Asst. Secretary Nominations for Interior, Fish & Wildlife, Energy Intl. Affairs

Committee will come to order. Uh, good morning and welcome to all. The President has submitted the names of three individuals uh who are uh before this committee's jurisdiction uh for assistant secretary's uh secretary positions uh within two different departments. Two at the Department of the Interior and one at the Department of Energy. And today we're gonna hear from those nominees. They are Mr. William Hegg, uh, to be the Assistant Secretary of the Interior for Insular, International and Ocean Affairs. Uh, Mr. Kevin Lilley to be the Assistant Secretary of the Interior for Fish and Wildlife and Parks at the Department of the Interior. And, Mr. Kaveh Farzad to be the Assistant Secretary of Energy for International Affairs at the U. S. Department of Energy. I thank President Trump for sending us these nominees. Uh, the - the nominations before us today reflect the breadth of the committee's jurisdiction. If confirmed, these nominees will be tasked with responsibilities that significantly affect how Americans access their national parks, how we work with our territories, and how the United States advances its energy interests uh abroad. The Assistant Secretary for Fish and Wildlife and Parks, and yes, those are both " ands" or " ands" or " ands" or " ands" are in there, not separated. by a comma I don't know who named these but it was a a hundred years ago or so when they created it uh it it was two hands it's not a run on sentence it just is what it is uh but it oversees um uh uh the uh National Park Service among other units within interior and that means decisions made in this office have an outsized impact on communities like the ones I represent communities of people that live work and and build their economies build their lives around federal land. For Utahans, our national parks are part of daily life. However, the Biden administration too often treated them like museum exhibits, as things to be kept behind glass, seen but not touched. The, uh, that kind of an approach proved problematic and failed to acknowledge that these are places where people happen to work and recreate and welcome visitors from around the world. It's one reason time to entry policies have caused such serious headaches for communities surrounding our national parks. At Arches and at Zion, time to entry policies have been opposed by the counties, by the governor, and by Utah's entire congressional delegation. The policy keeps Utahns out of their own national parks. It limits visitors' spending. It harms gateway communities. It imposes a uh reservation system that works best for people who have the time, money, and flexibility to plan months in advance, it may work much better for US government personnel than it does the American public at large. The promise of public ownership means nothing if the public is turned away at the gate. When Washington restricts access and drains visitor spending, all without consulting local leaders, it breaks faith with the people who have maintained these lands for generations. The better path involves collaboration. with the communities that know the uh the places, know the parks best. One opportunity for collaboration can certainly be found at the Glen Canyon National Recreation area, where I believe we can significantly improve the visitor experience. Accomplishing that will require roads, maps, utilities, concessions, and basic infrastructure that can be built within a reasonable time. Unfortunately, that will prove to be nearly impossible under our current current permitting regime. At our recent hearing, witnesses made clear that one obstacle is section one O six of the National Historic Preservation Act which has in far too many cases become a procedural obstacle course for energy and other infrastructure projects including improvements that would benefit visitors uh who who come to see our national parks. Preserving our past is important, so is building the infrastructure America needs. The federal government should be able to do both without trapping every project in years or decades of red tape. Mister Lilley's nomination is particularly timely as Congress considers reauthorizing the Great American Outdoors Act or GOA. Last week, this committee reported by vo- a voice vote a five-year reauthorization of the Legacy Restoration Fund. Our reauthorization included needed reforms to make the program work better, and revenue raisers to make sure the LRF does not increase the national debt. But there's still more work to be done before this reauthorization makes its way successfully to the Senate floor. I trust Mr. Lilly will work with Ranking Member Heinrich, Senators King and Daines, and me as we uh work to try to improve the bill and get it across the line. And while the Interior Department has enormous responsibilities here at home, its work also reaches far beyond the continental United States. The Assistant Secretary for Insular and International Affairs plays a central role in how the department works with America's territories. One area where I hope to work closely with you is ensuring that this uh visa pathway for Chinese nationals to enter our territories is brought to an end. In twenty twenty four, the Biden administration uh through the Department of Homeland Security created the CNMI Economic Vitality and Security Travel Authorization program. That program allows Chinese nationals to travel to the Northern Mariana Islands without a visa for up to fourteen days. Earlier this year, I joined with several of my colleagues in sending a letter to Secretaries Mullen and Burgum, asking that this program be closed. The CNMI faces economic challenges, but opening a visa-free pathway for Chinese nationals into a strategically important American territory, not far from critical U. S. military assets in Guam is not a responsible answer. It has led to rampant birth tourism and drug trafficking. We should be working towards safer ways to support the CNMI's economy without creating unnecessary security risks. The same security-minded approach is needed at the Department of Energy's Office of International Affairs. That office, of course, uh, of course helps manage America's energy relationships abroad. Some of those relationships have proven really valuable. Some require caution. That is especially true when the work involves our national laboratories. America's national labs are among the most important scientific institutions in the entire world. Their research should not become an open target for China or any other adversary, seeking to obtain American technology under the cover of collaboration, something this committee examined at length in a hearing last year. Also, energy diplomacy is one of America's strengths. How we lead by example and enable our allies to achieve energy security is key. DOE's Office of International Affairs plays a leading role in this space. Each of the nominees under consideration today, uh, has important work ahead. I look forward to hearing how each of you would intend to address, uh, challenges that you face and your plans to execute them.

