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Obama Officials to Congress: Shift Wildfire Funding

Hill: Top Obama administration officials are calling on Congress to change the way the government allocates funds for fighting wildfires as western states deal with one of the most destructive seasons on record. In a letter to Sen. Maria Cantwell (Wash.), the ranking Democrat on the Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee, Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack, Interior Secretary Sally Jewell and Office of Management and Budget Director Shaun Donovan said this year’s fire season is proving to be “disastrous,”...

Senate panel advances $30B bill that targets EPA rules

Hill: The Senate Appropriations Committee on Thursday advanced a $30.01 billion spending bill that takes aim at President Obama’s environmental regulations. The bill would fund the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and Interior Department for fiscal 2016, which begins Oct. 1, by $400 million below the level Congress enacted for 2015 and $2.2 billion less than Obama’s request. Lawmakers voted 16-14 to advance the bill to the Senate floor. Sen. Barbara Mikulski (D-Md.), the ranking member on the...