The number of fish stocks on the federal overfishing list hit an all-time low last year, according to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA).

NOAA credited catch-share programs for the reduction in overfishing. That system caps the amount of fish allowed to be caught and awards a share of that total to registered fishermen.

“Annual catch limits to end overfishing and rebuilding plans for overfished stocks mean our fisheries are actively managed to achieve the greatest benefit for the nation,” NOAA said in the annual report it released Thursday.

House Republicans are using every tool at their disposal to keep political pressure on President Obama over the proposed Keystone XL oil sands pipeline.

Next Tuesday the House Science, Space and Technology Committee will be the latest of several House panels to hold a hearing on TransCanada Corp.’s proposed pipeline, which remains under federal review.

“Contrary to the President’s repeated calls for an ‘all of the above’ approach to energy, the administration’s policies have been focused more on regulation than production,” said Science Committee Chairman Lamar Smith (R-Texas) in a statement.

Federal investigators say JPMorgan Chase manipulated power markets and that its senior executives lied under oath about the firm's practices, according to The New York Times.

Energy surfaced in Thursday discussions between President Obama and Mexican leader Enrique Peña Nieto, Reuters reports.

Nebraska law enforcement officials are discussing how to manage protests during construction of the Keystone XL oil sands pipeline, writes The Associated Press.

A new study shows hydraulic fracturing, or fracking, in dry regions is straining water resources, the Houston Chronicle reports.

The Chronicle also has the latest on the federal civil trial for the 2010 Gulf of Mexico oil spill.

The Senate Environment and Public Works Committee will vote May 9 on whether to advance the nomination of Gina McCarthy to lead the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), the panel announced Thursday.

McCarthy, who would replace former EPA Administrator Lisa Jackson, heads the agency’s Office of Air and Radiation.

“Gina McCarthy is a strong, bipartisan candidate and is the right person for the job at this critical time. The EPW Committee’s business meeting is an important step forward in the confirmation process,” Committee Chairwoman Barbara Boxer (D-Calif.) said in a statement.

Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee Chairman Ron Wyden (D-Ore.) wants President Obama to expedite use of a tool that encourages energy efficiency within the federal government.

Wyden said the administration should contract for the remaining $1.5 billion of energy savings performance contracts (ESPCs) by the end of the year.

“ESPCs are a good deal for the government. These projects save money by reducing the cost of energy and operations in federal buildings, and they do not require any outlay of funds,” Wyden told Obama in a Thursday letter.

A major oil and gas trade group said Thursday that it’s hopeful forthcoming federal hydraulic fracturing, or fracking, rules will incorporate industry suggestions.

Erik Milito, upstream group director with the American Petroleum Institute (API), said it was encouraging that the Interior Department pulled back draft fracking rules in January.

“Each time a new draft has come out we believe it’s moved in a positive direction. Our concern is still that they are implementing measures that haven’t been demonstrated to fill any particular gap that’s not already been filled,” Milito said during a media briefing at API’s Washington, D.C., office.

The total would have been higher had sequester-imposed spending cuts not shaved off more than $30 million, officials said.

A new government report identifies myriad factors for the disappearance of honeybees, a previously mystifying phenomenon that has baffled scientists since 2006.

The report, jointly released on Thursday by the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA), blames "a complex set" of environmental stresses that have caused a dramatic decline among bee colonies, a symptom dubbed colony collapse disorder.

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The American Petroleum Institute (API) has hired Christopher Rager to be the powerful oil and gas industry group’s director of state relations.

Working with states is familiar terrain for Rager, who comes to the API from his job as senior state liaison at the National Rifle Association.

“Rager has a strong background in creating and running legislative, political, grassroots and PAC campaigns. His federal and state legislative experience will go a long way to effectively advocating our industry’s interests,” said Rolf Hanson, the API’s senior director of state government relations.