Thank you, uh, Mister Chairman. This morning's hearing is frankly long overdue. Uh, each of the three offices, the individuals before us today have been nominated to hold have been vacant since the beginning of the President's second term, a year and a half ago. Uh, let me be clear that responsibility for most of the delay lies with the President. He waited until mid-February of this year to nominate both Mister Haig and Mister Lilly, and until March to nominate Mister Farzad. Even after the President submitted their nominations, two of the nominees took an extended period of time, to submit the questionnaire that the committee requires of all nominees. The committee's questionnaire is quite simple. It consists of only two dozen straightforward questions about the nominee's background. It should not take nominees four months to provide us with the required information. Meanwhile, these important offices have not been filled by someone confirmed by the Senate. And that is a serious problem. Under our Constitution, the President may nominate but the Senate must confirm the appointment of officials to these offices. The Supreme Court has said that Senate confirmation, quote, is more than a matter of etiquette or protocol. It is among the significant structural safeguards of the constitutional scheme. The advice and consent of the Senate, quote, serves both to curb executive abuses of the appointment power and to promote the appointment of qualified people to important The Supreme Court has also acknowledged that, quote, " presidential appointment and Senate confirmation can take time." Since the nation's found in Congress, it's given presidents limited authority to appoint acting officials to perform the functions of vacant offices on a temporary basis. But that authority, which is provided by the Vacancies Reform Act, is narrowly limited and, frankly, is being abused. Both Mr. Haig and Mr. Lilly appear to be serving in the jobs for which they have been nominated prior to Senate confirmation in violation of the Vacancies Reform Act. Mr. Haig has been performing the functions, duties and responsibilities of the Assistant Secretary for Insular and International Affairs since May of twenty twenty five. Mr. Lilly has been performing these functions, duties and responsibilities of the Assistant Secretary for Fish, Wildlife and Parks since August of twenty twenty five. I do not blame Mister Haig or Mister Lilly for doing the jobs that this administration has given them, but I do believe that this administration has abused its authority by delegating authorities that require Senate confirmation in violation of the Vacancies Reform Act and while I appreciate that Mister Lilly has been accessible and responsive to me. I'm also concerned that neither he nor Mister Haag appear to have, uh, background training or experience in the issue areas that they have been nominated to manage. They have both had very successful careers, but Mister Haag does not seem to have had any experience with our insular areas or international affairs. And Mister Lilley does not seem to have had any experience with wildlife management or the national parks. prior to Secretary Burgum delegating these portfolios to them. The Vacancies Reform Act was not designed to provide a basis for on-the-job training. Mister Far- Farzad has at least worked for the State Department for two years and for the Department of Energy's Office of International Affairs for a year and a half. However, this is still far less experience than previous DOE Assistant Secretaries for International Affairs have had before assuming the role. All that said, we now have these nominations before us, and I look forward to hearing from each of the nominees today.

Thanks, Senator Heinrich. Our first witness today will be Mr. William Haig of the State of Washington, nominated to be the Assistant Secretary of the Interior for Insular International and Ocean Affairs. He currently serves as the Principal Deputy of uh for Insular International. and Ocean Affairs, a position that he's held since May of two thousand twenty five. The Assistant Secretary for Insular, International and Ocean Affairs oversees the US territories of American Samoa, Guam, the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands and the US Virgin Islands. It also oversees federal assistance to foreign nations and coordinates international programs to support US foreign policy. Mister Haig has had a distinguished career in the private sector, including as an executive vice president at AT&T and most recently as CEO and vice chairman of Tilman Infrastructure. He was also a partner at the law firm of Stokes Lawrence. Earlier in his career, he served in the Peace Corps in Togo, Africa, and as a law clerk to Judge Donald Voorhees of the US District Court for the Western District of Washington. He holds four degrees and is now pursuing a fifth. Our second witness today will be Mr. Kevin Lilly of Texas, to be the Assistant Secretary of the Interior for fish and wildlife and parks. He's served in that role in an acting capacity since June, twenty twenty five, overseeing the National Park Service with its sixty-three national parks covering eighty-five million acres. The Assistant Secretary also manages the U. S. Fish and Wildlife Service, which is composed of over eight hundred and fifty million acres on land and water. Mister Lilley has had a long career in both the public and private sectors. He's served as a Regent of the Texas State University System, and as chairman of its finance board. In the private sector, after working at Goldman Sachs and Morgan Stanley, he founded Avalon Advisors, the largest privately owned wealth management firm in Texas, and most recently was the vice chairman of Corriant. He also served in uniform, including in the Texas National Guard and the US Army Reserves, culminating as a colonel in the Texas National Guard. He is a state graduate, he is a graduate of the, uh, uh, University of Texas and Southern Method Methodist University. And our f- our final witness today is Mr. K- uh, Kaveh Farzad of Maryland, to be the Assistant Secretary of Energy for International Affairs at the Department of Energy. The Assistant Secretary leads the department's international energy portfolio, coordinating multilateral energy engagement and key aspects of our national laboratory's engagement with foreign partners. as well as supporting foreign market development for US energy technologies and commodities, along with the department's foreign investment reviews through the Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States, or CFIUS. He's currently a Managing Director of Government and International Affairs at FGS Global. Mister Farzad began his career at the Pacific Council on International Relations in Los Angeles. He then joined the State Department, serving as a Presidential Management Fellow and Public Affairs Specialist at the Bureau of Energy Resources. He then served as an attaché at the US Embassy to the Holy See before joining FGS Global. He received his bachelor's degree from the University of La Verne and a master's degree from the London School of Economics. Before the nominees begin their testimony, I will square them in. If the witnesses would please stand and raise the right hand. You swear that the testimony you're about to give to the committee will be the truth, the whole truth, and nothing but the truth, so hope you got. Record will reflect, you may be seated, record will be uh reflect that each witness um responded in the affirmative to that question. Also, it's the committee's practice to ask the following three questions of all three nominees who uh, uh, of all the nominees, including the three before us today. First, will you be able to appear before the committee and other congressional committees to represent the positions of your agency and respond to issues of concern to the Congress? Second, are you aware of any personal holdings, investments or interests that could constitute a conflict of interest or create uh the appearance of such conflict should you be confirmed and assumed the office to which you've been nominated by the President of the United States? And third, are you involved, uh, or do you have any assets in a blind trust?

