In the News
WH Climate Adviser Gina McCarthy, Rep. Sean Casten Discuss Climate Change and Solutions in Illinois
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August 11, 2021
Casten, Underwood Tour Northern Illinois Facilities with White House Official
U.S. Reps. Sean Casten, D-Downers Grove, and Lauren Underwood, D-Naperville, accompanied White House Climate Advisor Gina McCarthy on a tour Tuesday of several scientific facilities in northern Illinois. The tour featured stops at Fermilab in Batavia, North Central College in Naperville and Argonne National Laboratory in Lemont.IPCC ReportThe timing of the tour closely followed the Aug. 9 release of a report compiled and presented by the International Panel for Climate Change (IPCC) detailing … Continue Reading
August 10, 2021
Midwest Climate Innovation tour to highlight region's most pressing environmental needs
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August 10, 2021
‘Answer to the code red’: Dems cite IPCC for climate agenda
Congressional Democrats are pointing to yesterday's major U.N. climate change report as new justification for their legislative proposals to slash greenhouse gas emissions and enact President Biden's climate agenda.Republicans, on the other hand, had less to say about the report, with one member warning that "flawed policies" would only benefit China and Russia.The report from the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change found, among other conclusions, that many impacts of human-induced … Continue Reading
August 10, 2021
Casten, Underwood highlight infrastructure bill's environmental positives
Two suburban lawmakers and the White House climate czar toured two national scientific research facilities Tuesday to promote the economic and environmental benefits of President Biden's proposed infrastructure plan that passed a U.S. Senate hurdle earlier in the day.Their visit comes a day after the release of a damning report by the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change on the state of the worldwide environment. The report states world leaders have to act immediately to reduce human … Continue Reading
August 05, 2021
A Chat With the Congressman Trying to Make 'Hot FERC Summer' Happen
The Congressional Record chronicles nearly everything that happens in the House and Senate. It includes watershed moments such as Rep. Barbara Lee's speech as the only vote against authorizing the use of force in Afghanistan and Sen. Edward Dirksen's speech that ended up helping quash a filibuster against landmark civil rights legislation.Now, it also includes a declaration of Hot FERC Summer. Rep. Sean Casten, a 49-year-old member of Congress who is among the chamber's most prolific energy … Continue Reading
August 04, 2021
Let down by infrastructure bill, climate hawks eye reconciliation
With significantly less funding for climate programs than the White House requested in the Senate's nearly $1 trillion bipartisan infrastructure bill, climate advocates are pinning their hopes on a budget reconciliation bill likely to pass only if Democrats can hold disparate wings of their party together.And even as Democrats are struggling to maintain party unity in support of the tandem bills, conservative Republicans are trying to peel away support for the infrastructure bill among GOP … Continue Reading
July 29, 2021
Robinhood gets 'you addicted' so you 'keep spending money,' lawmaker warns
Robinhood's (HOOD) stock began trading on Thursday at $38 a share, equating to a valuation of around $32 billion by market cap. Shares did not surpass their initial $38 price on Thursday, trading at around $36. Though Robinhood's IPO marks a celebratory occasion for the company and investors, U.S. Congressman Sean Casten (D-IL), urges users and prospective investors to tread carefully. "[Robinhood] is a business that, at [its] core, has no economic interest in creating value for … Continue Reading
July 29, 2021
Congressman Rendition of 'Fergalicious' to Highlight Climate Change Policy: It's 'FERC-alicious'
Listen up, y'all, 'cause this is it, the beat that Rep. Sean Casten is bangin' about politics.On Wednesday, Democratic Rep. Casten, 49, spoke about his bill related to the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission, also known as FERC, by remixing Fergie's hit 2006 track "Fergalicious."First making a fun reference to Megan Thee Stallion's popular song and catchphrase, "Hot Girl Summer," Casten called his argument "hot FERC summer," before he made his case on the House floor."I rise to continue our … Continue Reading
July 29, 2021
Robinhood 'has no economic interest in creating value for customers': Rep. Casten
Rep. Sean Casten (D-IL) joins Yahoo Finance Live to discuss his ‘Trading isn't a Game Act' and the future of trading platforms as Robinhood makes its public debut.Video TranscriptAKIKO FUJITA: For much more on some of the regulatory headwinds that the platform is likely to face moving forward, let's bring in Representative Sean Casten from Illinois. And of course, Congressman, we have you on here because you've introduced this bill, Trading Isn't a Game Act to really look at the gamification … Continue Reading
July 26, 2021
US House lawmaker wants to turbocharge FERC's profile, role in energy transition
A former energy industry executive now serving in the U.S. House of Representatives is on a mission: elevate the public profile of the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission.In doing so, the representative hopes to build support in Congress to turbocharge FERC's authority on a range of policy issues that could facilitate the clean energy transition and help wholesale power markets combat climate change more effectively."What's the [Winston] Churchill line about, 'success is going from failure to … Continue Reading
