‘I Don’t See This Ending Well’: Chellie Pingree Slams Interior Sec. For ‘Devastating’ Budget, Workforce Cuts

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During Tuesday’s House Appropriations Committee hearing, Rep. Chellie Pingree (D-ME) spoke about cuts to the Department of the Interior.

Transcript

00:00With that, I'd yield to Ranking Member Ms. Pingree for any opening remarks that she may have.

00:06Thank you very much, Mr. Chair. Thank you for holding this hearing this morning.

00:10And, Secretary Berg, thank you very much for being with us today.

00:13I appreciated that the slight delay in committee gave me a chance to say an initial hello to you

00:19and nice to meet, even though I represent Maine, a fellow Midwesterner since I was born in Minnesota.

00:24Yeah, sure, you betcha.

00:25I do want to thank you for bringing your many skills as a former governor and a businessman to this very important position.

00:34The Department of Interior is tasked with protecting and managing our natural resources and cultural heritage

00:40to providing scientific information about those resources and honoring our trust and treaty responsibility.

00:46But I will warn you, I am very concerned about the state of the Department of Interior.

00:50From my view, in just four months, the Department has been destabilized,

00:54and there has been a stunning decline in its ability to meet its mission.

00:58Given your extensive executive experience, I am disappointed that you would allow this to happen.

01:04In partnership with Elon Musk's what I consider a rogue agency, the Doge,

01:09you have illegally canceled grants for conservation, for ecosystem restoration, and other important work.

01:15Over 1,700 probationary employees have been recklessly fired,

01:20and 7,600 people, or 11 percent of the interior workforce, have been pushed to resign.

01:25These are not just numbers.

01:27These people are experts and dedicated public servants with decades of programmatic and institutional knowledge

01:33that is critically needed to ensure the Department fulfills its mission and is a guardian of our public lands.

01:40To make matters worse, the agency has a hiring freeze,

01:44and you are considering even further reductions in force.

01:48I don't see this ending well for this precious agency that this committee is dedicated to oversee,

01:53and this committee has devoted hundreds of hours to nurturing this agency.

01:57I am very proud to serve on a committee that generally works in a bipartisan way

02:01to make sure that the Department of Interior stays strong.

02:04Further, due to the policies you have instituted, employees are hamstrung from accomplishing everyday tasks

02:11by absurdly limiting credit card expenditures to $1.

02:15This is no way to efficiently run an organization.

02:18In fact, these actions seem to be designed to obstruct employees from doing their job.

02:24Even the National Park Service feels that it's been under attack.

02:28Ahead of peak season, you have gutted staff,

02:30so my national park, like Acadia in my home state of Maine, is understaffed

02:34and without the resources needed to keep summer visitors safe.

02:38Our parks are pristine and need to be protected.

02:42Fiscal year 2026 is equally devastating,

02:45with a proposed cut to the Department of 30 percent.

02:48That budget eviscerates the U.S. Geological Survey

02:51with a proposed $564 million cut,

02:54targeting scientific research on national and natural hazards, ecosystems, water, and earth mapping.

03:02These programs help us monitor and provide real-time earthquake and hazard information.

03:07They strengthen our assessment of groundwater and surface water systems,

03:11and they help ensure our national security

03:13by informing the management of our mineral and energy resources.

03:16Without these programs at USGS,

03:20our communities will be left vulnerable to natural disasters

03:23and deprived of the scientific data that guides responsible land management.

03:29This budget, with a 30 percent cut,

03:31shamefully abandons our trust and treaty obligations to Native Americans,

03:35slashing the Bureau of Indian Affairs, Public Safety, and Justice programs by 19 percent

03:40when we are already only meeting a fraction of the need.

03:44The budget also chooses to eliminate funding for a desperately needed school construction,

03:49leaving a $1 billion repair backlog untouched.

03:54So, Secretary Berghum, the document we're here to discuss today is more than just a budget.

03:59It's a blueprint for dismantling the very mission of the Department of Interior,

04:03making it impossible to protect our natural resources and iconic national parks

04:08or uphold our commitments to tribal communities now and for future generations.

04:14As the ranking member on this committee, I wholeheartedly oppose these cuts.

04:18I cannot stand by and watch this agency be hollowed out.

04:24So, thank you again for being here this morning.

04:26I'm sorry that we disagree on the perspective on how this department should be run,

04:30and I do hope you are here to give us a rationale for these decisions

04:33or to work with us to reverse them.

04:35And I yield back.

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