Today, the U.S. House of Representatives passed four House Committee on Natural Resources bills containing a variety of solutions that advance scientific, commonsense resource management policies and counter disastrous decisions from the Biden administration. House Committee on Natural Resources Chairman Bruce Westerman (R-Ark.) issued the following statement in response:

"The Biden administration's policies have been devastating for our federal lands and waters and the communities that depend on them. Whether it's the new BLM rule that fundamentally threatens the western way of life, or the decision to lock up enormous deposits of increasingly scarce minerals, it's clear Biden and his bureaucrats have no interest in properly stewarding our federal lands or listening to local stakeholders. That's why the House put several solutions on the floor this week with a lands-focused slate of legislation, fighting back against Biden's burdensome and misguided policies and instead amplifying the community voices that matter most. These are the types of pragmatic, science-driven policies that the House Committee on Natural Resources is committed to advancing and the type of legislation we will continue to work on as we support rural voices here in D.C. I'd like to thank my colleagues for their diligent work on these crucial bills, and I look forward to helping advance them into law."

Background

H.R. 615, the Protecting Access for Hunters and Anglers Act of 2023, introduced by U.S. Rep. Rob Wittman (R-Va.), bars the U.S. Department of the Interior and the U.S. Department of Agriculture from prohibiting or regulating the use of lead ammunition or tackle on federal land or water that is under their jurisdiction and made available for hunting or fishing without the necessary science to support such action.

H.R. 764, the Trust the Science Act, introduced by U.S. Rep. Lauren Boebert (R-Colo.), would remove the recovered gray wolf from the endangered species list. Gray wolves have greatly exceeded their recovery goals, today numbering over 6,000 wolves in the lower-48 states. The species should be celebrated as an Endangered Species Act success story.

H.R. 3195, the Superior National Forest Restoration Act, introduced by U.S. Rep. Pete Stauber (R-Minn.), which would revoke a withdrawal banning mineral extraction in an extensive portion of Northern Minnesota, reinstate mineral leases and permits in the Superior National Forest and ensure timely review of Mine Plans of Operations.

H.R. 3397, the Western Economic Security Today (WEST) Act, introduced by U.S. Rep. John Curtis (R-Utah), withdraws a disastrous Bureau of Land Management (BLM) rule that would have devastating consequences to states across the West and the multiple use of public lands. After ignoring the concerns of a wide range of stakeholders who currently work, recreate, and conserve BLM land, on April 18, the Biden administration announced the final BLM rule. The WEST Act is passing at a crucial time to force a withdrawal and support BLM’s statutory multiple use mandate.