Senate Environment and Public Works (Sullivan): Business meeting to consider S.5045, to amend the Clean Air Act to modify the handling of air quality monitoring with respect to prescribed fires, S.3135, to require the Administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency to authorize manufacturers of certain vehicles to suspend engine derate or shutdown functions in prolonged cold weather conditions, and S.5249, to amend the Atomic Energy Act of 1954 to align the licensing of uranium enrichment facilities with other fuel cycle facilities under that Act, and 21 Committee resolutions to approve prospectuses from the General Services Administration.

Beautiful day today here in Washington. So I note the president— I don't note the president. I note the presence of a quorum and now call this business meeting to order. For the information of the members of the committee, Ranking Member Whitehouse and I will deliver our opening statements, and once we have sufficient attendance, we will immediately proceed to the consideration of the legislation and resolutions. After the vote, senators who wish to be— who wish to be recognized to speak on any legislation or resolutions may do so.

Today we will consider 3 bills and 21 GSA prospectuses. First, we will vote on S.5045, the Wildfire Emissions Prevention Act, or WIPA, sponsored by Senators Curtis, Merkley, Padilla, Bozeman, Kelly, and me. WIPA will make it easier for states to use prescribed burns by streamlining the EPA's process to approve exceptional events, which is better for our environment, state and local communities, and public health. I'm proud of this committee for continuing its long history of working across the aisle. I know they've worked hard to reach a consensus here and look forward to reporting out this bipartisan product.

We will also consider S.3135, the Cold Weather Diesel Reliability Act, sponsored by Senators Sullivan, Lummis, Curtis, and Murkowski. At an EPW meeting hearing in March, we heard firsthand the potential consequences when a vehicle's emission systems can limit or even shut down diesel engines or farm equipment. This event, known as a de-rate, can strand truck drivers in isolated, frigid environments or drastically impact their farm harvests. The Cold Weather Diesel Reliability Act authorizes manufacturers to override de-rates in diesel vehicles and farm equipment operating in targeted and cold weather environments. I want to thank Senator Sullivan for his leadership in working to address the unique needs of Alaska and other cold weather states.

In response to feedback after the bill's introduction, an amendment in the nature of a substitute will be offered as the base text of the bill for committee action. I support the amendment of this bill and will vote to report it favorably out of committee. We will also be voting on S.5249, the Modernizing Outdated Regulations and to Expand American Fuel Act of 2026, led by Senators Kelly, Lummis. This bill will eliminate outdated regulations that limit our ability to strengthen and rapidly strengthen America's nuclear fuel supply chain. Two weeks ago, the House Energy and Commerce Committee unanimously passed a similar bill to S.5249.

I look forward to passing this bill out of the committee today and working with our colleagues in the House to build on our history of enacting meaningful bipartisan nuclear legislation. Finally, we'll consider 21 prospectuses from the General Services Administration that concern leases from various Veteran Administration facilities as well as alterations to federal buildings throughout the country. These resolutions will provide the necessary approval for all of the building-specific prospectuses submitted by GSA thus far for fiscal year 2027. I look forward to continuing to work with Ranking Member Whitehouse to ensure that GSA prospectuses receive timely approval while also maintaining the committee's important oversight responsibilities to ensure the best use of taxpayer funds. And with that, I will recognize the ranking member, Senator Whitehouse, for his opening statement.

Thank you, Chair Capito, and thank you particularly for the continuing productive and good-hearted way that we continue to work on permitting reform. You and Adam and your team have been terrific, and progress continues, and I appreciate very much your leadership on that. Today we have the chance to talk about a couple of important topics, including the Clean Air Act, and I will point out that our government is falling dangerously short of its legal and moral obligation to reduce greenhouse gas emissions and to assure that Americans breathe unpolluted air. We urgently need real solutions here to these very real problems. On the matter of wildfires, climate scientists have warned since the very first IPCC report back in the early '90s that wildfires would become more destructive.

