In the News

Washington News in Brief

11/24/2019
Arkansas Democrat-Gazette

EPA event makes recycling a focus

WASHINGTON -- The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency celebrated America Recycles Day earlier this month by organizing what it called a Recycling Summit.

EPA Administrator Andrew Wheeler, a participant in the event, emphasized the need to "create a more sustainable recycling system in America and across the globe."

White House Office of Science and Technology Policy Director Kelvin Droegemeier warned that marine debris "poses a significant threat to our oceans, marine life and coastal communities." He stressed the need to develop "next-generation biodegradable plastics" and to create "cost-effective technologies to gather, recycle and treat plastic waste."

Wheeler also recently participated in a round-table discussion on "Building a Resilient Recycling System through Infrastructure Investment and Market Development" that included representatives from large U.S. corporations, including Walmart.

In a news release, U.S. Sen. John Boozman, R-Ark., praised the EPA "for bringing stakeholders together to build on the recycling industry's successes and help raise awareness of America Recycles Day."

The lawmaker from Rogers, who serves as co-chairman of the Senate Recycling Caucus, said recycling is good for the environment and good for business, strengthening the economy and creating "hundreds of thousands of well-paying jobs nationwide."

Hill to head work aimed at families

Republican lawmakers, who relaunched the Suburban Caucus earlier this year, plan to craft a "legislative agenda aimed at improving the quality of life in suburban communities across America," organizers announced last week.

As part of the effort, the caucus has appointed task force chairmen to focus on specific areas.

Arkansas' 2nd District Rep. French Hill of Little Rock will lead a task force on "Preparing our Families for the Future."

Rep. Cathy McMorris Rodgers of Washington state will guide a task force on "work-life balance."

Rep. Jackie Walorski of Indiana will head the "safety and stability" task force.

Rep. Rob Wittman of Virginia will focus on infrastructure, while Rep. Steve Stivers of Ohio will lead what's been dubbed the "Task Force on Promises Made, Commitments Earned."

Caucus members announced their effort at a news conference, as well as an op-ed piece in The Hill, a Capitol Hill newspaper.

The suburbs were a key battleground during the 2018 election. Exit polls showed Democrats dominating the urban vote and Republicans well ahead among rural voters.

The suburban vote was split down the middle -- 49% to 49% with 2% declining to answer the question.

In a news release, Hill said the task force he leads will focus "on enabling suburban families to attain and sustain a higher quality of life through greater financial independence and security through the increased engagement and application of lifelong learning."

Womack chairs military meeting

The West Point board of visitors, chaired by Arkansas' 3rd District U.S. Rep. Steve Womack, met in Washington earlier this month.

The panel, under federal law, monitors the U.S. Military Academy's "morale and discipline, curriculum, instruction, physical equipment, fiscal affairs, academic methods and other matters."

Topics of discussion included "infrastructure, training, leadership development, curriculum, sexual harassment and assault prevention, and military strength," according to a news release.

U.S. Military Academy Superintendent Darryl Williams was also on hand.

West Point, on the Hudson River about 50 miles north of New York City, is "the oldest continuously occupied military post in America," officials say.

It is also the nation's oldest service academy.

Then-House Speaker John Boehner, R-Ohio, appointed Womack to serve on the board in 2012. Since 2017, he has been its chairman.

Womack, a Republican from Rogers, served 30 years in the Arkansas Army National Guard, retiring as a colonel in 2009. He is also former executive director of the University of Arkansas' Army ROTC program.

His brother, Jim, is a 1977 West Point graduate.