DC BUREAU

Our Washington, D.C., bureau reports on congressional delegations and key Supreme Court and administrative decisions that affect our state.

STAFF

Jane Norman

DC Bureau Chief

Jane directs national coverage, managing staff and freelance reporters in the nation’s capital and assigning and editing state-specific daily and enterprise stories.

Jacob Fischler

DC Bureau Senior Reporter

Jacob covers federal policy as a senior reporter for States Newsroom. Based in Oregon, he focuses on Western issues. His coverage areas include climate, energy development, public lands and infrastructure.

Ashley Murray

DC Bureau Senior Reporter

Ashley Murray covers the nation’s capital as a senior reporter for States Newsroom. Her coverage areas include domestic policy and appropriations.

Jennifer Shutt

DC Bureau Senior Reporter

Jennifer covers the nation’s capital as a senior reporter for States Newsroom. Her coverage areas include congressional policy, politics and legal challenges with a focus on health care, unemployment, housing and aid to families.

Ariana Figueroa

DC Bureau Reporter

Ariana covers the nation's capital for States Newsroom. Her areas of coverage include politics and policy, lobbying, elections and campaign finance.

STORIES

Louisiana Rep. Steve Scalise talks with reporters after the U.S. House GOP held its leadership elections on Tuesday, Nov. 15, 2022. Scalise was the chief sponsor of an energy bill the House approved on Thursday. (Photo by Jennifer Shutt/States Newsroom)

U.S. House passes sweeping energy bill pushing back against Biden climate policies

BY: - March 30, 2023

WASHINGTON – The U.S. House on Thursday approved a bill packed with Republican energy priorities meant to counteract the Biden administration’s approach and boost U.S. oil and gas production. Numbered H.R. 1 as a signal that energy policy is the House majority’s top legislative priority, the bill includes a package of GOP proposals, ranging from […]

he White House called on the Federal Reserve and other banking regulators to reinstate safeguards for regional banks after the collapse of two banks earlier this month. (Photo via Canva)

White House calls on financial regulators to bring back safeguards for regional banks

BY: - March 30, 2023

WASHINGTON —  The Biden administration, placing blame on Trump-era rollbacks, Thursday called on federal banking regulators to reinstate safeguards for regional banks after the record-setting collapse of Silicon Valley Bank and Signature Bank of New York earlier this month. The White House wants the agencies to revive regular stress testing at banks in the $100- […]

U.S. Capitol is seen in an undated photo. (Photo by Jane Norman/States Newsroom)

U.S. Senate in bipartisan vote repeals decades-old Iraq war authorizations

BY: - March 29, 2023

WASHINGTON — U.S. senators revoked their approval for the Gulf and Iraq wars on Wednesday, taking a broadly bipartisan vote to repeal the Authorizations for Use of Military Force that have stayed on the books years after the two wars ended.  The 66-30 vote sends the measure to the U.S. House, where Speaker Kevin McCarthy […]

The Senate approved a resolution, sponsored by West Virginia Republican Shelley Moore Capito, that would revoke the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s definition of Waters of the United States, or WOTUS, for the purposes of federal regulation under the Clean Water Act. (Photo courtesy of the Iowa Department of Natural Resources)

U.S. Senate clears measure to undo Biden WOTUS rule on wetlands

BY: - March 29, 2023

WASHINGTON — Both Republican and Democratic members of the U.S. Senate voted Wednesday to repeal the Biden administration’s intensely contested expansion of what qualifies as wetlands that the federal government can regulate. The Senate approved a resolution, sponsored by West Virginia Republican Shelley Moore Capito, that would revoke the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s definition of […]

Baby formula is offered for sale at a big box store on January 13, 2022 in Chicago, Illinois. Baby formula has been is short supply in many stores around the country for several months. (Photo by Scott Olson/Getty Images)

Infant formula crisis could recur, former FDA official tells Congress

BY: - March 28, 2023

WASHINGTON — U.S. lawmakers on Tuesday debated if enough has changed to prevent a repeat of the infant formula shortage, more than a year after a nationwide crisis began.  The U.S. House Oversight and Accountability Committee’s Subcommittee on Health Care and Financial Services heard from two experts that while the U.S. Food and Drug Administration […]

Phillip A. Washington speaks at a nomination hearing with the Senate Commerce, Science and Transportation Committee on Capitol Hill on March 1, 2023, in Washington, D.C. (Photo by Anna Moneymaker/Getty Images)

Denver airport CEO withdraws as FAA nominee after attacks by U.S. Senate Republicans