Since then, the science has only become clearer and the impacts have obviously become worse. My Western colleagues know this too well. Insurance markets, well aware of the science and the impacts, are pulling back coverage in wildfire areas, translating climate risk into rising immense cost and availability problems for families. The great climate insurance collapse, when it happens, will likely prompt a failure cascade first into insurance, then mortgage markets, then home values, then the entire economy. This is widely warned of.

Better forest and land management has a role, but to quote Stanford Professor Michael Warrer's remarks in one of my budget committee hearings, while these fixes may help win wildfire battles without addressing climate change, we're going to lose the war. Climate mitigation is essential to address these risks. But because climate impacts are already here, we must also adapt. Western states are turning to prescribed fires, intentionally set and monitored fires, which can in some environments reduce wildfire intensity. Of course, prescribed fires also produce smoke that may trigger regulation under the Clean Air Act.

The Wildfire Emissions Prevention Act is intended to facilitate prescribed burns by making it easier for states to obtain exemptions from Clean Air Act requirements tied to that smoke pollution. I appreciate so many working with us on this bill to address these concerns. The Wildfire Emissions Prevention Act represents many months of cooperation between my colleagues on both sides of the aisle. I will support this bipartisan bill and appreciate Senator Kelly and Senator Lummis having led it. On nuclear, I will support the bipartisan More American Fuel Act, which will help meet fuel demand for today's nuclear fleet and tomorrow's advanced reactors using American fuel as we eliminate our dependence on Russian uranium.

This bill would bring uranium enrichment facilities to parity with other types of of nuclear fuel cycle facilities, allowing construction to begin after an application is docketed at NRC. NRC's thorough independent review and approval of the application will still be essential before any facility can begin operation. Next, the Cold Weather Diesel Relief Act. Unlike the Wildfire Emissions Prevention Act and the MORE American Fuel Act, this bill did not follow a collegial bipartisan negotiations process to a bipartisan conclusion. With real regret, because I think there may have been a way to cure the over-breadth problem, I will oppose it.

Perhaps we can keep working towards a bipartisan solution. Last on the agenda are prospectuses submitted by the General Services Administration for repairs and maintenance at buildings across the federal real estate portfolio. This includes a special emphasis program for the Judicial Capital Security Program, now in its 14th year. For security upgrades at federal courthouses nationwide. Secure federal courthouses are the foundation to administering justice, and I support funding of this program as a necessary investment in the safety of our judges, court personnel, and the public.

And I can report from the Judiciary Committee that this is a vitally important issue, uh, to our, uh, colleagues in government in the judicial branch who are facing a threat environment that is truly unprecedented for them, so bad that it actually in many cases has spilled over to threats to families.

Thank you. Okay. To begin, I will call up S. 5045, the Wildfire Emissions Prevention Act of 2026. Does any senator wish to be recognized to offer an amendment?

I move that the committee report the bill favorably. Is there a second? Thank you. Clerk will call the roll. Miss Salsabrooks.

Aye, by proxy. Miss Blount Rochester. Aye, by proxy. Mr. Bozeman. Aye.

Mr. Kramer. Aye. Mr. Curtis. Aye. Miss Graham.

Aye. Mr. Husted. Aye. Mr. Kelly. Aye.

Ms. Lomas. Aye. Mr. Markey. Aye, by proxy. Mr. Merkley.

Aye. Mr. Padilla. Aye. Mr. Ricketts. Aye.

Mr. Sanders. Aye, by proxy. Mr. Schiff. Aye, by proxy. Mr. Sullivan.

Aye. Mr. Whitehouse. Aye. Mr. Wicker. Aye.

Madam Chairman. Aye. The clerk will report the yeas and nays. Madam Chairman, the yeas are 19 and the nays are zero. With that, the legislation is favorably reported, and I note the presence of a quorum.

I now call up S.3135, the Cold Weather Diesel Reliability Act. I call up the substitute amendment pursuant to the noticed agenda for this business meeting. Does any senator wish to be recognized to offer a further amendment?

I move that the committee adopt the substitute amendment by voice vote. Is there a second? Second. All right. All those in favor say aye.

Aye. All those opposed say no. No. In the opinion of the chair, the ayes have it. The substitute amendment is adopted.

