In The News
GOP: Border patrol agents handcuffed by wildlife rules
The Hill By Timothy Cama July 28, 2014 Federal land protections are hampering efforts to stop the flow of illegal immigrants across the border, Republicans say. The Interior Department controls about 800 miles along the dividing line with Mexico, or about 40 percent of the total, with other land in the region owned by the Forest Service. GOP lawmakers argue federal regulations intended to protect land and wildlife have become an obstacle for Customs and Borders Protection o… Continue Reading
07.28.14
House panel to examine bill promoting leases on federal land
E&E News By Jessica Estepa July 28, 2014 A House Natural Resources subcommittee will discuss bipartisan legislation tomorrow that would require the establishment of leasing areas for wind and solar energy on federal land. The bill, H.R. 596, would also establish a royalty system meant to be fair to taxpayers while encouraging development. It also specifies how the royalties will be disbursed. The idea gets the government "out of the way" in order to streamline permittin… Continue Reading
07.25.14
House panel discusses fixing 'abuses' by BLM, Forest Service land managers
E&E News By Scott Streater July 25, 2014 A House panel yesterday continued to hammer away at what GOP lawmakers, local government leaders and ranchers called federal "bullying" tactics and overreach that has gotten out of hand and threatens the very welfare of communities across the West. One of the major talking points at yesterday's House Natural Resources Subcommittee on Public Lands and Environmental Regulation hearing was Forest Service actions in New Mexico to fence… Continue Reading
07.25.14
Lawmakers hope to prohibit offshore drilling for Washington and Oregon
The Daily World July 25, 2014 Washington and Oregon lawmakers hope to prohibit offshore oil and gas drilling in an effort to protect local economies. Sen. Jeff Merkley and Congressman Peter DeFazio, both Oregon Democrats, drafted a letter to the Bureau of Ocean Energy Management asking that the agency instead focus on clean technologies along the Washington and Oregon coasts - such as wave, tidal and wind energy generation. The letter was signed by 12 other members of Congress, including Se… Continue Reading
07.25.14
Northwest Wildfires Boost Call For Funding Reform
Jefferson Public Radio By Liam Moriarty July 25, 2014 Fires continue to rage through tinder-dry wildlands in Oregon, Washington and California. Nearly a million acres have burned so far, destroying more than 200 homes. With the nation's eyes turned toward the Northwest, Oregon Senator Ron Wyden and the Obama Administration have taken the opportunity to renew their efforts to change how the federal government pays to fight -- and prevent - wildfires. From Jefferson Pub… Continue Reading
07.25.14
Utah's Bishop says LWCF must be 'bigger' than land acquisition
E&E News By Phil Taylor July 25, 2014 The Land and Water Conservation Fund should be revamped to help pay for "bigger needs," including local recreation, infrastructure and education, according to Rep. Rob Bishop. For example, Congress should explore using LWCF dollars for payments in lieu of taxes (PILT), an expired program that pays rural counties for the federal lands they are unable to tax, the Utah Republican said. LWCF money could also support the education of future e… Continue Reading
07.24.14
Senate supplemental would approve Obama's wildfire disaster bid
E&E News By Phil Taylor July 24, 2014 The Senate's $3.57 billion supplemental funding bill includes $615 million to fight wildfires and would also approve President Obama's request to fight some future wildfires using disaster funds, the chamber's top appropriator said yesterday. Appropriations Chairwoman Barbara Mikulski (D-Md.) said it is "urgent" that Congress provide relief to firefighters while also providing emergency funds to address the crisis of migrant c… Continue Reading
07.24.14
Bipartisan lawmakers, enviros urge full funding for LWCF
E&E News By Emily Yehle July 24, 2014 A bipartisan group of lawmakers joined environmentalists today to call on Congress to fully fund the Land and Water Conservation Fund, emphasizing its importance to the recreational industry as the fund hits its 50th anniversary. Speaking to a packed Senate hearing room, four lawmakers -- Sens. Susan Collins (R-Maine) and Martin Heinrich (D-N.M.) and Reps. Dave Reichert (R-Wash.) and Peter DeFazio (D-Ore.) -- pointed to parks and public lands in th… Continue Reading
07.24.14
Ideological divisions mark members' approach to mineral crunch
E&E News By Manuel Quinones July 24, 2014 House Natural Resources Committee Republicans yesterday urged the Senate to take up legislation to promote the domestic supply of important minerals for economic growth and clean energy development. But their pleas, made during a hearing of the Energy and Mineral Resources Subcommittee, came one day after the House voted down Democratic legislation meant to do just that. The developments are emblematic of the growing differences of opinion on … Continue Reading
07.22.14
Oregon Congressman seeks wolf buffer around Yellowstone
The Spokesman Review By Rich Landers July 22, 2014 WILDLIFE - An Oregon congressman is asking the Interior Department to work with states to curb gray wolf hunting around Yellowstone National Park in Wyoming and Montana. Rep. Peter DeFazio is the ranking Democrat on the House Natural Resources Committee. Hunters have legally killed Yellowstone wolves that have roamed out of the park after becoming familiar with wolf-watching tourists. Some of these wolves have been radio-collared by wild… Continue Reading
07.21.14
