Natural Resources
As an attorney, I fought to return control of natural resources to local entities, not far-away federal bureaucrats. I am honored to serve on the Natural Resources committee to continue this work from the halls of Congress. I also have the privilege of chairing the Subcommittee on Indian and Insular Affairs, working with tribal and territorial leaders on issues important to their communities.
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Democrats lined up to voice their objections to my bill, the Grizzly Bear State Management Act. Time after time, they proposed amendments to the bill, claiming that my bill would strip tribes from a seat at the table for delisting discussions and leave agencies unprepared.
The problem is, those amendments are already in effect through the contents of the Endangered Species Act. Instead of wasting time debating rules that already exist, I hope future committee discussions will focus on the issues that haven't been addressed.
The Greater Yellowstone Ecosystem grizzly bear met its recovery goal 20 years ago, but environmental activists and bureaucratic intervention have prevented its delisting, in line with Endangered Species Act guidelines.
The supposed purpose of the Endangered Species Act is to help animal populations recover to sustainable numbers, at which point they are delisted. Yet only 3% of all species placed on the endangered list have been delisted.
Federal intervention in wildlife management not only hasn't resulted in success as defined under the ESA, but actively hampers state efforts to manage both listed species and unlisted species, often causing risk to unlisted prey species. If the federal government isn't able to find success, maybe it's time we return authority to state authorities who have.
While Democrats cry out that climate change is destroying our forests through devastating wildfires, the reality is much simpler. USDA policies such as the Roadless Rule claim to preserve our wilderness, but instead hamper our ability to thin forests, treat invasive and destructive species like the Rocky Mountain Region Bark Beetle, and rapidly respond to wildfires when they first begin.
As President Joe Biden issues an executive order for all federal agencies to pursue what he calls “climate justice” and simultaneously advances regulations to force Americans to transition to wind and solar energy and electric vehicles (EVs), critics say that these same policies also foster child labor in Africa, feature enormous wealth transfers from the poor to the rich, and will bring “energy poverty” to many Americans.
Are we actually "saving the environment" or have we over regulated to the point that we are not only not saving the environment, but are making it harder for humans to live?
Wyoming congresswoman Harriet Hageman went after the bureaucrats of Washington DC for being people who make "rules," which operate in the same ways as congressional laws, about things they really don't know anything about.
Hageman spoke of farmers, ranchers, loggers, and people in the energy industry, as people who actually produce the things we need.
In a continuation of my questions for Interior Secretary Haaland, she admitted that she both did not know the recovery criteria under the Endangered Species Act for the Greater Yellowstone Ecosystem grizzly population (which was 600-700) and the number alive in the population (over 1100).
With numbers nearly double the required amount under the Endangered Species Act, we must ask: why are Yellowstone grizzlies still listed as endangered? Furthermore, why does Secretary Haaland not know her department's findings?
For 5 minutes I asked Interior Secretary Haaland critical, direct, relevant questions about issues under her purview; questions about coal leasing, pending coal projects, energy prevalence, and so many more issues vital to our nation's existence.
Every question was met with met with an inadequate or incomplete response.
Congressional panels about our nations resources typically fall into two camps: hard working Americans who provide the fundamental building blocks that create a flourishing society, and academics and government bureaucrats who seek to prevent the use of valuable resources and land that could make peoples lives better.
The House Subcommittee on Indian and Insular Affairs met last week to discuss and debate two pieces of legislation that could change the way land leases are handled in Indian Country.