One of the House’s top Republican environmental aides is leaving Capitol Hill to join the Environmental Protection Agency.

[IMGCAP(1)]Bob Meyers, who has worked for nearly a decade on energy and environment issues at the Energy and Commerce Committee, has accepted a position as EPA’s assistant administrator for air and radiation.

Before joining the committee, Meyers was chief of staff to Rep. Mike Bilirakis (R-Fla.).

During his time with Energy and Commerce, Meyers worked on legislation ranging from the Clean Air Act to the national energy policy bill still pending before Congress.

A Tribute to Heroes. With Congress preparing for the weeklong Memorial Day district work period, Speaker Dennis Hastert (R-Ill.) has invited all 435 House Members to a special ceremony today to salute their colleagues who served in World War II.

The five guests of honor are Reps. Cass Ballenger (R-N.C.), a Navy veteran; John Dingell (D-Mich.), Army; Ralph Hall (R-Texas), Navy; Amo Houghton (R-N.Y.), Marine Corps; Henry Hyde (R-Ill.), Navy; and Ralph Regula (R-Ohio), Navy.

The bipartisan, Members-only event will begin at 1 p.m. in Statuary Hall.

Caucus Kick-off. To introduce the new Congressional Waterways Caucus, Reps. John Doolittle (R-Calif.), Mike McIntyre (D-N.C.), Gene Taylor (D-Miss.) and Kenny Hulshof (R-Mo.) will hold a press conference at 11 a.m today.

The caucus co-chairmen will discuss the importance of creating a voice within Congress for issues facing America’s waterways and examining legislative and regulatory solutions to challenges facing rivers and waterways. To date, 50 Members of the House have joined the caucus.

They will be joined by representatives of the National Waterways Conference and Fred Carver, deputy director of civil works for the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers. Today’s briefing will take place in Room HC-7 of the Capitol.

— Brody Mullins and John McArdle