Republican Richard Norman "Doc" Hastings represents Washington's 4th congressional district in the US House of Representatives where he has served since 1995. At the start of the 112th Congress, "Doc" was selected by his colleagues to serve as the chairman of the House Natural Resources Committee. The Natural Resources Committee has jurisdiction over most federal land use and water policies, including national forests, national parks and monuments, wilderness areas, national scenic areas, Indian reservations, BLM lands, fisheries and oceanography.