United States House Committee on Natural Resources

The U.S. House Committee on Natural Resources or Natural Resources Committee (often referred to as simply Resources) is a Congressional committee of the United States House of Representatives. Originally called the Committee on Interior and Insular Affairs (1951), the name was changed to the Committee on Natural Resources in 1991. The name was shortened to the Committee on Resources in 1995 by the new chair, Don Young (at the same time, the committee took over the duties of the now-defunct Merchant Marine and Fisheries Committee). Following the Democratic takeover of the House of Representatives in 2006, the name of the committee was changed back to its title used between 1991 and 1995.^[1]

Formed1991

SucceededCommittee on Interior and Insular Affairs

Formerly known asCommittee on Resources

ChairBruce Westerman (R)
Since January 3, 2023

Quick facts Standing committee, History ...

House Natural Resources Committee
Standing committee
Active United States House of Representatives 119th Congress
History
Formed	1991
Succeeded	Committee on Interior and Insular Affairs
Formerly known as	Committee on Resources
Leadership
Chair	Bruce Westerman (R) Since January 3, 2023
Ranking Member	Jared Huffman (D) Since January 4, 2025
Structure
Seats	45
Political parties	Majority (25) Republican (25) Minority (20) Democratic (20)
Jurisdiction
Policy areas	Energy development, mining, mineral rights, wildlife, fisheries, public lands, oceans, Native Americans
Oversight authority	Department of Energy
Senate counterpart	Senate Committee on Energy and Natural Resources
Subcommittees
Energy and Mineral Resources Indigenous Peoples of the United States National Parks, Forests and Public Lands Oversight and Investigations Water, Oceans and Wildlife
Meeting place
1324 Longworth House Office Building Washington, D.C. 20515
Website
naturalresources.house.gov (Republican) democrats-naturalresources.house.gov (Democratic)
Rules
Rule X.1(m), Rules of the House of Representatives (118th Congress) Rules for the Committee on Natural Resources (118th Congress)

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Jurisdiction

Fisheries and wildlife, including research, restoration, refuges, and conservation.
Forest reserves and national parks created from the public domain.
Forfeiture of land grants and alien ownership, including alien ownership of mineral lands.
Geological Survey.
International fishing agreements.
Interstate compacts relating to apportionment of waters for irrigation purposes.
Irrigation and reclamation, including water supply for reclamation projects and easements of public lands for irrigation projects; and acquisition of private lands when necessary to complete irrigation projects.
Native Americans generally, including the care and allotment of Native American lands and general and special measures relating to claims that are paid out of Native American funds.
Insular areas of the United States generally (except those affecting the revenue and appropriations).
Military parks and battlefields, national cemeteries administered by the Secretary of the Interior, parks within the District of Columbia, and the erection of monuments to the memory of individuals.
Mineral land laws and claims and entries thereunder.
Mineral resources of public lands.
Mining interests generally.
Mining schools and experimental stations.
Marine affairs, including coastal zone management (except for measures relating to oil and other pollution of navigable waters).
Oceanography.
Petroleum conservation on public lands and conservation of the radium supply in the United States.
Preservation of prehistoric ruins and objects of interest on the public domain.
Public lands generally, including entry, easements, and grazing thereon.
Relations of the United States with Native Americans and Native American tribes.
Trans-Alaska Oil Pipeline (except ratemaking).^[2]^[3]

Members, 119th Congress

More information Majority, Minority ...

Majority	Minority
Bruce Westerman, Arkansas, Chair Rob Wittman, Virginia, Vice Chair^[4] Tom McClintock, California Paul Gosar, Arizona Amata Coleman Radewagen, American Samoa Doug LaMalfa, California Daniel Webster, Florida Russ Fulcher, Idaho Pete Stauber, Minnesota Tom Tiffany, Wisconsin Lauren Boebert, Colorado Cliff Bentz, Oregon Jen Kiggans, Virginia James Moylan, Guam Wesley Hunt, Texas Mike Collins, Georgia Harriet Hageman, Wyoming Mark Amodei, Nevada Tim Walberg, Michigan Mike Ezell, Mississippi Celeste Maloy, Utah Addison McDowell, North Carolina Jeff Crank, Colorado Nick Begich III, Alaska Jeff Hurd, Colorado Mike Kennedy, Utah	Jared Huffman, California, Ranking Member Raúl Grijalva, Arizona (until March 13, 2025), Ranking Member Emeritus Joe Neguse, Colorado Teresa Leger Fernandez, New Mexico Melanie Stansbury, New Mexico Val Hoyle, Oregon Seth Magaziner, Rhode Island Jared Golden, Maine Dave Min, California Maxine Dexter, Oregon Pablo Hernández Rivera, Puerto Rico Emily Randall, Washington Yassamin Ansari, Arizona Sarah Elfreth, Maryland, Vice Ranking Member^[5] Adam Gray, California Luz Rivas, California Adelita Grijalva, Arizona (from November 18, 2025) Nydia Velázquez, New York Debbie Dingell, Michigan Darren Soto, Florida Julia Brownley, California Susie Lee, Nevada (from May 20, 2025)

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Resolutions electing members: H.Res. 13 (Chair), H.Res. 14 (Ranking Member), H.Res. 42 (R), H.Res. 44 (D), H.Res. 55 (D), H.Res. 430 (Lee), H.Res. 887 (Grijalva)

Subcommittees

Representative Kevin McCarthy (R) at an oversight hearing of the House Natural Resources Subcommittee on Water and Power

In the 111th Congress, the number of subcommittees was reduced from 5 to 4. The Subcommittees on Insular Affairs and Fisheries, Wildlife and Oceans were merged into the Subcommittee on Insular Affairs, Oceans and Wildlife. In the 112th Congress, the number was again increased to 5, adding the Subcommittee on Indian and Alaska Native Affairs.

During the committee's official reorganization for the 113th Congress, the Subcommittee on National Parks, Forests and Public Lands was renamed the Subcommittee on Public Lands and Environmental Regulation^[6]

When former Chair Doc Hastings of Washington retired from Congress, Rob Bishop of Utah took over as the committee's new chair at the beginning of the 114th Congress. Congressman Bishop began the process of hiring new staff and reorganized the committee's structure as his predecessors had done.^[7]^[8] The chair eliminated the Fisheries, Wildlife, Oceans and Insular Affairs subcommittee and split its duties between the renamed Indian, Insular and Alaska Native Affairs and Water, Power and Oceans subcommittees. The chair also created a new Subcommittee on Oversight and Investigations, keeping the total number of subcommittees at five^[9]

The chair also transferred jurisdiction over the National Environmental Policy Act and the Endangered Species Act from the former Public Lands and Environmental Regulation and established a renamed the Subcommittee on Federal Lands.^[9]

Current subcommittees

More information Subcommittee, Chair ...

Subcommittee	Chair^[4]	Ranking Member^[10]
Energy and Mineral Resources	Pete Stauber (R-MN)	Yassamin Ansari (D-AZ)
Federal Lands	Tom Tiffany (R-WI)	Joe Neguse (D-CO)
Indian and Insular Affairs	Jeff Hurd (R-CO)	Teresa Leger Fernandez (D-NM)
Oversight and Investigations	Paul Gosar (R-AZ)	Maxine Dexter (D-OR)
Water, Wildlife and Fisheries	Harriet Hageman (R-WY)	Val Hoyle (D-OR)

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