I now move that the committee report the bill as amendment favorably. Is there a second? Second. Thank you. The clerk will call the roll.

Ms. Alsobrooks. Aye, by proxy. Miss Blount Rochester. Aye, by proxy. Mr. Bozeman.

Aye. Sorry, I'm on the wrong one. Yes. Started out good. Okay, let's— can we restart the roll call?

Miss Elsa Brooks. Got it. Okay, sorry, I lost track. You sure you don't voice vote? The vote was on the substitute— adoption of the substitute amendment.

This is the roll call vote on the actual vote. And also Brooks is no by proxy. Okay. Ms. Blunt-Rochester. Also no by proxy.

Mr. Bozman. Aye. Mr. Kramer. Aye. Mr. Curtis.

Aye. Ms. Graham. Aye. Mr. Houston. Aye.

Mr. Kelly. No. Miss Lummis. Aye. Mr. Markey.

No by proxy. Mr. Merkley. No. Mr. Padilla. No.

Mr. Ricketts. Aye. Mr. Sanders. No by proxy. Mr. Schiff.

No by proxy. Mr. Sullivan. Aye. Mr. Whitehouse? No.

Mr. Wicker? Why am I always last?

Madam Chairman? Aye. The clerk will call— will report the yeas and nays. Madam Chairman, the yeas are 10 and the nays are 9. Thank you.

With that, this legislation as amended is favorably reported. I now call up S.5249, Modernizing Outdated Regulations. To expand American Fuel Act of 2026. I call up the Kelly substitute amendment. Does any senator wish to be recognized to offer an additional amendment?

I move that the committee adopt the Kelly substitute by voice vote. Is there a second? Second. Second. All right.

All those in favor say aye. Aye. All those opposed say nay. The opinion of the chair, the ayes have it. The substitute amendment is adopted.

I now move that the committee report the bill as amended Favorably. Is there a second? Thank you. The clerk will call the roll. Miss Hulsa Brooks.

Aye. By proxy. Miss Blunt Rochester. Aye. By proxy.

Mr. Bozeman. Aye. Mr. Kramer. Aye. Mr. Curtis.

Aye. Miss Graham. Aye. Mr. Houston. Aye.

Mr. Kelly. Aye. Ms. Lummis. Aye. Mr. Markey.

Aye, by proxy. Mr. Merkley. Aye. Mr. Padilla. Aye.

Mr. Ricketts. Aye. Mr. Sanders. No, by proxy. Mr. Schiff.

Aye, by proxy. Mr. Sullivan. Aye. Mr. Whitehouse. No.

Mr. Wicker. Wait a minute. Sorry. Mr. Whitehouse. Aye.

Mr. Wicker.

Madam Chairman. Aye. Clerk will report the yeas and nays. Madam Chairman, the yeas are 18 and the nays are 1. With that, the legislation as amended is favorably reported.

Finally, the ranking member and I have agreed to consider the committee resolutions before us. Of the GSA resolutions en bloc by voice vote. I move to consider 21 committee resolutions to approve prospectuses from the General Services Administration. Is there a second? Second.

Thank you. All those in favor say aye. Aye. All those opposed, no. In the opinion of the chair, the ayes have it, and with that, the resolutions are approved, and I note the presence of a quorum.

I now will turn to recognize any member who wishes to speak on the legislation or any other agenda item from this morning's—. Madam Chair. Yes. So I'll go to Senator Curtis first and then Merkley. Thank you.

I'm very pleased that the committee is advancing the Wildfire Emission Prevention Act today. In Utah and across the West, wildfire season is increasingly becoming a year-round challenge. This year we have had an astonishing half million acres burned. These floods— these fires are also followed by devastating floods, making this even worse. I've had a chance to sit with the Forest Service, and they will show me where they have proactively done the prescribed burns, and clearly they're able to contain the fire within these areas.

And where they can't contain it is where it escapes these prescribed burns. And of course, this bill gives them better tools. We've sadly penalized states because of the emissions that these prescribed burns cause, and that's— not the intention, because doing prescribed burns actually can dramatically reduce emissions. And so I'm thankful for the committee's support. And I want to point out we're not looking for a loophole on emissions reporting.