I do not. I do not. I do not.

OK, let the record reflect that all three of the nominees answered the first question in the affirmative and the second and third questions in the negative. With that, I'll now invite the nominees to provide their opening statements and to introduce any guests that they may have with them. Mr. Haig, we'll begin with you and then, uh, move over from there.

Thank you. Good morning, Chairman Lee, Ranking Member Heinrich, and members of the committee. I want to begin with an expression of gratitude to all of you, for your work and leadership on this committee. It is indeed my honor to appear before you today as the nominee for Assistant Secretary of Insular and International Affairs. I'm also grateful to President Trump and Secretary Burgum for this opportunity to serve our nation. I want to offer a special word of thanks to my parents and family who have long supported me and made sacrifices over the years to make it possible for me to be here today. This includes my father, now passed but who remains my hero, and mother, Jim and Mary Haig, my wife, Vicki, whom I first met fifty-two years ago, my three children, one of whom is here today, my daughter, Kendall first, with her husband Brady first, and my three grandchildren. Uh, if I could introduce them, they're sitting behind me, my wife, my daughter, and my son-in-law. Thank you. I grew up in the Midwest, in Ohio and Michigan, before settling on the West Coast in Washington State. From my youth, I've always had an interest in experience in diverse cultures. I studied German and French in school, I lived abroad in France, I joined the Peace Corps at the age of twenty-two where I served for three years, one year more than the standard two year term, I enjoyed it so much. Internationally, I have visited or worked in more than seventy-five countries. As an aside for the United States, I have also visited all fifty states, with Alabama being my last at the age of fifty. During my service in the Peace Corps, I witnessed the challenges that face developing nations, and the delicate balance that exists between culture, and economic growth. To this day, I'm still passionate about serving those areas. Over the years, I've raised funds and used my own to build dozens of schools throughout the world, and I currently sponsor twenty-two young women, uh, in the, in West Africa in their educational pursuits. I began my career as a clerk in the US Federal District Court, and later worked as a partner at Stokes and Lawrence. From there, I entered the telecommunications industry, where I was one of the early founders at Western Wireless. There were six people when I started. It became one of the largest wor- rural wireless providers in the United States. Eventually, I became Executive Vice President for AT&T's global access and managed all of our international fairs for AT&T's connectivity around the globe. From twenty eighteen to twenty twenty five, I served as CEO and Vice Chairman of Tilman Infrastructure, one of the country's most prolific tower construction companies. Through my career at companies large and small, I learned valuable lessons about the importance of strong interpersonal relationships. The need for teamwork. Across groups. And the need to understand and measure what you're doing. I know that unleashing these free market principles in insular areas will help grow their prosperity. The Assistant Secretary for Insular and International Affairs plays a vital role in assisting our partners and fellow Americans in the Pacific and Caribbean. If given the opportunity to serve as Assistant Secretary, my goal would be to strengthen our relationship with each community and grow the wealth and security of each. Mister Chairman, our relationships with the insular air areas are more important today than ever. The Department of Interior is instrumental in protecting our territories and freely associated state allies from malign influence and in securing US strategic interests. From addressing economic challenges to promoting democratic resilience, DOI works to ensure that US investments abroad will improve the livelihood of these communities for generations to come. In sum, should I be confirmed, I will work to remove the barriers to economic prosperity in our island com- our island communities, protect U. S. national security, and ensure that U. S. taxpayer dollars are spent in a fiscally responsible manner. It will be my priority to increase financial accountability expand economic opportunity and private sector development, and improve energy affordability. It would be my honor and privilege to serve in the role to promoting prosperity and peace at home and abroad. I look forward to advancing the priorities of this administration, should I be concerned. Thank you, and I look forward to your questions.

