Idaho Congressman Mike Simpson today announced that the Fiscal Year 2016 Energy and Water Development Appropriations bill reverses proposed cuts to Idaho National Laboratory (INL), the Department of Energy’s Office of Nuclear Energy, and cleanup activities in Idaho. Simpson is Chairman of the House Appropriations Subcommittee on Energy and Water Development, which passed the bill through the full House Appropriations Committee today, and had the lead role in deciding funding for all Department o... Read more

Idaho Congressman Mike Simpson cosponsored legislation to require the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers to withdraw their rule changing the definition of “waters of the United States.” H.R. 1732, the Regulatory Integrity Protection Act of 2015, would pull back the flawed rule and ensure that any new rule reflects the input of stakeholders and State and local officials. Simpson chairs the House Energy and Water Development Appropriations Subcommittee, whic... Read more

We are always impressed with the Idahoans who apply to attend United States military academies, and we are honored to nominate deserving young women and men to the academies. If you are interested in receiving an excellent education and an opportunity to develop strong character and leadership abilities, while serving our country, we encourage you to attend an annual Service Academy Day to learn about the application process, academy life and the benefits of attending a service academy. This mon... Read more

Today is Tax Day and the U.S. House of Representatives is addressing important tax measures this week that directly impact families across the country. Idaho Congressman Mike Simpson is supporting The ‘Death Tax Repeal Act of 2015’ (H.R. 1105), State and Local Sales Tax Deduction Fairness Act of 2015 (H.R. 622), Preserving Access to Manufactured Housing Act (H.R. 650), and the Mortgage Choice Act (H.R. 685). “Our current tax code hampers economic growth. If we truly want to get our budget defici... Read more

Last week, Idaho Congressman Mike Simpson introduced H.R. 1719, the Geothermal Production Expansion Act of 2015. H.R. 1719 makes a small but important change to current law to facilitate the development of geothermal energy on public lands. H.R. 1719 would allow for expansion of renewable geothermal energy, while at the same time protecting the national interests in receiving fair market value for energy leases on federal lands. The intent of the legislation is to protect legitimate geothermal d... Read more

Idaho Congressman Mike Simpson today supported H.R. 2, the Medicare Access and CHIP Reauthorization Act of 2015. It passed the House with strong support from both Republicans and Democrats by 392-37. The bill strengthens Medicare and ensures senior’s access to care by repealing the Sustainable Growth Rate (SGR) and replacing it with an updated system that will work better, and save money over the long term. The SGR is a formula that determines payment amounts to doctors who treat Medicare patien... Read more

“In the world of politics, some of the toughest moments are when you find yourself disagreeing with those you consider friends. “That has never been truer for me than in my current difference of opinion with former Governors Phil Batt and Cecil Andrus. They are opposing two INL shipments containing just 200 pounds of commercial nuclear fuel because of a delay related to the 1995 Settlement Agreement. The shipments represent the beginning of a research project slated to bring tens of millions of ... Read more

Idaho Congressman Mike Simpson this week supported a series of bills to bring greater transparency and accountability to actions by the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). H.R. 1029, the EPA Science Advisory Board Reform Act of 2015, and H.R. 1030, the Secret Science Reform Act of 2015, were both passed by the House of Representatives with bipartisan support. The EPA Science Advisory Board Reform Act, which would make a number of reforms to the EPA’s Science Advisory Board to ensure that EPA’... Read more

Idaho Congressman Mike Simpson, Chairman of the House Energy and Water Development Appropriations Subcommittee, today held two hearings to discuss budget issues with officials from the Department of Energy. The first hearing was focused on the Department of Energy’s Applied Energy Programs, with Assistant Secretaries from the Offices of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy, Nuclear Energy, Fossil Energy, and Electricity Delivery and Energy Reliability testifying. The second hearing was focused... Read more

“The American people used their votes last year to demonstrate a strong objection to gridlock while giving a modest endorsement to the direction Congressional Republicans offered as an alternative to Democrat policies in Washington. Their confidence, however, was conditional on an expectation that Republicans would work aggressively to move our country forward. “Unfortunately, too many of my colleagues in Congress see the election much differently. They view gridlock and obstructionism as a mean... Read more