Heinrich Joins Special Committee On Climate Crisis

WASHINGTON, D.C. (March 27, 2019) - Following Senate Republicans' refusal to take action on climate change and Majority Leader Mitch McConnell's (R-Ky.) refusal to allow a vote on a resolution to establish a bipartisan select committee on the climate crisis, U.S. Senator Martin Heinrich (D-N.M.) is joining in establishing a new Senate Democrats' Special Committee on the Climate Crisis.

"It's long past time for Congress--both the House and the Senate--to finally implement real solutions to eliminate carbon pollution, mitigate the devastating effects of climate change, and create a managed transition to an economy run 100 percent on clean energy,"said Heinrich. "The latest science provides us with clear and indisputable evidence that the destructive wildfires, catastrophic hurricanes, and extreme flooding we have seen in just the last couple years are directly linked to human-caused climate change. We don't have any more time to waste."

Yesterday, Heinrich spoke on the Senate Floor in advance of Majority Leader McConnell's political stunt vote on the Green New Deal. He called on McConnell to allow the Senate to get to work on real solutions to climate change instead of political games. Last month, Heinrich challenged McConnell to acknowledge that climate change is real, that it is caused by humans, and that it requires immediate action in Congress.

The Special Committee on the Climate Crisis--comprised of ten Democratic senators--will be tasked with investigating, holding hearings, and issuing findings on the economic and national security consequences of climate change and how acting on the climate crisis presents significant opportunities for jobs, public health, and the economy. More specifically, the committee will work with environmental, financial, and national security experts to find solutions for communities impacted by climate change and provide oversight on special interests that foster climate denial.

You can watch video from the press conference announcing the committee here.

The committee will be chaired by U.S. Senator Brian Schatz (D-Hawaii). Heinrich and Schatz will be joined on the committee by U.S. Senators Sheldon Whitehouse (D-R.I.), Jeff Merkley (D-Ore.), Michael Bennet (D-Colo.), Tammy Baldwin (D-Wisc.), Ed Markey (D-Mass.), Tammy Duckworth (D-Ill.), Catherine Cortez Masto (D-Nev.), and Tina Smith (D-Minn.).