Thank you. Mr. Haig, uh, Mr. Lilley, you're next.

Thank you, sir. Good morning, Chairman Lee, Ranking Member Heinrich, and members of the committee. I'm both honored and humbled that President Trump has nominated me for this and for Secretary Burgum's trust in me to serve as Assistant Secretary for Fish and Wildlife and Parks at the Department of the Interior. I am also joined by family and friends, um, including my big sister, Patricia. Um, my wife Leslie, my son James. I have another son who's on the way but probably won't make it. Uh, and my daughter is currently, uh, raising our six year old grandson in Dayton, Ohio, and serving as a full-time mom and student. I'd also like to welcome, uh, Father Tim Cole, a friend and mentor who is a fellow veteran and also served honorably on two deployments as a Army chaplain who was here in attendance. I'm grateful for the unwavering support of my wife, Leslie, throughout our many years together. Her faith and resilience have always been my North Star. I'm also proud to be the father of two Eagle Scouts and of a remarkable daughter who has made us doting grandparents. Their commitment to service, leadership, and family has inspired me as much as I have tried to inspire them. Much of my life has been devoted to encouraging young people to grow in character and confidence. Whether through my work as an assistant scoutmaster or as a youth baseball and softball coach, these experiences reinforced my belief in mentorship, responsibility, and community. Our family's love of hunting, fishing, and camping has carried me across some of the most beautiful and diverse landscapes in our nation. Experiencing these places firsthand has deepened my appreciation for the public lands entrusted to us and strengthened my desire to expand access to them so that more Americans can share in that same sense of wonder, peace, and connection to the land. My faith has always guided my respect for creation, grounding my belief that natural resources are gifts to be cared for with humility and gratitude. The values that guide me today were shaped early in life. Growing up in federal housing, the youngest of five, taught me resilience, gratitude, and the importance of hard work. My maternal grand par- parents immigrated from Sicily in search of opportunity. My grandfather was poor and uneducated, found work as a street cleaner in New York City. My father, whose Irish ancestors immigrated to Boston, served in World War Two, Korea, Vietnam, and as a police officer. My older brother served honorably in Vietnam before losing his life to the long-term effects of Agent Orange. These experiences gave me a deep understanding of hardship. strengthened my empathy for others and instilled in me a profound respect for the strength of families and communities. These foundations have shaped my approach to service throughout my life, first as a commissioned US Army cavalry officer and tank commander, and then as a Texas State Police Commissioner, and now in my work at the Department of the Interior. Over the past year, serving as a steward of America's natural resources has been more than a professional opportunity, it's been a calling. My faith rooted in care, responsibility, and respect for creation aligns naturally with work that protects public lands and wildlife. I carry into this mission a sense of purpose rooted in humility and gratitude, and I'm also very grateful for the dedicated career men and women who have faithfully served in the Fish and Wildlife Service and National Park Service. I am inspired each day by their public service. I'm grateful for the opportunity to work with our tribal, state, local and external partners, as well as our gateway communities and hundreds of friends groups. As Assistant Secretary, my focus will be straightforward, keeping our national pockets open, safe and properly staffed for the families who visit them, supporting the men and women of the Fish and Wildlife Service in their work to recover species and sustain healthy habitat, and confronting the deferred maintenance backlog that affects both visitor safety and the conditions of these treasured places. I will work hand in hand with our state, tribal, and local partners and with the Gateway communities whose livelihoods depend on these lands to advance both conservation and access. In closing, I wanted to share a moment that defines this vision. After this year's Artemis-two mission, the first time Americans flew around the moon and more than fifty years. The mission commander, who by his own account was not a particularly religious man, described being so overwhelmed by the experience of seeing the sun rising over the earth. That in his recovery on the recovery ship, he broke down in tears at the sight of a chaplain's cross. Recently, while at Yosemite National Park. I woke to see the sun cresting above Half Dome. And I was so overwhelmed with that same sense of awe and grace. It is that moment that I hope each American can in some way experience, that our nation's children can find comfort, not in a virtual world, but in our Creator's world. Our national parks and wildlife refuges are the salvation of the American soul. I commit to you and the committee I will remain an unwavering steward of the precious resources under my watch while ensuring Americans can enjoy public lands safely, responsibly, and fully, today and for generations to come. Thank you again for the opportunity to appear before you, and I am happy to answer your questions.

Thank you. Mr. Lilley, Mr. Farzan.

