Watch the event live here.

Washington, DC – Tomorrow, U.S. Senator Maria Cantwell (D-Wash.), ranking member of the Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee, will participate in a business meeting to mark up the Yakima River Basin legislation (S. 1694), among other bills.

Sen. Cantwell’s bill, the Yakima River Basin Water Enhancement Project Phase III Act of 2015, provides an innovative and collaborative approach to addressing long-term watershed management in Washington’s Yakima Basin. The bill would support drought relief and long-term water sustainability in the basin by improving water infrastructure, conservation, and restoration of ecosystems and fisheries. The bill drew support from the administration during a committee hearing in July. Since then, the committee has refined the proposal even further, in response to input from multiple stakeholders.

Also at tomorrow’s mark-up, the committee is expected to take action on the Land and Water Conservation Fund (LWCF), the nation’s most successful conservation program. Earlier this year, Sen. Cantwell argued that permanent reauthorization of the LWCF is the best way to protect open spaces and wildlife habitats for hunting, fishing and other outdoor recreational activities. In July, Sen. Cantwell and Chairman Murkowski reached an agreement to permanently reauthorize the LWCF. Their proposal was attached to the committee’s bipartisan energy legislation, the Energy Policy and Modernization Act, which was reported on a strong bipartisan vote of 18-4. Nevertheless, the LWCF expired in September. For 50 years, it has supported the public’s access to utilize federal parks, forests and public lands for sportsmen’s activities. At tomorrow’s mark-up, the Cantwell-Murkowski LWCF deal will be considered as part of the Sportsmen’s Act (S. 556).

The committee will also vote on nominees to various the Departments of Energy and the Interior. Some nominees have jurisdiction over nuclear waste clean-up, and Sen. Cantwell signaled her support of these nominees earlier this year.

A full list of bills and nominees to be considered can be found online here. 

The hearing will be live webcast here; archived video will be available after the hearing at the same link. Join the conversation on Twitter using #YakimaForever, #LWCF, #SaveLWCF, @SenatorCantwell and @EnergyDems.

Who:
Sen. Maria Cantwell
Senate Committee on Energy and Natural Resources
@EnergyDems

When:
Thursday, November 19, 2015 at 9:30 a.m. EST / 6:30 a.m. PST

What:
Committee Business Meeting to consider pending nominations and legislation

Where:
SD-366 or Watch Online Here

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