U.S. Sen. Lisa Murkowski, R-Alaska, today issued the following statement on President-elect Donald Trump’s nomination of Rep. Ryan Zinke, R-Mont., as Secretary of the Department of the Interior.

“I welcome the President-elect’s nomination of Rep. Ryan Zinke to be Secretary of the Interior. I look forward to meeting with him to discuss a range of critical issues, including the challenges we face on federal management of lands and waters in Alaska, the urgent need to increase energy production in my home state, and our trust responsibilities to Alaska Natives and Native Americans. I am also eager to learn more about Rep. Zinke’s views on the differing roles of state and federal regulators on public lands, how he would restore balance to the multiple use of federal lands, and how he would approach federal lands transactions. We plan to consider his nomination at a hearing before the Committee on Energy and Natural Resources in early January.”