Chairman Lee, Ranking Member Heinrich, and distinguished members of the committee, Thank you for considering my nomination to be Assistant Secretary of Energy for International Affairs. I am deeply honored to appear before this committee with its long record of bipartisan accomplishments. I would also like to extend my deepest gratitude to President Trump for this nomination, and Secretary Wright for his confidence and support. If confirmed, I will work tirelessly to ensure the Department of Energy is well represented on the world stage. I look forward to working with members of this committee as I carry out my roles and responsibilities. Please allow me to take a moment to introduce my family with me here today. It is only through their grace, love and support that I find myself trusted with such responsibility. With me is my beautiful wife of ten years, Mike Alin, in addition to being a devoted public Baltimore City public school teacher, she is a remarkable mother to our three young sons, Oliver, Henry and Charlie. Boys, I'm very proud and very blessed to be your dad. This is an especially meaningful day for our family for another reason. Today is Charlie's fourth birthday. Happy birthday, buddy. With us is also my dear mother, who flew here from California. I would also like to thank my friends and colleagues here today for their support. I was born and raised in the Inland Empire in Southern California. I am the son of Iranian immigrants, who fled a brutal and repressive theocratic regime to seek a better life in the greatest country in history. I grew up with an acute understanding of the importance of citizenship, service, and sacrifice, lessons I hope to impart on my sons as they make their way through the world. My career has largely been devoted to cutting through the noise to solve problems, build consensus, and get things done. After graduate school, I worked at a nonpartisan organization in Los Angeles dedicated to addressing international policy issues. Then, fulfilling a lifelong ambition to serve my country, I was awarded a Presidential Management Fellowship. I moved my family to Washington, D. C. to join the State Department's Bureau of Energy Resources, where I focused on energy public diplomacy. In twenty seventeen, I began my work at the just as the Trump administration moved decisively to strengthen the energy security of our European allies against Russian aggression. At the time, under President Trump's leadership, we consistently warned our partners in Europe to reject the Nord Stream-two pipeline, which threatened to further compromise the sovereignty of nations dependent on unreliable Russian gas. Those warnings became a stark reality during the Biden administration, when Russia launched its full-scale invasion of Ukraine and began weaponizing gas flows to hold the continent hostage. Fortunately for our transatlantic allies, the US shell revolution had already changed the global landscape. American liquefied natural gas, cleaner and more reliable than the Russian alternative, stepped in to fill the vacuum and keep Europe's lights on, homes warm, and provide its economies a stable environment during their most severe energy crisis in decades. These lessons are a prescient warning of the world we live in today. America wants its allies and partners to have access to affordable, reliable, secure, and abundant energy. If confirmed, I look forward to building on the good work already done by Secretary Wright and the DOE team in establishing long-term partnerships that encourage allies and partners to join the United States in building a secure energy future. Following a rewarding period of energy diplomacy at the State Department, I accepted a political appointment at the US Embassy to the Holy See. Working closely with Ambassador Gingrich was a personally and professionally transformative experience, deepening my faith and my commitment to the betterment of humanity. Professionally,

Mm.

this role taught me that effective diplomacy requires engaging diverse stakeholders on the basis of shared values. These lessons informed my subsequent return to the civil service and the DOE's Office of International Affairs where I led engagement with the Arabian Peninsula and West Africa. Being a proud DOE IA alumni I know and appreciate the expertise and dedication across the ranks. The men and women in IA are among the best in the world at what they do and if confirmed it will be the honor of a lifetime to lead them in advancing common sense, and human-centered energy priorities. I want to touch on three strategic priorities I hope to advance in this role, if confirmed. First, I will work hard to implement President Trump's vision of American energy dominance as a global stabilizing force. Deploying America's energy exports bolsters our prosperity at home, while strengthening global stability, lowering prices, and providing a reliable alternative for other countries to avoid adversarial energy sources. That is American energy dominance in action. This effort will include leveraging our seventeen national labs to win the AI race, and accelerate technology adoption across markets. Second, I will work with allies and partners to ensure we're acting in unity of effort. DOE's Office of International Affairs plays a leading role in forms like the G-seven, G-twenty, and the International Energy Agency, where Secretary Wright has already led the return of common sense and energy realism to the international discourse. If confirmed, I will endeavor to unite our allies behind unleashing economic prosperity through removing regulatory burdens, unlocking and securing supply chains for critical minerals, and advancing pro-innovation policies. Finally, I worked tirelessly to address the most urgent humanitarian need today of broadening energy access. As we meet here today, seven hundred million people have zero access to electricity and nearly one third of humanity lacks access to clean cooking fuels contributing to two to three million annual deaths from indoor air pollution. Again, I would like to thank you for the opportunity to be appear before you today. If confirmed, I look forward to working closely with this committee and the professional staff in advancing the international energy interests of the United States.

Thank you very much, Mr. Farzan. OK, we'll now begin, um, five-minute rounds of questions. I - I will begin asking the first round, then we'll go to the ranking member, Heinrich, and then we'll alternate between Republicans and Democrats, uh, in order of seniority, subject to the early bird rule. Um, but, yeah, let's begin. And, Mr. Lilley, I'll start with you. Thanks for your work uh w- with me in um in trying to stop the time to entry uh system and in in doing so with regard to Arches National Park. At Arches and also at Zion, time to entry is opposed aggressively by the locals, by the county, uh the governor of Utah, the entirety of Utah's congressional delegation. Um, specifically because it limits visitor spending and it keeps the people of Utah and the American people generally out of their national parks. Uh, will you work with me to ensure that timed entry doesn't occur at Zion?