July 21, 2021
The Day ‘Hot Girl Summer’ Came to Congress
On Tuesday morning, Representative Sean Casten from Illinois stood on the House floor with a poster of the album art for Megan Thee Stallion's "Hot Girl Summer" propped against a display easel beside him. The poster, which features a cartoonish illustration of Megan and collaborator Nicki Minaj riding a bottle of cognac like a horse, had been photoshopped to instead feature the logo for one of the government's most nerdy, esoteric, and arguably un-hot agencies: the Federal Energy Regulatory … Continue Reading
July 17, 2021
Casten talks infrastructure, child tax credit during Saturday town hall
Infrastructure, the child tax credit and clean energy were among the topics U.S. Rep. Sean Casten addressed Saturday during a near-capacity town hall at the American Legion Post in Downers Grove.Casten said his last in-person town hall was 17 months ago, before the state imposed restrictions on public gatherings due to the COVID-19 pandemic."Democracy works best when it's in person, "said Casten, a Downers Grove Democrat representing Illinois' 6th Congressional District, which includes parts … Continue Reading
July 17, 2021
U.S. Rep. Sean Casten Hosts First In-Person Town Hall Since Pandemic Took Hold
More than 200 people turned out for a town hall meeting hosted Saturday, July 17 by U.S. Rep. Sean Casten, D-Downers Grove.The meeting, held at the American Legion Post 80 in Downers Grove, marks the first in-person event that the congressman has organized since the pandemic took hold. Casten said he was excited to meet face-to-face with his constituents.The town hall did not focus on a singular topic, rather an array of issues that concern residents of the 6th Congressional District. From the … Continue Reading
July 16, 2021
Sean Casten: Congress moving in 'the right direction' on clean energy
Rep. Sean Casten (D-Ill.) says that trillion-dollar proposals put together by Congress are moving "in the right direction" on investing in clean energy and climate technology.During an interview on Hill.TV's "Rising," Casten was asked how well he thinks $1.2 trillion bipartisan infrastructure proposal or the $3.5 trillion budget reconciliation proposal addresses clean energy.The $3.5 trillion budget reconciliation proposal includes much of what was left out of the bipartisan proposal, … Continue Reading
July 15, 2021
Chicago Region Prepares to Take Action on Climate Change
The Chicago region is warming faster than the globe, and the frequency and intensity of the area's precipitation is likewise changing faster than elsewhere in the nation.That was the sobering news delivered by Richard Spinrad, the newly sworn-in administrator of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration.Spinrad's comments, made earlier in the week during the virtual launch of the 2021 Climate Action Plan for the Chicago Region, reflected a sense of urgency that's so far been lacking … Continue Reading
July 15, 2021
Lake County’s congressional reps ask EPA to tighten regulation of ethylene oxide emissions
As a new administrator takes charge of the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, members of Congress representing Lake County want to see increased scrutiny over the emissions of ethylene oxide (EtO), a known carcinogen.Reps. Brad Schneider, D-Deerfield, Sean Casten, D-Downers Grove, and Lauren Underwood, D-Naperville, are among eight members of Congress who sent a letter to new EPA Administrator Michael S. Regan on July 1 urging him to issue consistent regulations protecting against … Continue Reading
July 13, 2021
Local leaders unveil plan to take on climate change
After two years of planning, local leaders are ready to take action on climate change.With the goal of decreasing and eventually eliminating greenhouse gas emissions in the next 30 years, leaders from the Metropolitan Mayors Caucus and the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration unveiled a Climate Action Plan designed to mitigate climate effects on the local environment.Geneva Mayor Kevin Burns, chairman of the Metropolitan Mayors Caucus environment committee, hosted Tuesday's online … Continue Reading
July 12, 2021
As Chatterjee's tenure ends, FERC could be 'single most impactful agency' on climate: Rep. Casten
As the clock ticks down on Commissioner Neil Chatterjee's time at the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission, the task of finding a replacement commissioner is growing more urgent for industry and environmental groups. But in Congress, the appointment is being less closely watched than by the industry, despite its potential to accelerate Democratic priorities on renewables integration, fossil fuel infrastructure and more, according to one Democratic representative."I would love to tell you that … Continue Reading
July 08, 2021
Biden in the suburbs: 'Think how life will be when it's quicker to drive on Randall Road'
President Joe Biden promised jobs and better access to education in an appeal that may resonate with suburban swing voters during a historic trip to McHenry County College."America is back," Biden said Wednesday, promising to fund transportation through an infrastructure package that faces opposition in Congress."Think how life will be when it's quicker to drive on Randall Road," Biden quipped, singling out a local traffic hot spot.It's the president's first visit to Illinois since his … Continue Reading