Congressman Michael C. Burgess, M.D. (Texas-26), a member of the House Energy and Commerce Committee, joined the Texas Republican Congressional delegation in sending a letter to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency Administrator Lisa Jackson on the EPA's threat of a takeover of the state's air quality permitting process. "We do not believe EPA should be setting a precedent to… Read more »

Mr. Chairman, I must admit, I have to wonder what exactly any of us expect to achieve with this hearing. I know that what my constituents and the people I’ve talked to are concerned about is stopping the flow of oil that continues to leak into the Gulf, even today. But no one sitting behind the dais or sitting at the witness table believes today’s hearing will result in the solution to stemming the flow of oil into Louisiana’s, Mississippi’s, Alabama’s, and Florida’s coastlines. Read more »

Congressman Michael C. Burgess, M.D. (Texas-26) today sent a letter to the Texas Sunset Advisory Commission outlining the concerns he has with the Texas Commission on Environments Quality (TCEQ) and air quality testing in North Texas. TCEQ is up for review this year by the Sunset Commission, and the Commission is currently accepting public comment from Texans on the agencies it will review. Burgess encourages other Texans, and North Texans that share his concerns with air quality tests performed in North Texas, to submit comments to the Sunset Commission. Read more »

"I appreciate St. Bernard Parish in Chalmette, Louisiana for hosting the Subcommittee’s field hearing, and I appreciate the witnesses for coming and speaking to Members. It is important for us to assess the local effects of this devastating oil spill and hear from the locals directly, outside of the Washington echo chamber. "The field hearing was immensely useful and informative. The… Read more »

Leaders of the House Energy and Commerce Committee today asked the Interior Department for documents related to the Gulf of Mexico oil spill. In a letter to Interior Secretary Salazar, the lawmakers are asking for documents from the Minerals Management Service that concern the review of the well construction and preparation procedures associated with the drilling operations at the… Read more »

Five days after calling for an investigation by the Texas attorney general, U.S. Congressman Michael Burgess said Wednesday that such an investigation could duplicate efforts of the current sunset review of the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality. “I have determined that an investigation by the Texas attorney general’s office might not be the best course of action,” Burgess,… Read more »

Yesterday, the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality (TCEQ) released the results of a audit that revealed disturbing findings about the agency’s air quality testing methods in North Texas. The audit found several problems relating to TCEQ’s tests on the effect of urban gas drilling on the area’s air quality. “I was recently briefed by TCEQ on air quality issues in the area related to urban gas drilling,” Burgess said. “I relied on the information I was given, as did many others in North Texas. I find it personally offensive to find out that what I have been told may not be the full story on the air quality issues in the area that affect millions of North Texans. There are a lot of questions that TCEQ needs to answer, and the public is right to demand accountability.” Read more »

U.S. Reps. Michael C. Burgess, M.D. (R-Texas) and Steve Scalise (R-Louisiana), both members of the House Energy and Commerce Committee, sent a letter to the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (USACE) supporting Louisiana Governor Bobby Jindal’s request for an emergency permit to dredge and build sand barrier islands. The USACE must conduct an environmental assessment before granting the state a permit to build the barriers, but Governor Jindal’s proposal was submitted two weeks ago and has yet to receive a response. In the meantime, oil has begun inundating Louisiana’s coast and fragile marshes. The proposed sand barriers would create a permanent barrier to prevent oil from reaching the shore and wetlands. Read more »

Madam Speaker, today I sent, along with Representative Scalise of Louisiana, a letter to the United States Army Corps of Engineers supporting Louisiana Governor Bobby Jindal's request for an emergency permit to dredge and build sand barrier islands. The United States Corps of Engineers must conduct an environmental assessment before granting the State a permit to build the barriers.… Read more »

Mr. Speaker, last week, our committee on Energy and Commerce, the Subcommittee on Oversight and Investigations, held the first of what is likely to be many hearings into the events going on in the Gulf of Mexico. So far, the hearings and investigation have been decidedly ``asymmetric.'' My committee demanded and obtained thousands of pages of documents and testimony from the four… Read more »