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For
Immediate Release: House
Passes Historic Endangered Threatened
and Endangered Species Recovery Act passes by a vote of 229-193
Born
of the best intentions, the ESA has failed to recover endangered
species while conflict and litigation have plagued local communities
and private property owners alike. TESRA
fixes the long-outstanding problems of the Endangered Species Act by
(1) focusing on species recovery (2) providing incentives (3)
increasing openness and accountability (4) strengthening scientific
standards (5) creating bigger roles for state and local governments
(6) protecting private property owners and (7) eliminating
dysfunctional critical habitat designations. "During
debate, the entire House of Representatives seemed to agree the ESA
is in need of updates and improvements," Chairman
Pombo said. "It's incredible how far
we have come. But what surprised me most today was the strong
ideological differences about whether or not homeowners should be
compensated when their property is taken, as the Fifth Amendment of
the Constitution requires. Upholding this right and partnering
with the landowner is the only way we are going to improve the ESA's
failing results for recovery. This legislation does just
that."
"I
co-sponsored the Endangered Species Recovery Act because I believe
the ESA should be enhanced and refocused on its original goal -
species recovery. Since the enactment of the ESA over 30 years ago,
it has been diverted from that goal, and is increasingly driven by
litigation, not science. I am confident that this bi-partisan
bill will strengthen the ability of ESA to recover species, while
reducing the burden on local economies and landowners."
"The
current law is simply not working. We all agree with the intentions
of the Endangered Species Act, but out of the almost 1,300 species
listed over the past 30 years, only 10 have been recovered and
de-listed. A less than 1 percent recovery rate is unacceptable. We
can and must do better. Today's bill will enable us to improve
the dismal ESA track record with peer-reviewed science and
collaborative efforts to protect and recover threatened
species."
"I
am proud to support this common-sense reform legislation that will
help communities and protect landowners. We need to update and
modernize the Endangered Species Act to strengthen species recovery
by building cooperation instead of fostering conflict. Passing the
new legislation will remove burdens that have hampered job creation,
community development and other improvements for the
"After
30 years we finally have a commonsense solution that will facilitate
the relationship between protecting endangered species and using our
natural resources and land. It is time to move away from burdensome
regulations, lawsuits and punitive settlements and focus on using
objective scientific standards, creating stronger roles for local
and state governments, and increasing accountability."
"It's
time to make federal agencies charged with administering the law
open up the process to the public. It's time to set standards
to make sure the best possible scientific data available are used.
It's time to ensure that states have a direct role in the process.
It's time to reach out to private property owners, protecting their
rights while encouraging participation in recovery efforts.
And it's time to make sure that no region of the country ever
suffers as the
"For
over thirty years the Endangered Species Act has suffered from many
fundamental flaws, the most notable being a blatant disregard for
property rights. Chairman Pombo's bill recognizes that as long as
over 90 percent of endangered species are found on private lands, it
defies logic not to compensate landowners' efforts to protect
threatened and endangered species. I applaud its passage."
"This
bill represents a real improvement on the current Endangered Species
Act, which over the past 30 years has done more to harm the species
recovery process than to help it," said Peterson. "I was
glad to lend my support to this bill in the House, and I encourage
our friends in the Senate to act upon it expeditiously."
"The
ESA has been on the books for more than thirty years, but in that
time only ten out of more than a thousand species on the endangered
list have been recovered. Instead of protecting threatened and
endangered species, the ESA more often just creates litigation and
endless bureaucracy. We know for certain that not a single species
has ever been saved in a courtroom."
"ESA
reform is long overdue. Today, the House enacted significant
improvements to the ESA that restores balanced protections to
species as well as landowners. This legislation improves and
encourages habitat conservation plans by codifying the No Surprises
assurance and eliminating unnecessary red-tape that required
multiple consultations regarding already approved actions. These
important provisions will free up limited government and landowner
resources, and ultimately improve conservation of species habitat by
encouraging more habitat conservation plans."
"I
commend my ### |
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