Washington, D.C. (May, 22,2014) - Earlier this week, Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack announced a plan to help 94 national forests in 35 states deal with insect and disease threats that increase the risk of catastrophic wildfire. The designations were made possible by the passage of the 2014 Farm bill, which amended the Healthy Forest Restoration Act of 2003 to allow the Forest Service to more efficiently plan and accomplish restoration treatments. Read more »
WASHINGTON, D.C. - House Natural Resources Committee Chairman Doc Hastings (WA-04) issued the following statement today on President Obama’s use of the Antiquities Act to unilaterally designate nearly 500,000 acres in New Mexico as the Organ Mountain–Desert Peak National Monument: Read more »
WASHINGTON, D.C. - Today, the House Natural Resources Subcommittee on Energy and Mineral Resources held an oversight hearing on “American Energy Jobs: Opportunities for American Manufacturing.” This hearing examined the growing job opportunities in the manufacturing sector made possible by America’s energy renaissance that’s being fueled by increased energy production. Read more »
WASHINGTON D.C. - Below is an attachment to the 2010 Bureau of Land Management Treasured Landscapes Plan, a secret memo naming possible monument designations by the Obama administration. The list includes millions of acres of Western lands that Department of the Interior intends to seize. Yesterday, President Obama announced he will be using the controversial Antiquities Act to create a new national monument in the Organ Mountains-Desert Peak area of southern New Mexico—a land grab encompassing one-fifth of Dona Ana County. The Organ Mountains-Desert Peak area of Southern New Mexico is on page 13 of this list. The President is going down the list, and sealing off vast swaths of the West on behalf of his special interest allies, who view our states as their personal playground. Read more »
WASHINGTON, D.C. — Congressman Rob Bishop (UT-01) today sent a letter to President Barack Obama urging that he refrain from designating a new national monument on the U.S.- Mexico border given the ongoing violence occurring on federal lands in the southern border regions. News broke last week that a National Park Service (NPS) employee was brutally attacked by drug smugglers on federal land. It has been rumored that President Obama is considering using the controversial Antiquities Act to create a new national monument in the Organ Mountains-Desert Peak area of southern New Mexico. The proposed new national monument lacks local support and there are concerns that it will impede upon the U.S. Border Patrol's ability to conduct security operations. Read more »
Washington, D.C. (May 16, 2014) – Documents released recently reveal that the Environmental Protection Agency may have delayed publication of its New Source Performance Standard (NSPS) rules in order to help Democrats in the 2014 midterm elections. The agency waited until November 25, 2013 to submit their rule to the Federal Register, two months after it releasing it to the public. Due to this late submission, the Federal Register was not able to publish the rule until January 8, 2014. This means that the earliest Congress can hold a vote to repeal the rule is January of 2015. Read more »
WASHINGTON, D.C. – Congressman Walter B. Jones (NC-3) is taking action to modernize the Endangered Species Act (ESA) in order to prevent the waste of taxpayer money and implementation of unnecessary, economically harmful regulations. This week, Congressman Jones is cosponsoring seven pieces of legislation that would bring transparency to ESA processes and reduce the law’s impact on economic growth. Read more »
WASHINGTON, D.C. –Today, Senate Western Caucus Chairman John Barrasso (R-WY) and Congressional Western Caucus co-chairs Stevan Pearce (R-NM) and Cynthia Lummis (R-WY) joined 43 other Caucus Members in sending a letter to Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) Administrator Gina McCarthy. Read more »
WASHINGTON, D.C. - Today, the House Committee on Natural Resources held an oversight hearing on “Keeping the Lights On and Reducing Catastrophic Forest Fire Risk: Proper Management of Electricity Rights of Way on Federal Lands.” The hearing examined the need for improved management and better communication with electric utilities on electricity rights of way on federal lands so that falling, dead, insect-infested or even growing trees do not hit power lines. Such contact can cause electricity blackouts and catastrophic fires. Read more »
WASHINGTON, D.C. - Today, Senate Western Caucus Chairman John Barrasso (R-WY) and Congressional Western Caucus Co-Chairs Stevan Pearce (R-NM) and Cynthia Lummis (R-WY), released a new report entitled: “Washington Gets It Wrong, States Get It Right: A New Report on State Environmental Stewardship.” Read more »