And this is the perfect scenario of an ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure. We should not be penalizing states for taking responsible steps to reduce wildfire, protect communities, and improve air. I'm grateful for the co-sponsors of this bill. And I look forward to getting this across the finish line.

Senator Merkley. Thank you very much, Madam Chair. And it's been a pleasure to work with Senator Curtis on this. And we have 6 members, 3 Democrats, 3 Republicans on this committee who have sponsored this bill. And so much appreciation, including the chair's support.

It's not that long ago in 2020, Labor Day fires in Oregon. We had 6 towns burned out of to the ground. Oof. And another 6 badly scorched. And the increase in fires in Oregon has been nothing short of dramatic.

I think we hit a million-acre record in 2020, a 2-million-acre record in 2024, I believe. This year, 2.5 million acres burning. It is a calamity of longer, hotter summers and droughts, more lightning strikes, more wind. All the changes are working against us. But there is a case where a fire that was headed toward Sisters, Oregon stopped, or it was stopped by the firefighters, but it was stopped in part because there had been prescribed burns, there had been thinning, there had been mowing, and so that section of forest, the fire really slowed down, and the thinned-out forest also enabled the firefighters to get to the front line of the fire.

So in all ways, it was helpful. So this is an— and we've seen a kind of a change over the last, I'd say, 14 years in which it used to be communities would say to me, I hate prescribed fires and just why do we want to have a couple of days of smoke? And now it's like communities saying we would love to have a couple of days of smoke and reduce the risk of our town burning, burning to the ground. And this bill also includes the Smoke-Ready Communities program. So much appreciated.

This helps provide grants for communities to establish a clean airspace. When we have those smoke days coming from the forest fires, which is so common, we have a lot of folks with asthma ending up in the hospital. So having a clean air place for people to be able to get the air they need without smoke contamination is an important factor. So for all these reasons, thank you for the good work of the committee, good bipartisan work. I hope we can get through this floor.

To through the floor, like, immediately. Thank you, Madam Chair. Senator Sullivan. Thank you, Madam Chair. And fittingly, during National Truck Driver Appreciation Week, today's passage of my bill, the Cold Weather Diesel Reliability Act, is a huge step forward for truckers, farmers, mechanics, and operators who keep Alaska and our nation moving.

For over a decade, Washington has forced a one-size-fits-all mandate on hardworking Americans as it relates to their diesel engines, especially Alaskans. EPA regulations required modern diesel engines to run on diesel exhaust fluid, or DEF, and mandated automatic shutoffs that instantly kill engine power if fluid runs low or a sensor glitches to ensure compliance. In the real world, that's a disaster. DEF freezes at just 12°F, which is a balmy day in my state. Even with onboard heaters, these systems can't compete with -40°F weather, which we often see in Alaska.

So when those lines freeze, fully functional engines actually are forced to shut down. Think about a ice road trucker going up to the North Slope, keeping the Alaska economy humming. Madam Chair, as you saw during our hearing on this bill, this isn't a one-off occurrence. It's happening all across my state and other states throughout the country. It means Alaskans are left stranded on a remote icy highway with no cell service, not because of any kind of mechanical failure, but because of literally digital red tape that shuts down their engine every single time.

Working families are left on the hook for a hefty maintenance bill. At that hearing, Madam Chair, you might remember the Commissioner of Transportation for the state of Alaska, Ryan Anderson, testified to this committee that DEF-related failures cause up to 80% of the state of Alaska's fleet maintenance issues. 80% Of all trucks driving for the Department of Transportation in Alaska, which is thousands. We heard Alaskans loud and clear. As this issue has gained momentum, we've seen an outpouring of support from folks not just in my state, but literally across the country, how these faulty sensors affect negatively their daily lives.

And it's not just trucks and tractors. It's fire trucks. It's school buses. It's airport plow equipment. So my bill, the Diesel Reliability— Cold Weather Diesel Reliability Act, removes this dangerous compliance trap.

