Chronology of Committee Work

Waxman Requests Information from Alvin “Buzzy” Krongard

Chairman Waxman wrote to Buzzy Krongard, the brother of State Department Inspector General Howard Krongard, requesting an interview and documents relating to Blackwater USA.

One Year Later: Have TSA Airport Security Checkpoints Improved?

The Committee examined whether TSA’s airport security checkpoints have improved over the last year. The hearing reviewed the findings of an investigation conducted by GAO into the effectiveness of airport security checkpoints. A GAO report detailed an undercover investigation that found significant vulnerabilities in airport security.

Undercover GAO Investigation Exposes Vulnerabilities in Airport Security

An undercover GAO investigation of airport security checkpoints succeeded in passing through TSA screening checkpoints undetected with liquids and other materials that could be combined to make a dangerous improvised explosive device.

Assessing the State Department Inspector General

The Committee held a hearing to assess the performance of State Department Inspector General Howard J. Krongard following a series of allegations that the Inspector General halted investigations, censored reports, and refused to cooperate with law enforcement agencies.

Waxman to Introduce Moratorium on Approval of New Coal-Fired Power Plants

Rep. Henry A. Waxman announced at a congressional hearing with EPA Administrator Stephen Johnson that he will introduce legislation that establishes a moratorium on the approval of new coal-fired power plants under the Clean Air Act until EPA finalizes regulations to address the greenhouse gas emissions from these sources. Under this legislation, a Clean Air Act permit for a new coal-fired power plant could not be issued unless the plant uses state-of-the-art technology to reduce emissions of carbon dioxide and other greenhouse gases. The bill will also prohibit any person who builds a new coal-fired power plant without carbon controls from receiving allowances under future climate change legislation.

EPA Approval of New Power Plants: Failure to Address Global Warming Pollutants

This hearing examined the implications of the Environmental Protection Agency’s refusal to consider the global warming effects of a coal-fired power plant’s greenhouse gas emissions in a recent permitting decision. The hearing provided an opportunity for EPA to explain its position and current plans for addressing greenhouse gas emissions. Regulators and experts testified about the effects of EPA’s decisions, as well as how EPA could reduce greenhouse gas emissions from new stationary sources.

Drug-Resistant Infections in the Community: Consequences for Public Health

The full committee held a hearing to examine the public health consequences of infections of methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) outside of hospitals and other healthcare settings, including the measures people can take to reduce the risk of MRSA infections and what these infections tell us about the public health challenges in addressing such infections.

Committee Seeks Baghdad Police Academy Records

Chairman Waxman asks the government contractor Parsons to provide documents explaining why it has not repaired the dismal conditions at the police academy, which it promised to fix in testimony before the Committee last year.

Waxman Requests that GAO Continue K-Town Investigation

Chairman Waxman writes to Comptroller General David Walker to request that GAO continue it’s investigation into the management of the construction of the Kaiserslautern Military Community Center, known as K-Town Mall, at Ramstein Air Force Base in Germany. Earlier this year, GAO presented the committee with preliminary findings on why the project was experiencing scheduling delays, cost overruns, and performance problems.

The Administration’s Regulatory Actions on Medicaid: The Effects on Patients, Doctors, Hospitals, and States

The committee held a hearing to examine a range of regulatory changes regarding the Medicaid program that have recently been made by the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS). If all of these regulations were implemented, federal Medicaid funds to states would be cut by over $11 billion over five years.

Waxman Questions National Guard Education Benefit Denials

Chairman Waxman asks Secretary Gates to provide information regarding the denial of education benefits to members of the Minnesota National Guard.

White House Withholds Hundreds of Abramoff Documents

Chairman Waxman asks White House Counsel Fred Fielding to turn over more than 600 pages of documents relating to the activities of convicted lobbyist Jack Abramoff that are being withheld because they involve internal White House deliberations.

Oil and Gas Exemptions in Federal Environmental Protections

On Wednesday the committee will hold a hearing to examine the applicability of federal environmental and health requirements to onshore oil and gas development. The hearing will also address the potential impact oil and gas activity has on the environment and the health of populations living near production areas.

New GAO Report Indicates U.S. Trade Policy Neglects Public Health Issues

Rep. Henry A. Waxman and Sen. Edward M. Kennedy release a new GAO report that finds that U.S. trade policy under the Bush Administration has paid little to no attention to public health and access to medicines.

