PFAS Contamination

The Senate Committee on Environment and Public Works held a hearing on June 9 entitled: PFAS: The View from Affected Citizens and States. Viewers learned the chilling news that the Department of Defense knowingly poisoned the environment for decades with PFAS, a toxic chemical. Even after Congress passed legislation ensuring the DOD phased out the usage of AFFF firefighting foam, legacy pollution has remained an issue for many communities 

“The reality is every military base or commercial airport in the country is contaminated to some extent. And yet, there’s been little to no progress in going back to clean it up,” Senator Alex Padilla (D-CA) said. 

Joanne Stanton, Co-founder of Buxmont Coalition for Safer Water, says that we need to act now and that we need deadlines to ensure that the DOD cleans it up. 

“PFAS is everywhere. It is not just in drinking water. It is in our wildlife. It is in our produce. The sludge is being given away to Pennsylvania farmers as it moves across the country as free fertilizer, and then we have our broccoli turning up with high levels of PFAS. Our wildlife. Our deer. Our fish. It is just a never ending cycle. The basis of it is that the Department of Defense is one of the biggest polluters of this. And we have to start to address this legacy pollution,” says Stanton.
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This Week in Washington
In the Senate:

Tuesday, June 22, 2021 9:30 AM – SD-562| Host: Agriculture, Nutrition, and Forestry

Thursday, June 24, 2021 9:30 AM – SD-366| Host: Energy and Natural Resources

Thursday, June 24, 2021 10:00 AM – SD-406| Host: Environment and Public Works
In the House:

Tuesday, June 22nd, 2021 3:00 PM Host: Committee on Natural Resources

Wednesday, June 23rd, 2021 1:00 PM | Committee on Agriculture | Subcommittee on General Farm Commodities and Risk Management

Thursday, June 24th, 2021 10:00 AM | 2360 Rayburn HOB Host: Committee on Small Business | Subcommittee on Oversight, Investigations, and Regulations
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