BY: - March 28, 2023

Phil Washington, the chief executive of Denver International Airport and President Joe Biden’s pick to lead the Federal Aviation Administration, withdrew from consideration in the face of persistent Republican opposition, Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg confirmed Saturday night. Reuters first reported Washington’s withdrawal and Buttigieg confirmed it in a late Saturday tweet. Republicans had attacked Washington […]

The U.S. Capitol grounds are seen on March 21, 2023. (Photo by Jennifer Shutt/States Newsroom)

GOP bill establishing a federal parental bill of rights passed in U.S. House

BY: - March 24, 2023

WASHINGTON — U.S. House Republicans on Friday passed a bill designed to empower parents to inspect books and other teaching materials in local public schools, but Democrats sharply criticized the measure, saying it would censor teachers and ban books. The legislation, called the Parents Bill of Rights, passed on a 213-208 vote. It would codify […]

Democratic Sen. Brian Schatz of Hawaii said that the 2018 farm bill was the first in which Native communities “had a meaningful seat at the table." (Photo by Larry Mayer/Getty Images)

Native American agricultural leaders detail farm bill priorities at U.S. Senate hearing

BY: - March 24, 2023

WASHINGTON — A roundtable of Native American agricultural leaders at a recent U.S. Senate hearing lobbied for increased sovereignty and social justice in the coming farm bill by expanding tribes’ jurisdiction over U.S. Department of Agriculture programs.  It’s called “638” authority and refers to Public Law 93-638, which gives tribes the power to manage certain […]

U.S. Rep. Gwen Moore, D-Wisconsin, speaks about the economic impacts of a possible debt default by the federal government during a press conference at the U.S. Capitol on Thursday, March 23, 2023. L-R, Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer of New York, Sen. Martin Heinrich of New Mexico, House Democratic Leader Hakeem Jeffries, of New York (behind Moor), Sen. Tina Smith of Minnesota and Rep. Don Beyer of Virginia. (Photo by Jennifer Shutt/States Newsroom)

Democratic report on U.S. debt default predicts disrupted benefits for seniors, veterans

BY: - March 23, 2023

WASHINGTON — Congress’ Joint Economic Committee released a report Thursday detailing the economic repercussions of defaulting on the nation’s debt, adding fuel to the fire as Democrats pressed Republicans to address the nation’s borrowing limit without tying action to spending cuts. The report, from Democratic staff on the bipartisan Joint Economic Committee, says that a […]

The U.S. Capitol is seen on March 21, 2023. (Photo by Jennifer Shutt/States Newsroom)

DOJ memo on threats to local school boards lambasted by Republicans at U.S. House hearing

BY: - March 23, 2023

WASHINGTON — U.S. House Republicans on Thursday continued to press accusations that a “woke agenda” is deteriorating parents’ rights in their local school districts. The first hearing this Congress of the House Judiciary Committee’s Subcommittee on the Constitution and Limited Government convened to examine whether a 2021 Department of Justice memo played a role in […]

Phillip A. Washington speaks at a nomination hearing with the Senate Commerce, Science and Transportation Committee on Capitol Hill on March 1, 2023, in Washington, D.C. (Photo by Anna Moneymaker/Getty Images)

U.S. Senate committee postpones vote on Denver airport chief’s nomination to lead FAA

BY: - March 22, 2023

The U.S. Senate Commerce, Science and Transportation Committee postponed a scheduled vote Wednesday on Denver International Airport CEO Phil Washington’s nomination to lead the Federal Aviation Administration. The panel’s chairwoman, Washington Democrat Maria Cantwell, said the vote would be held at an unspecified future date and offered few details about why it was pushed. The […]

On March 21, 2023, President Joe Biden designated Avi Kwa Ame National Monument in southern Nevada. Located at the confluence of the Mojave and Sonoran Deserts, the national monument protects innumerable objects of historic and scientific interest, including its namesake Avi Kwa Ame – or Spirit Mountain – and the surrounding arid valleys and mountain ranges that are historically important and sacred places for several Tribal Nations. (U.S. Department of the Interior photo)

Biden officially designates new monuments in Nevada and Texas at conservation summit

BY: - March 21, 2023

WASHINGTON — President Joe Biden stressed that his administration’s efforts to conserve the nation’s land and waters are an expression of fundamental American values at the White House Conservation In Action summit Tuesday afternoon.  Biden also announced the designation of two new national monuments in his address, Avi Kwa Ame National Monument in southern Nevada, […]