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Letter from 75 Members of Congress to Fish and Wildlife Service Director Ashe Calling for Full Delisting of the Gray Wolf

| Posted in Letters

Dear Director Ashe: We write in strong support of the proposed rule to delist the gray wolf nationally, included in docket number FWS-HQ-ES-2013-0073, although we are opposed to the provision included in this rule that would list the Mexican wolf as an endangered sub-species. The statutory purpose of the Endangered Species Act (ESA) is to recover species to the point where they are no…

Chairman Hastings’ Statement on Obama Administration’s Endorsement of States' Lesser Prairie-Chicken Conservation Plan

| Posted in Press Release

Natural Resources Committee Chairman Doc Hastings (WA-04) released the following statement today in response to the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service’s (USFWS) endorsement of the Western Association of Fish and Wildlife Agencies’ Lesser Prairie-Chicken Range-Wide Conservation Plan. “It’s encouraging that after a year of review the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service is finally endorsing a…

Hastings Letter to Director Ashe Requesting Answers Regarding Decision to Close National Wildlife Refuges During the Government Shutdown

| Posted in Letters

Dear Director Ashe: The Committee on Natural Resources ("Committee") requests that the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service ("Service") take steps as necessary to keep and not destroy records related to the decision to order the National Wildlife Refuge System closed. Hunters, fishermen, and other visitors are now being blocked from these sites, many of which are unfenced and not regularly…

Witnesses: Current Law Should Be Followed For Lacey Act Listings

| Posted in Press Release

Today, the House Natural Resources Subcommittee on Fisheries, Wildlife, Oceans and Insular Affairs held an oversight hearing on the “Department of the Interior’s proposal to establish a Categorical Exclusion under the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) for adding species to the Lacey Act’s list of injurious wildlife.” This hearing examined the potential effects of the Fish and…

ICYMI: A look into Magnuson-Stevens with On the Record with Greta Van Susteren

| Posted in Blog

Last week, On the Record with Greta Van Susteren took a look at Northeastern fishermen whose businesses have been affected by the Magnuson-Stevens Act. On Wednesday, the House Natural Resources held a hearing on the "Re-authorization of the Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Conservation and Management Act" where witnesses called for increased flexibility in the Re-authorization of the act.