Liberty
Matters News Service
April 21, 2004
Action Alert
Invasive
Species Still in S1072
Property rights advocates were successful in their efforts
to convince the House to remove invasive species regulation language from the
House version of the Transportation bill, H.R. 3550. The bill now moves to the
conference committee to reconcile the changes made to the Senate version, S.
1072, the Safe, Accountable, Flexible and Efficient Transportation Equity bill,
(SAFETE). The language addressing invasive species is still in S. 1072 under
Title I, Sub-Title F, Sec. 166, "Control of invasive plant species and
establishment of native species." Invasive Species are defined as;
"non-indigenous species the introduction of which causes or is likely to cause
economic or environmental harm or harm to human health." The wording is
extremely vague and opens the door to eradication of non-native, beneficial
plants. It is uncertain, at this point, when the conference committee will
convene. Sources in Washington tell us that Senate Minority Leader Tom Daschle
(D-SD) is holding up the committee's work claiming the Minority is
under-represented on the committee. Senate Majority Leader Bill Frist (R-TN) is
expected to appoint the conferees Wednesday, which Sen. Daschle will likely
reject. Daschle proposed to discuss S. 1072 outside the conference committee,
but Sen. Frist dismissed that idea handily. Contact Senate Environment and
Public Works Committee Chairman, Sen. James Inhofe to ask for removal of all
references to invasive species and native plants and the deletion of the entire
Sec. 166 of Title I, Sub-section F. Fax Numbers: Senate Environment and Public
Works Committee: 202-224-5167; Sen. Inhofe Office: 202-228-0380; Stephen Sepp,
LA Transportation: 202-228-1930. Send one to your own Senators. Their fax
numbers can be found at: http://www.theorator.com/senate.html
ALERT: Invasive
Species in Transporation Bill
Legal Foundation Loses Utah Monument Case
Utah District Court Judge
Dee Benson ruled Monday that the court lacks the authority to determine if
President Clinton violated the U.S. Constitution when he designated the 1.7
million acre Grand Staircase Escalante National Monument just months before the
1996 presidential election. "President Bush and Vice President Cheney, who
campaigned across the West against Clinton's Utah monument decree, sent federal
lawyers into court to vigorously defend Clinton's actions; they must be
thrilled with this victory," said William Perry Pendley of Mountain States
Legal Foundation that brought suit against the government. "Clinton admitted
that he did so [designate the monument] to kill an underground coal mine that
would have employed 1,000 Utahans and would have produced a $20 million annual
revenue stream for the local economy," the foundation wrote. "Of course, we
will appeal," said Pendley.
Judge Upholds Grand Staircase Escalante National Monument
National Silliness Day Cometh
Thursday, April 22, will mark
the thirty-fourth anniversary of a national silliness called Earth Day dreamed
up by former Senator Gaylord Nelson in 1970. The Senator wrote that he had been
searching for a method to establish public awareness to protect our world from
the effects of modern life. When he observed demonstrations and teach-ins by
anti-war protesters, he figured that method would work for his cause too. In
1969, he announced there would be a national grassroots demonstration for the
environment in early spring. That set the media on fire. "Rising concern about
the environmental crisis is sweeping the nation's campuses with an intensity
that may be on its way to eclipsing student discontent over the war in
Vietnam," wrote the New York Times. It has been downhill ever since. Today,
Earth Day is celebrated everywhere with demonstrations like the ones in Napa
County, California where twelve-year old Cody Gaffney explains to other kids
that everything from garden fertilizers to car wash soaps can harm Napa
County's water supply. The Land Trust of Napa County has hosted the event at
Connolly Ranch for years. "I think it's important that the public stops and
reflects on the condition of our planet," said Debbie Stup, event spokesperson.
"It's a chance to teach children about taking care of the earth and how
connected we are to it," said Barbara Dondero, who was visiting the ranch with
her daughter.
Earth Day: Kids Learn to Respect the Environment
U.S. Fish And Wildlife Underreports ESA Costs
A study by the Property and Environment
Research Center (PERC) has revealed that the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service
(FWS) grossly and regularly under reports expenditures by federal agencies and
states receiving grants under the Endangered Species Act. For example, a FWS
report indicates that $610.3 million was spent by federal and state governments
in 2000, but PERC says the figure is more like $2.4 billion. The agency
reported that from 1989 to 2000, just over $3.5 billion was spent on ESA
regulations and PERC says because FWS reports don't include private economic
and social costs, the ESA sucks up at least $3.5 billion a year. Emma Suarez,
an attorney with the Pacific Legal Foundation, says "PERC's study shows that
the government has no idea what the ESA is truly costing, but it does give us
an idea of the enormous human costs of ESA regulation - and they're often
devastating. Report authors Dr. Randy T. Simmons, Senior Associate at PERC and
Kimberly Frost, say "[T]he FWS report does not come close to accounting for the
true costs to taxpayers and consumers of complying with the ESA We've spent
trillions of dollars on the ESA (and) Taxpayers deserve to know if we're
getting what we pay for. The government is ignoring the human costs in the ESA
equation," said Simmons and Frost.
Government Not Reporting Billions Spent on ESA