Republicans Seek Big Cuts in Environmental Rules
By LESLIE KAUFMAN
NYT
With the nation’s attention diverted by the drama over the debt ceiling, Republicans in the House of Representatives are loading up an appropriations bill with 39 ways — and counting — to significantly curtail environmental regulation.
One would prevent the Bureau of Land Management from designating new wilderness areas for preservation. Another would severely restrict the Department of Interior’s ability to police mountaintop-removal mining. And then there is the call to allow new uranium prospecting near Grand Canyon National Park.
There is little chance that all the 39 proposals identified by Democrats will be approved by the Senate, which they control, or that a substantial number could elude a presidential veto. In fact, one measure — to forbid the Fish and Wildlife Service to list any new plants or animals as endangered — was so extreme that 37 Republicans broke ranks Wednesday and voted to strip it from the bill.
Although inserting policy changes into appropriations bills is a common strategy when government is divided as it is now, no one can remember such an aggressive use of the tactic against natural resources. Environmental groups and their Democratic allies in Congress worry that more than a few of these so-called riders could stick when both sides negotiate and leverage budget concessions in the fall.
(More here.)
NYT
With the nation’s attention diverted by the drama over the debt ceiling, Republicans in the House of Representatives are loading up an appropriations bill with 39 ways — and counting — to significantly curtail environmental regulation.
One would prevent the Bureau of Land Management from designating new wilderness areas for preservation. Another would severely restrict the Department of Interior’s ability to police mountaintop-removal mining. And then there is the call to allow new uranium prospecting near Grand Canyon National Park.
There is little chance that all the 39 proposals identified by Democrats will be approved by the Senate, which they control, or that a substantial number could elude a presidential veto. In fact, one measure — to forbid the Fish and Wildlife Service to list any new plants or animals as endangered — was so extreme that 37 Republicans broke ranks Wednesday and voted to strip it from the bill.
Although inserting policy changes into appropriations bills is a common strategy when government is divided as it is now, no one can remember such an aggressive use of the tactic against natural resources. Environmental groups and their Democratic allies in Congress worry that more than a few of these so-called riders could stick when both sides negotiate and leverage budget concessions in the fall.
(More here.)
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1 Comments:
This has been happening for a while.
Last week, the House approved legislation giving States Rights ignoring the EPA in Clean Water legislation ... this earned the ire of fisherman and hunters ... but pleased coal mining companies.
Now, this week, the House did approve one amendment of note ... it was offered by Ohio Congressman Steve LoBarido (sp) concerning the Great Lakes Restoration funding ... it had been at $450 million before, but now the House approved it as $250 ... so the Ohio Congressman with Lake Erie in his backyard offered an amendment that transferred $50 million from the Climate Control funding to Great Lakes Restoration ... Betty McCollum objected ... agreeing that GLR funding was needed by did not want the funding to come from Climate funding ... she used a Strib article and other studies using the argument that if climate issues are not addressed (the waters are evaporating and deer ticks are now moving North), then cleaning of the Great Lakes is a lesser concern ... it was a close vote but the GLR amendment was approved.
The point is that the House will cut beyond the bone and the only way to get any funding is by stripping funding from other sources ... and can there be any better funding than something associated with Climate Change ?
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