It directs the EPA to update its rules to end the automatic shutdown of engines during extreme cold, guaranteeing that zero degrees weather or below zero weather doesn't turn a sensor glitch into a life-threatening emergency. And while it's disappointing my Democratic colleagues vote against this basic safety fix, I do want to work with Senator Whitehouse and others to try to get a bipartisan, uh, way forward on this bill. I think the hearing that we had a couple months ago really impacted everybody, every senator in this hearing room, where we saw that this is an issue not just in Alaska but across America. And I look forward to bringing this bill to the Senate floor soon and delivering a win for Alaskans, but also Americans across the country who keep our economy moving. Thank you, Madam Chair.

Senator Kelly. Thank you, Madam Chair and Ranking Member Whitehouse and my colleagues on the committee for the support to advance the two bipartisan bills. To address some important challenges in Arizona, in the West, and across the country. In Arizona, wildfires have been catastrophic over the last several years. The Dragon Bravo Fire last year burned 150,000 acres in and around the Grand Canyon, and then because of the burn scars resulted in significant flooding this year.

3 Lives lost, a lot of damage to infrastructure that we're now going to have to come up with a plan to recover from. And one of the best tools here are prescribed burns. So I want to thank my colleagues for working with me on this to get this legislation across the finish line. Also on the More American Fuel Act, which I introduced with Senator Lummis, solves a problem that has been around for a while. We have energy demand growing in Arizona and across the country.

We need more reliable and affordable and abundant power if we're going to try to solve some of our problems. Nuclear energy should be part of that solution. But this isn't an engineering problem. We know how to build nuclear power plants. We know how to operate them.

What we don't have is the fuel. So this legislation goes a long way to helping us acquire the fuel we need to operate expanded nuclear power capacity and strengthen our domestic fuel supply and reduce our dependence on foreign sources. So thank you, Madam Chair. Senator Kelly. Senator Padilla.

Thank you, Madam Chair. We thank you and your team for your support throughout this process and Senator Whitehouse, our ranking member, and his staff for their partnership throughout as well, and especially all the co-chairs, including you, Madam Chair, Senators Curtis, Merkley, Bozeman, and Kelly on the Wildfire Emissions Prevention Act. Shows that bipartisan work can still be done around here, which is encouraging news to folks watching at home. The reason for the bill, the urgency for it, is pretty clear the western United States is facing a crisis. Year after year, we see larger and more intense and devastating wildfires in both our public lands as well as in our communities.

And this destruction results not just in the properties lost and lives lost, but the massive amount of toxic smoke that quite literally turns our skies black or orange at times. The health impact of these massive wildfires are also immense. And so It's incumbent upon us to act with urgency. Now, there's no silver bullet to solve the wildfire crisis, but we do know that prescribed fires are one of the most effective tools available to reduce hazardous fuels and prevent wildfires or help mitigate them when they do happen. However, while EPA regulations have allowed prescribed fires to qualify as exceptional events since 2016, EPA has never actually approved a prescribed fire exceptional event demonstration.

For states like mine, where air quality is shaped in large part by geography and topography, as well as emissions from mobile sources, this means that using prescribed fires to protect communities can pose an unacceptable risk to our emission attainment goals. We've worked since 2016 to find a path forward, but local air districts And state entities like the California Air Resources Board have communicated that in order to utilize this absolutely critical tool, there must be a dedicated pathway for prescribed fires to be permitted and deployed on the landscape. I also want to make another thing clear. The Clean Air Act is a critical landmark law that protects both the health and the safety of millions of Californians and millions of Americans. Nationwide.

That's why I appreciate this bill's narrow, tailored, and hyper-specific fix, one that allows us to use prescribed fires to protect our constituents from the devastating health impacts of megafires. So thank you again for your partnership, Madam Chair and Mr. Ranking Member. Thank you, Senator Padilla. I know California's been particularly devastated by many fires in the, in in the past and present.

So I want to thank again to all of our members for being here this morning, and I want to thank my, my buddy and my ranking member, Senator Whitehouse. And with that, the business meeting is adjourned.