Yes, sir.

Thank you. Um, Mister Haig, in twenty twenty four, the Department of Homeland Security created an a new visa waiver sub-program, uh, uh, under the CNMI Economic Vitality and Security Travel Authorization program. This sub-program allows pre-screened Nationals of the People's Republic of China to travel to the Northern Mariana Islands without a visa and to remain there for up to fourteen days, provided they meet certain basic minimum requirements. On April twenty second of this year, of of twenty twenty six, I, along with a few of my colleagues, sent a letter to Secretaries Mullen and Burgum asking that this program be closed. I reiterated in, uh, at that point in last week's uh territories hearing, though I did note that CNMI's concern for uh the Northern Marianas tourism industry is legitimate and it's worth addressing, but it's also something that can be addressed without necessarily continuing the program. As Assistant Secretary you'll have authority to uh be uh not to close the program uh yourself, uh that of course lies with Secretary Mullen, but you'll undoubtedly be consulted. Will you work with me help get this program closed, um, so that we can work towards a better, safer set of solutions to CNMI's tourism industry issues.

Senator, I believe that the, uh, uh, birth tourism is a pernicious abuse of our laws, and I will work with you to find the right solution there. As you pointed out, I am more of a consultant. It is ultimately with DHS, the decision.

Right. But, thank you. I appreciate your willingness, uh, to help with the consultative process, which is itself independently important. Mister Farzad, uh, i- if you're confirmed, uh, you i- in that position, uh, and your office will be involved in bilateral energy dialogues, uh, with dozens and dozens of countries. Some of these may not necessarily be countries that one would consider our trusted allies. What are some of the guardrails that the Department of Energy oughta use to help protect uh, the these precious uh and sensitive assets that are our national laboratories. Um, uh, we we've got to protect our national laboratory research in technology, while also preserving beneficial international collaboration. How will you help us do that?

Uh, thank you, Mister Chairman, for the question, and thank you for taking the time to meet with me. I really enjoyed our our conversation. I completely share your concerns on this. I think safeguarding our taxpayer-funded research in our seventeen national labs, um, is, uh, from foreign exploitation and theft is of the highest priority. Um, and I can assure you this will be a very key area of my focus, if confirmed. Um, while I can't speak to current, uh, department progress on implementing some of the, um, measures that the administration has been implementing since, uh, January of last year, I can say that this administration has taken substantive steps, uh, to tackle this problem. um, since last January, including by implementing robust monitoring, um, uh, streamlining the transparency of foreign connections, disclosures, and expanding entity of concern prohibitions. Um, but, Mister Chairman, I, I look forward to working with you on this, uh, subject and it'll have my, um, uh, my, uh, my focus.

Thank you. Um, and, uh, Mister Lilley, thanks for chatting me with, uh, with me, uh, recently about the Glen Canyon National Recreation Area. Um, as we discussed the other day, Lake Powell provides world-class recreation opportunities. Um, and it's a place where Americans from all over the country, including a whole lot of Utahns, I would add, uh, they have enjoyed, uh, their summers. Um, sometimes spring, sometimes fall, but definitely summers for many generations. And we hope that that'll be a resource that people continue to be able to enjoy for generations to come. But, As we discussed, you have an opportunity to dramatically improve the visitor experience there and uh to - to make sure that access um remains not only uh uh possible but um but achievable and not unduly burdensome. Can you speak about some of the ways that you plan to improve the visitor experience at Glen Canyon National Recreation Area and uh, and commit to working with me and with the state of Utah on that effort?

Yes sir. Uh, yes, sir, Mr. Chairman. I think that the the approach to visitor service is one that involves innovation and thinking about things perhaps differently than we have in the past. As you said earlier, um, one of the principal, um, executive orders of the President, as well as secretarial orders of Secretary Bergamot, is to make our parks open and accessible to the American people. As I mentioned in your office when I first arrived, I requested and told that no one will refer to an American citizen as a guest in a national park. Our citizens own these parks. Consequently, they should have unfettered access to them and never be in a position whereby a working class family making a four-hour trip or a five-hour trip could be turned away in reference to your earlier discussions on Timed entry. As it relates to the Lake Powell situation, I think that we can be more innovative in the way that we actually look at the structure of the lake itself, look at ingress and egress, and basically look at the utilization, which I think as we discussed, the majority is on the ends and there is a vast and magnificent stretch of water in the middle of the lake that is basically unutilized because there is limited access. And indeed there has been access points which have been closed based upon regulation. So, Senator, I would work with you and any senator in your respective states in order to make sure that access is not burdened by regulation.

Thank you very much. Uh, Chair now recognizes uh a ranking member, Senator Heinrich.