Committee Seeks Information about Blackwater Immunity

Chairman Henry A. Waxman writes Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice to ask who conferred immunity on the Blackwater security guards involved in the September 16 shooting, who authorized the grant of immunity, and when did Secretary Rice and other senior State Department officials learn about the immunity.

GAO Investigation Reveals Gaps in FDA Drug Reviews for Seniors

Rep. Henry A. Waxman and Sen. Edward M. Kennedy today released a new GAO report on FDA’s inclusion of seniors in clinical drug trials for prescription drugs. The report finds that in several key areas, FDA rules for drug approval fail to guarantee the safety and effectiveness of drugs for seniors.

The State Department and the Iraq War

Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice testified at an Oversight Committee hearing focusing on the State Department’s performance on several significant issues relating to the Iraq war, including the impact of the activities of Blackwater USA and corruption within the Iraqi ministries on the prospects of political reconciliation in Iraq. The Committee discussed with the Secretary allegations of wrongdoing associated with the construction of the new U.S. Embassy Compound in Baghdad, as well as other matters under investigation by the Committee.

Members Request DOE to Explain Process for Finalizing the Draft National Interest Electric Transmission Corridors

Chairmen Waxman and Kucinich, along with Ranking Minority Member Davis, wrote to Energy Secretary Bodman requesting answers to questions regarding the Department of Energy’s process for finalizing two draft transmission corridors pursuant to the Energy Policy Act of 2005. The corridors were proposed in May 2007 and finalized earlier this month. Stakeholders in the Mid-Atlantic region have reported that DOE refused to consider new data in finalizing the proposed corridor in the eastern United States. However, DOE has stated that it relied upon new information in removing Clark County, Nevada, from the finalized Southwest Area National Corridor. The Oversight Committee has requested that DOE provide an explanation for these decisions and documents regarding its decision to remove Clark County from the corridor.

Waxman Calls on CHPA Members to Remove Pediatric Cold Products from Market

Following an FDA’s Advisory Committee recommendation that over-the-counter cough and cold medications for children under six be removed from the market, Chairman Waxman calls on the member companies of the Consumer Healthcare Products Association to voluntarily withdraw these products from store shelves.

Chairman Waxman Requests Information about Medtronic’s Sprint Fidelis Leads

Today Chairman Waxman wrote to FDA requesting information about the Agency’s approval of Medtronic’s Sprint Fidelis leads, which are components used in implantable cardiac defibrillators. Medtronic voluntarily recalled the product after it was revealed that 2.3% of patients with the implanted leads would experience potentially life-threatening malfunctions.

Committee Investigates State Department Contract to Train Iraqi Police

Chairman Waxman writes Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice to renew the Committee’s request for documents about the State Department’s $1 billion contract with DynCorp to train Iraqi police forces.

Evidence of Tax Evasion by Blackwater

New documents suggest that Blackwater may have engaged in significant tax evasion, failing to withhold and pay millions of dollars in Social Security, Medicare, unemployment, and related taxes, and sought to conceal its conduct from Congress and law enforcement officials.

Chairman Waxman Seeks Further Information on Blackwater Contracts

Chairman Waxman wrote to Erik Prince, Secretary Rice, and Secretary Gates, requesting further information on Blackwater’s no-bid contracts, additional incidents involving their personnel in Iraq, and payments made to the families of Iraqis killed by Blackwater.

Hearing Examines Black Carbon and Global Warming

On Thursday, October 18, 2007, the Committee held a hearing to examine the climate change and other impacts of black carbon emissions. Black carbon is better known as soot and results from the incomplete combustion of fossil fuels and biomass. The Committee received testimony about the significant global and regional effects of black carbon, its sources, and the positive effect reductions in emissions would have on both climate change and public health worldwide.

Chairman Waxman Urges FTC to Investigate Peer-to-Peer Networks

Chairman Waxman, along with a bipartisan group of 18 other representatives, urged the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) to investigate recent disclosures regarding inadvertent file sharing over peer-to-peer (P2P) networks and to take steps to ensure that potential risks posed by P2P networks are incorporated into the Commission’s ongoing efforts to combat identity theft.

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