News List

Hastings Joins Endangered Species Act Working Group
Press Release
May 9, 2013 - House Natural Resources Committee Chairman Doc Hastings (WA-04) today joined other Members of the House of Representatives in announcing the creation of the Endangered Species Act (ESA) Working Group. Throughout this year, the Working Group will hold a series of events, forums, and hearings that will invite discussion ... More

Chairman Hastings Joins Calls for Obama Administration to Fully Delist Gray Wolf
Press Release
Mar 25, 2013 - House Natural Resources Committee Chairman Doc Hastings (WA-04), Senator Orin Hatch (UT), Senator John Barrasso and Rep. Cynthia Lummis (WY) today, along with 68 other Members of Congress, sent a bipartisan, bicameral letter to U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS) Director Dan Ashe urging support for the delisting of... More

Wall Street Journal Editorial: Fishing for Wildlife Lawsuits
Blog
Mar 11, 2013 - "The Interior Department's Fish and Wildlife Service has resurrected a Clinton-era tactic known as 'sue and settle.' With this strategy, outside green groups friendly to the Administration sue the government, demanding a particular regulatory action. The agency happily forswears court and sits down with the plaintiffs ... More

Chairman Hastings Statement on FWS Extension of Public Comment for Lesser Prairie Chicken ESA Designation
Press Release
Feb 28, 2013 - House Natural Resources Committee Chairman Doc Hastings (WA-04) today released the following statement after receiving a partial response from U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service Director Dan Ashe to his February 7th request for an extended public comment period for Lesser Prairie Chicken designation under the Endangered Sp... More

Hastings, Lucas, Peterson Praise Federal Court Ruling on NOAA’s Salmon Opinion
Press Release
Feb 22, 2013 - In a major victory for American agriculture, the 4th Circuit Court of Appeals issued a landmark ruling Thursday in the case Dow AgroSciences LLC v. National Marine Fisheries Service reaffirming that government decision-making must be based on science and not the misguided agenda of activist groups. House Natural Resour... More

Chairman Hastings' Keynote Speech before the Family Farm Alliance Annual Conference
Op-Eds and Speeches
Feb 22, 2013 - Thank you for that warm welcome and introduction, Mike (LaPlant). For those of you who don’t know, Mike is the President of the Washington State Farm Bureau and a Director of the Quincy-Columbia Basin Irrigation District. Mike is not only a constituent from Ephrata, Washington, but a friend. And I want to thank you at ... More

Mr. President, Where are the Jobs??
Resourceful Information
Jan 25, 2013 - As many media outlets have pointed out, the one issue most notably absent from President Obama’s inaugural address this week was jobs. With unemployment at 7.8 percent and the economy and jobs still topping the list of Americans’ greatest concerns, it’s baffling why the President chose not to mention this in his first ... More

Hastings Statement on Obama Administration's Proposed Listing of the Lesser Prairie Chicken
Press Release
Nov 30, 2012 - House Natural Resources Committee Chairman Doc Hastings (WA-04) released the following statement regarding U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service’s proposal to list the Lesser Prairie Chicken as threatened under the Endangered Species Act: “The Obama Administration’s proposed listing of the Lesser Prairie Chicken as a threatened... More

FWS and NOAA Extend Comment Period on Proposed Revisions to Critical Habitat Economic Impact Analyses
Press Release
Oct 23, 2012 - Today, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (FWS) and the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) granted a request by House Natural Resources Committee Chairman Doc Hastings (WA-04) to extend the comment period of the FWS and NOAA Fisheries Proposed Revisions to Critical Habitat Economic Impact Analyses f... More

Chairman Hastings Letter to Director Ashe and Administrator Lubchenco Requesting Extension of Comment Period of USFWS and NOAA Fisheries Proposed Revisions to Critical Habitat Economic Impact Analyses
Letters
Oct 19, 2012 - Dear Director Ashe and Administrator Lubchenco: I write regarding your agencies’ recent proposed rule that would make sweeping changes to regulations for analyzing the economic impacts of critical habitat designations under the Endangered Species Act (ESA). I understand that the comment period for this proposed rule is... More

Center for Biological Diversity Disregards 2011 Settlement Agreement, Files Major Endangered Species Act Petition
Blog
Aug 8, 2012 - “We're disappointed that they filed another large, multi-species petition. Fifty-three species is a large number, and the species are spread across the country.” – Gary Frazer, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service Assistant Director for Endangered Species The Center for Biological Diversity (CBD) recently petitioned the U.S.... More

All Witnesses Agree: Litigation, Red Tape Fuel Megafires that Damage Forests, Communities, and Species
Press Release
Jul 24, 2012 - Today, the House Natural Resources Committee held an oversight hearing on, “The Impact of Catastrophic Forest Fires and Litigation on People and Endangered Species: Time for Rational Management of our Nation's Forests.” The hearing focused on the devastating impacts of catastrophic wildfires on people and species and h... More

DOJ Documents Confirm Center for Biological Diversity Received Millions in Taxpayer Funds from ESA-Related Lawsuits
Press Release
Jun 27, 2012 - The Center for Biological Diversity today sent a letter to House Natural Resources Committee Chairman Doc Hastings claiming their organization had only received $553,000 in taxpayer funds resulting from Endangered Species Act (ESA) related attorney fees and court cases. This claim conflicts with data obtained from the ... More