Thank you, Chairman. Uh, Mister Lilley, we now have twelve reported New World Screwworm infestations in the uh, continental United States. Um, I I frankly worry that there could be many more infestations in the wildlife populations, um, as opposed to livestock that have not been detected and that the federal government is not adequately focusing on in part due to the lack of staff on the ground in our public lands parks and wildlife refuges. Um, what resources does Fish and Wildlife Service have to monitor for New World screw screw worm cases?

Uh, thank you, Senator. Um, and I think we may have touched on this earlier. Um, the New World's grooms phenomenon is not a new one. It has existed in this country for many years and it was eradicated, I believe, in the nineteen sixties through technology involving uh, sterilized, um, um, breeding. We basically thought that this was eradicated. However, most recently came to my attention I think earlier in the year that some cases had been found in Mexico approximately three hundred miles. That has now, through various means, um, entered into the United States. So, as this is a primarily Department of Agriculture issue, uh, your mention of wildlife is one in which, um, our job and our mission, sir, is to collaborate and utilize the technology that we have within the fish and wildlife, whether that be technological drones, algorithms, trying to determine particular locations of vulnerable species and work closely with the Department of Agriculture to try to um identify hot spots, locations, which will better enable us to use, I think, uh proactive uh mitigation efforts through science.

There are a number of uh national wildlife refuges in South and i think it's important that we uh make sure that they

yes sir

uh that we're using those lands to to be part of the detection uh infrastructure for new world screw worm um i wanna shift real quickly to international conservation funding um those accounts have been stalled uh secretary bergham recently promised senator merkeley uh, during an interior appropriations hearing that international funding would move. Um, I've raised this issue with you a, a number of times now. I understand that you have the authority to approve those accounts. Uh, what's the realistic timeline to get those funds moved?

Yes, sir. Um, and thank you for our discussions last week. Uh, and my commitment to you then is the same, is that, um, we are moving in a positive direction and we will have a solution that you will be pleased with. I hope by the end of the week, if not the end of next week.

Fantastic. Feel free to reach out to me directly, uh, when you reach a conclusion on those.

Yes, sir.

Um, Mister Haig, I also wanted you to to ask you a little bit about the Department of Interior's authorities and grants related to international conservation. Um. Um. What can you tell me about the implementation of Saide's ESA multinational species conservation funds? and the importance of that work to our international partners.

Thank you for your question. Thank you for the question, Senator. Uh, again, uh, I do manage the international part of DOI, which is making sure that the department stays consistent across its desires, uh, a- across the secretary's strategies. Um, we're more procedural than substantive. And to that end, we do a lot of work, like when they hold the massive SIDES meetings that was held in Uzbekistan this year, getting the people there and getting them back. Consequently, again, in that role, I find myself consultative uh, and supportive of, of getting the people over there and help them accomplish what they're doing.

Yeah, I, I appreciate that. You know, one of the things we've realized, a number of the members who, uh, work in particular in on the African continent have realized that natural, uh, resource management is, is actually national security. It is what, you know, provides the infrastructure, uh, that pushes back on many of the influences that we're concerned about on the continent. And so it's important that we meet our obligations, because when we don't, um, we, we suffer in terms of, uh, national security. Um, uh, Mr. Lilley, last question. I I'm concerned about the the level of Park Service uh staffing with the recent reductions. Um, we've seen another uh, you know, proposal to reduce staffing by as much as twenty-five percent in the current FY twenty-seven budget. How do those reductions align with your, you know, stated support of the National Park Service and its mission?

Uh, that's a great question, Senator. Thank you. Um, I think that, as in all processes involving um human relations human capital and proper staffing there are multiple approaches that can be used to reach optimal levels of coverage um and also different sources of employment that we have entered into i think one of the areas that i think will greatly benefit the national park service as well as the communities that surround them, as well as our tribal partners is local hiring, which you all authorized. And I am pleased to say that we are moving forward in this way to allow gateway communities, tribal partners to be part of the ecosystem around the national parks. I was recently at one of our parks and I asked the superintendent, how many employees in this park live in the gateway community that is just outside the gate, literally. And they said zero. And I thought that was unacceptable as an answer. It certainly was not their intent. But it is the cumbersome nature, often found in some of the the more arcane methods of seeking federal employment, that we hope to minim- minimize, uh, through our local hiring. In addition, sir, we have increased our number of seasonal hirings, not only in numbers, from five thousand to six thousand, but also we've increased the duration from six months to nine months. So therefore, parks that have a longer seasonal cycle will not be burdened by losing these very valuable seasonal employees.

Senator Hoven.