House bill would create emergency fund to fight diseases
E&E News By Jessica Estepa July 18, 2014 A pair of House Democrats yesterday reintroduced legislation aimed at fighting emerging wildlife diseases faster. H.R. 5156, from Reps. Carol Shea-Porter (N.H.) and Peter DeFazio (Ore.), would allow the Interior secretary to identify and declare wildlife disease emergencies and establish a fund the secretary could use to coordinate rapid response. It also calls for coordinated action among federal, state, local, tribal and nongovernmental organ… Continue Reading
07.17.14
Lawmakers target EPA’s water regs
The Hill By Timothy Cama July 17, 2014 The House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee passed two bills Wednesday aimed at undercutting the way the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) regulates water pollution. One of the bills would give states more authority over water pollution permits and state permitting rules, while the other would block the agency's joint proposal with the Army Corps of Engineers to redefine which waters it has jurisdiction over per the Clean Wat… Continue Reading
07.16.14
Mont. Senate candidates vie for American Indian vote with similar pieces of legislation
E&E News By Dylan Brown July 16, 2014 The candidates vying for Montana's up-for-grabs Senate seat have offered slightly different bills to address an important issue for American Indian tribes -- a voting bloc that could prove vital in the state this election cycle. Separate measures from Democratic Sen. John Walsh and Republican Rep. Steve Daines aim to get the tribes more involved in the federal buyback program stemming from the landmark 2010 Cobell settlement. The bills are anot… Continue Reading
07.16.14
Lawmakers and auditors slam BLM for not keeping a closer eye on market for helium
E&E News By Joshua Learn July 16, 2014 Lawmakers and the Government Accountability Office put the Bureau of Land Management in the hot seat yesterday, accusing the agency of failing to monitor the sales of helium from federal reserves to distributors without refining capabilities. "BLM has a number of challenges -- the primary challenge is breaking the hold that helium refiners located along the pipeline have had on access to the helium reserve," House Natural Resources Subco… Continue Reading
07.15.14
Wolves hang in balance
The Register Guard, Editorial July 15, 2014 It's a curious disconnect: At the same time federal officials are celebrating the recovery of gray wolves as one of the great victories of the Endangered Species Act and are preparing to remove protections for Canis lupus in the lower 48 states, the population of the species in the strategically important Yellowstone National Park region has declined in recent years because of hunting. It's also curious that the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service is pr… Continue Reading
07.15.14
Reform 1872 mining law
The Register Guard, Editorial July 14, 2014 The nation's General Mining Act recently celebrated its 141st birthday. Congress should make certain this fossilized law, which provides minimal environmental protections and allows hard-rock mining companies to remove billions of dollars of minerals from public lands without paying royalties, doesn't make it to age 142. Federal lawmakers should do so by approving a bill introduced last week by Rep. Peter DeFazio, D-Ore. The legislation, co-sponsor… Continue Reading
07.14.14
Geothermal leasing reform bill clears Senate, may spur action in House
SNL By Corbin Hiar July 10, 2014 In a rare moment of bipartisan action, U.S. senators briefly set aside their differences on July 9 and passed a bill promoting geothermal energy development on federal lands by a voice vote. The move raised hopes within the industry that the recurring legislation can finally clear a sharply divided Congress. The Geothermal Production Expansion Act, or S. 363, would allow a developer to make a noncompetitive, fair market value bid on up to 640 acres of feder… Continue Reading
07.14.14
US lawmakers introduce Bill to reform 142-year-old mining law
Mining Weekly Henry Lazenby July 12, 2014 TORONTO (miningweekly.com) - Twenty US legislators had this week introduced a Bill in the House of Representatives looking for reforms to the General Mining Act of 1872, proposing higher royalties for mining companies. The Bill suggests that mining companies be charged a royalty of 8% on new mines and 4% on existing properties for mining on public land. The Bill was introduced on Thursday by the US House of Representatives natural resources commit… Continue Reading
07.14.14
DeFazio introduces bill to reform mining laws
The News Review By Carisa Cegavske July 10, 2014 Legislation to collect royalties from companies mining on federal lands and to ensure they won't leave a mess behind was introduced Thursday by 20 House Democrats, including Peter DeFazio. The Hardrock Mining and Reclamation Act would charge owners of existing mines a 4 percent royalty and levy an 8 percent royalty on new mines. It would also set some wilderness areas off-limits to mining and allow communities to petition against new mines.… Continue Reading
07.11.14
House Dems launch bid to force vote on bipartisan disaster funding bill
E&E News By Phil Taylor July 11. 2014 House Democrats this morning announced a plan to force House leaders to bring a bipartisan wildfire funding bill to the floor for a vote. The procedural maneuver known as a discharge petition is likely a long shot, given that it would require roughly 20 Republicans to vote against their party's leadership. But it reflects growing frustration among Democrats and some Western Republicans at the chamber's inaction on H.R. 3992, a bill to overh… Continue Reading