Litigation Drives Endangered Species Act to the Detriment of Species and People
Press Release
Jun 19, 2012 - Today, the House Committee on Natural Resources continued its series of full committee oversight hearings on how to improve and update the Endangered Species Act (ESA). Today’s hearing focused on ESA litigation and how attorneys’ fees are being used by certain organizations to continue endless lawsuits. Witnesses at th... More

Millions of Taxpayer Dollars Spent on Endangered Species Act Litigation and Attorney Fees
Resourceful Information
Jun 19, 2012 - According to data recently obtained from the Department of Justice (DOJ) in response to document requests, the federal government has defended more than 570 Endangered Species Act (ESA)-related lawsuits costing U.S. taxpayers more than $15 million in attorney fees – in just the past four years. This data provides furth... More

Further Details Sought on Costs of Hundreds of Endangered Species Act Lawsuits and Settlements
Press Release
May 31, 2012 - Today, House Natural Resources Committee Chairman Doc Hastings (WA-04) sent a series of letters to the Obama Administration requesting further information on how much the federal government spends on Endangered Species Act (ESA)-related litigation and settlement costs. The ESA has become increasingly driven by litigati... More

Chairman Hastings Letters to Obama Administration Officials Requesting Further Information on Endangered Species Act Lawsuits and Settlements
Letters
May 31, 2012 - Dear Secretary Salazar and Director Ashe: The Committee on Natural Resources (“Committee”) has jurisdiction over matters involving fisheries and wildlife, including the Endangered Species Act of 1973 (“ESA”), 16 U.S.C. §§ 1531-1599. The goal of the ESA was to preserve, protect and recover key domestic species. However,... More

Northwest Federal Forest Regulations Have Devastated Forest Health, Local Economies With Little Benefit to Northern Spotted Owl
Press Release
May 21, 2012 - Today, the Subcommittee on National Parks, Forests and Public Lands held an oversight field hearing in Longview, Washington on, “Failed Federal Forest Policies: Endangering Jobs, Forests and Species.” The hearing examined how federal implementation of the Northwest Forest Plan and Endangered Species Act has affected lo... More

Chairman Hastings' Op-Ed in The Washington Times: Time to improve the Endangered Species Act
Op-Eds and Speeches
May 21, 2012 - HASTINGS: Time to improve the Endangered Species Act By House Natural Resources Committee Chairman Doc Hastings Washington Times May 18, 2012 When the Endangered Species Act (ESA) was signed into law in 1973 by President Nixon, he spoke about the importance of preserving “the rich array of animal life with which our c... More

Chairman Hastings Seeks Answers from DOJ on Endangered Species Act Litigation and Settlement Costs
Press Release
Mar 21, 2012 - Earlier this week, House Natural Resources Committee Chairman Doc Hastings (WA-04) sent a letter to U.S. Department of Justice Assistant Attorney General Ignacia Moreno asking for detailed information on how much taxpayer money is being spent on Endangered Species Act (ESA) related litigation and settlements involving ... More

Chairman Hastings Letter to Assistant Attorney General Moreno on Endangered Species Act Litigation and Settlement Costs
Letters
Mar 19, 2012 - Dear Assistant Attorney General Moreno: The Committee on Natural Resources ("Committee") has jurisdiction over matters involving fisheries and wildlife, including the Endangered Species Act of 1973 ("ESA"), 16 U.S.C. §§ 1531-1599. The goal of the ESA was to preserve, protect and recover key domestic species. However, t... More

Members Question Obama Admin on FY13 Budget Priorities, Raise Concern Over Endangered Species Act Litigation, Settlements
Press Release
Mar 6, 2012 - Today, the House Subcommittee on Fisheries, Wildlife, Oceans and Insular Affairs held an oversight hearing on the FY 2013 budget requests for the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), the Department of the Interior’s Office of Insular Affairs and the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (FWS). The hearing f... More

Examining the Financial Impacts of Endangered Species Act Lawsuits and Settlements
Resourceful Information
Mar 6, 2012 - Today, the Subcommittee on Fisheries, Wildlife, Oceans and Insular Affairs will hold an oversight hearing on the FY 2013 budget requests for the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service and the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. As part of Chairman Doc Hastings’ ongoing efforts to review the Endangered Species Act ... More

Secretary Salazar Confirms Costs of ESA Litigation & Settlements are Unknown
Press Release
Feb 15, 2012 - Today during a Full Committee hearing on the President’s FY 2013 budget, Secretary of Interior Ken Salazar agreed that reforms to the Endangered Species Act (ESA) are needed to make it less lawsuit driven and admitted that he doesn’t currently know how much the Department spends on ESA-related litigation costs. The Nat... More

Platts Energy Week Interview with Chairman Doc Hastings
Blog
Jan 30, 2012 - Chairman Doc Hastings sat down with Platts Energy Week to discuss the American Energy & Infrastructure Jobs Act, legislation that would link expanded American energy production with high priority infrastructure projects. Chairman Hastings told Platts, "The revenues from this [legislation] will build and maintain our in... More

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