Thank you, Mr. Chair. Um, Mr. Farzad, um, in North Dakota, we're working on a major initiative that I refer to as Crack the Code two point O. Uh, we've been working with uh Secretary Wright and also with Undersecretary Hausweit. Uh, right now we have a hundred and fifty-seven million dollar, a large demonstration project partnership between Department of Energy, State of North Dakota and Private Enterprise to put to basically develop taking CO two from our coal for electric plants and uh using it for enhanced oil recovery. And this is a project at scale to demonstrate that we can do that. The whole point is to increase oil production from our oil fields. Right now we produce one point one million barrels a day. Uh, and uh, unfortunately that's put us a little bit behind the State of New Mexico. Uh, we're also behind Texas, so we're third, but we we may not be able to catch Texas, but we're determined to catch New Mexico. Uh, and I know our ranking member is determined to stay ahead. But we think with EOR we can we peaked at one point five million barrels a day. we now have dropped down to one point one million barrels a day. We want to drive that number back up and also make sure our coal plants are around for the long term. So that's the whole concept. And of course, because of shale, uh, which we've been at for about twenty, the shale play in oil and gas, we've driven domestic production from about five million barrels a day in this country to about fourteen million barrels of production per day now. I know you're in the international realm, but This is all about domestic energy, domestic security, not only oil and gas, but baseload electricity. How are you gonna help us with this major initiative, not only important for our state but important for our country?

Well, Senator, thank you for the question. Um, the advances in enhanced oil recovery are are truly magnificent, and I think uh they'll continue to accelerate, uh, particularly under this administration that put such a premium on making sure that we can bump up the percentages.

Yeah, it's about ten and we wanna double that.

Um, coverable. Yeah, we wanna double it. Exactly. And and I think, you know, it's part of the reason I think Secretary Wright has been so clear, uh, when he's talking about the and the discourse of our natural resources, that we're not going to run out of, uh, oil anytime soon, and that we have all these methods to increase the efficiencies. And I think just looking internationally, you know, once we've figured that out domestically, the opportunity to then export uh that know-how and that knowledge to strengthen our our our allies um and our and our partners to insure that they have what they need i mean argentina's shale play is is really interesting to see and it's come such a long way so quickly um so there is opportunities for us as well after we figured out the domestic

i want you to help us do it i'm less concerned about the other guys

well absolutely uh senator and i think my my primary uh focus will be to insure that the united states has what it needs to increase efficiencies enhance oil recovery technologies that we need. I think part of the way the Office of International Affairs can help on this, and and I'm sure that they they're working on this, is ensuring that the right kinds of investment and uh engagement with our international partners to support the overall research and development of these technologies continues at pace um and that's what I uh uh insure to you, that I will uh work on.

You're committed to help us in any way you can.

Absolutely, Senator.

Thank you very much. Appreciate it. Mister Lilly, um Our state's in the flyway for waterfowl, so we have a lot of easements. Matter of fact, the I'm a hunter, I love to hunt, maybe you do too, I don't know. But it's a really important area for waterfowl, so we appreciate all that, but we also have really good farm country up there. And unfortunately, too often we hear from landowners and our farmers, uh, that they're very frustrated with fish and wildlife services, uh, and they feel that there's inconsistent enforcement of the easements. And a lot of time a real lack of common sense. And these guys own the land. How you gonna help us solve it?

Thank you, Senator, I know that is an issue to you as well as to Senator Cramer. Um, and I had the opportunity earlier this year to meet with the North Dakota C- Corn Growers Association in which this was a primary topic of conversation. I am not a farmer, but I understand the setback issue and I understand how the tiles work. to draw water away to maintain um the um and nurture the soil itself however i also know that sometimes the nature of the setback can be an uh an arbitrary and somewhat arcane formula and model and so this easement issue i know is a very important issue not only to the people of north dakota but elsewhere and so senator i can assure you that I have had numerous meetings with Director Nesvik on this topic, um, as well as others within the Department of the Interior to come up with a reasonable solution for this issue that can be both beneficial as a I'm a duck runner as well, um, my son's living on the near the Garwood Prairie of Texas, that's where we spend a lot of our weekends, and so I am very appreciative of the nature of major flyways. I'm also very sensitive and appreciative that we must maintain wetlands for our migratory birds. I'm also cognizant, however, that there has to be balance. And that the farmers of North Dakota deserve a um a transparent interpretation of the setback laws that have been applied through the Fish and Wildlife Service.

Regulating in a common sense, farmer-friendly way is not only important for our farmers and ranchers, but it actually creates more and better

yes sir i do a hundred percent

thank you i'm impressed that you didn't use the word bison at any point

i i was trying to work it in there

yeah it happens to all of us sometimes we can't work in the word bison uh senator hirono you're up next

thank you mr. chairman to ensure the fitness to serve all nominees who come before any of the committees on which I said I asked the following two initial questions of the nominees. And we'll start with uh, Mister Hagan go right down the line. Since you became a legal adult, have you ever made unwanted requests for sexual favors or committed any verbal or physical harassment or assault of a sexual nature?

No, ma'am.

Mister Lilly?

No, ma'am. No, Senator.

Next question, have you ever faced

No, Senator.

No, ma'am, I have not.

No, Senator.

For Mr. Haig, you will will be uh responsible for overseeing the assistance and maintaining relationships with the territories and the freely associated states and I know you're uh familiar with the fact that we completed our compacts with the freely associated states. very important and now we need to deliver on the provisions of the contact compacts and i'm glad that you noted in your testimony how important these uh relationships are and uh the the awareness of the responsibilities that we have with them and i'm i understand that you have visited each of the compact nations that would be palau micronesia and the marshall islands