WASHINGTON — Utah Sen. Mike Lee will lead the Senate’s Energy and Natural Resources Committee when Republicans take control of the chamber next year, while incoming Sen. John Curtis will serve on committees focused on commerce, the environment, foreign relations and small business.
Sen. John Thune, R-South Dakota, the recently elected leader of the GOP Senate conference, announced the committee assignments last week, noting that they still need to be ratified by the full Senate when the chamber meets early next year. Lee — Utah’s senior Republican senator — will be elevated to chair the Energy and Natural Resources committee on which he currently serves. He will continue to serve on the Budget Committee and the Judiciary Committee and will pick up a post on the Foreign Relations Committee.
“It is an honor to serve the people of Utah,” Lee said in a post when the committee roles were announced.
Curtis, meanwhile, will serve alongside Lee on the Foreign Relations Committee, while also being picked for the Committees on Commerce, Environment and Public Works, and Small Business. Romney — who Curtis was elected to replace — currently serves on the Budget and Foreign Relations Committees. He also serves on the Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committee and the Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee — both of which will no longer have Utah representation in the next Congress.
“Tackling inflation, unlocking American energy, combatting global instability, and supporting small businesses are priorities Utahns have asked me to address,” Curtis said in a statement. “I’m ready to get things done.”
Curtis founded the Conservative Climate Caucus during his tenure in the U.S. House of Representatives and has long focused on energy policy. He told the Deseret News earlier this month that his top choice for a committee post would have been on the Energy and Natural Resources Committee but that it “wouldn’t make a lot of sense” for two Utahns to serve on it together once Lee was named chairman.
At the time, Curtis also expressed interest in serving on the Environment and Public Works, Finance, Commerce, Banking or Foreign Relations committees. Curtis currently serves on the House Energy and Commerce Committee and House Natural Resources Committee.
Committee assignments for Utah’s House delegation were announced earlier this month as well, with Utah’s four representatives serving across committees focused on natural resources, science, budgeting, appropriations, education and infrastructure. Utah Rep. Blake Moore will continue to serve as vice chairman of the House Republican Conference and will also lead a new caucus to work with President-elect Donald Trump’s Department of Government Efficiency.
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