Rep. Hastings wins Natural Resources post

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Story Published: Dec 11, 2008 at 6:48 PM PDT

By MATTHEW DALY Associated Press Writer

WASHINGTON (AP) - Rep. Doc Hastings of Washington state will be the top Republican on the House Natural Resources Committee when Congress convenes in January.

Hastings, who was just elected to his eighth term, replaces Rep. Don Young of Alaska, who stepped down under pressure from GOP leaders. Young says he is focusing on clearing his name in a corruption investigation.

Hastings, 67, of Pasco, Wash., served on the Resources panel during his first term in Congress in the mid-1990s, but has been on leave from the panel since. Hastings has served as a senior member of the House Rules and Ethics panels.

A panel of top House leaders picked Hastings over Utah's Rob Bishop on Thursday. The recommendation by the GOP Steering Committee is final under a rule change adopted Wednesday.

"This post offers an opportunity to make a real difference for families and communities across the West and throughout rural America," Hastings said in a statement. "As ranking member, I will work to strike a responsible balance between protecting our nation's many natural treasures and spurring economic recovery through the wise use of our energy, water, mineral and timber resources."

The Natural Resources Committee has jurisdiction over most of the nation's public lands and plays a pivotal role in shaping federal energy, environment, land use and natural resource policies.

Hastings has managed floor debate for the GOP on scores of natural resources bills considered during the past 12 years. His central Washington state district includes national forests, federal wilderness areas, the Grand Coulee Dam, Yakama Indian Reservation and two massive federal irrigation projects that provide water for much of the state, as well as a vast array of croplands, vineyards and orchards.

Hastings, a former chairman of the House Ethics Committee, will be the first lawmaker from Washington state to serve as chairman or ranking member of two separate standing committees of the House, according to the Congressional Research Service.

As ranking member, Hastings will have control over hiring most of the Resources committee's GOP staff, and will set priorities for the panel's subcommittees on energy and mineral resources; fisheries, wildlife and oceans; national parks, forests and public lands; water and power; and insular affairs.

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