Liberty
Matters News Service
April 29, 2004
Fish and Wildlife Agrees to Review Rat Status
The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (FWS) has agreed to
review the status of the so-called endangered Stephen's kangaroo rat, a pesky
rodent that has been giving California farmers and other landowners fits for
years. The Riverside County Farm Bureau petitioned for the rat's removal based
on discovery of populations in areas that had not been surveyed. The rat's
presence has caused delay and disruption to a proposed sports complex in
Redland forcing the City to reduce the number of soccer fields within the park
to mitigate any possible harm to the critters. City Councilwoman Pat Gilbreath
expressed hope that the FWS would delist the animal. "It is one of the reasons
why the sports park is still under delay," she said. "I never could understand
how a rat that was so prolific could ever be on the endangered species list,"
she added. Monica Bond, a biologist for the Center for Biological Diversity,
said some of the newly discovered rats are inbred and appear to have genetic
defects. "Of all the species, that's a ridiculous one to try to delist," she
said. In 1994, Tuang Minglin was accused of killing five kangaroo rats while
plowing his field. Twenty armed federal agents seized his tractor and
threatened him with a $300,000 fine and a claim to 363 acres of his 700 acre
farm. He only got off the hook by agreeing to "donate" (blackmail) $5,000 to a
local conservation fund.
Feds
Agree to Review Status of Kangaroo Rat
Feds Afraid of Lawsuits
The state of Wyoming is fed
up with the federal government's stance on their wolf management plan and have
filed suit in U.S. District Court in Cheyenne. The State alleges the U.S. Fish
and Wildlife Service violated the Administrative Procedures Act by rejecting
their plan and overrode Wyoming's constitutional rights under the Tenth
Amendment. Top federal officials, including Secretary of Interior Gale Norton,
said they couldn't accept Wyoming's plan because of the provision to classify
some wolves as predators and therefore subject to unregulated killing. Wyoming
Attorney General Patrick Crank said the feds "rejected the Wyoming wolf plan
based of political considerations and a fear lawsuits might be filed by
environmental groups." Crank's assessment was confirmed by a deputy
undersecretary at Interior, Paul Hoffman, who said; "from a strictly science
perspective, yes, the plans were deemed adequate. It's the legal considerations
that prompt us to say no at this time." Hoffman also expressed concern that
Idaho and Montana would attempt to change their plans to include predator
classifications if Wyoming were allowed to implement its plan.
Wyoming Sues Over Denial of Wolf
Plan
Montana Ranchers Beat Forest Service
Stephen and Jean Roth of
Darby, Montana successfully beat back an attempt by the U. S. Forest Service to
deny them access to their ditches without a permit. The trial lasted only two
days with the Montana Federal District Court agreeing with the Roths that they
own an easement in the Bitterroot National Forest, created in 1897, and the
Selway-Bitterroot Wilderness Area, created in 1964, for Tamarack Lake Dam and
Reservoir, and four ditches that deliver water to the Roths' ranch. The Roths
argued that under congressional acts adopted in 1866 and 1891, they held
easements for the dam and reservoir and ditches. The Forest Service refused to
allow them access, however, and the Roths sued under the Quiet Title Act. The
U. S. government claimed the Forest Service had always disputed their claim,
but the court rejected that argument because of a 1998 document in which the
Forest Service admitted the Roths had an easement. The Forest Service knew the
ranchers rights to the dam and reservoir had vested automatically because the
Untied States had taken that position for nearly 100 years. William Perry
Pendley, President of Mountain States Legal Foundation who represented the
Roths, commented this case illustrates how the federal government can bully
people into giving up their rights.
Montana
Ranchers Win Easement Case Against U.S. Forest Service
Property Rights Group Names Champions
The League of Private Property Voters (LPPV)
has given its stamp of approval to 192 U.S. Representatives and 35 U.S.
Senators for their dedication to the protection of private property rights.
Democrat Representatives Rodney Alexander (LA), Chris John (LA), Collin
Peterson (MN), and Charles Stenholm (TX) received especially high praise for
working with their Republican counterparts to promote the rights of citizens.
On the opposite side, Jim Leach (IA) and Christopher Shays (CT) garnered
recognition as the only two Republican "Enemies of Property Rights." In total,
LPPV marked 165 House of Representative "Enemies" and 35 U. S. Senators. The
honorees were chosen on the basis of their votes on issues that demonstrated
their support for protecting the constitutional rights of property owners
against federal intrusion. LPPV singled out Rep. Wally Herger (R-CA) and Steve
Pearce (R-NM) for leading the fight to remove language favoring land trusts in
the President's charity bill last year. "The Nature Conservancy and other
powerful land trusts attempted to grab a billion dollar tax cut deal for
themselves late in 2003. This would have placed them at a huge advantage over
private property owners in buying and selling real estate," the LPPV Index
noted. However, the language is still in the Senate version and needs to be
removed.
Groups Name Property Rights
Champions