U.S. Representative Mike Simpson of Idaho wants to restore balance through negotiating new reforms to laws such as the Endangered Species Act, the National Environmental Policy Act and the Equal Access to Justice Act. He explains that for too long - Congress has sat idly by watching as the courts transform federal laws away from what Congress intended and toward an ideology that abhors multiple-uses and openly states its desire to move both livestock and anything with wheels off of public lands.
Simpson says it’s time for Congress to restore balance to the management of public lands. He says that’s what he’s trying to do in the Interior and Environment Appropriations Act for next year. He recognizes there will be charges that he is gutting the environment or doing the bidding of special interests - but says he wants to protect the environment and the sustainability of our nation's public lands. Simpson wants to do that in a way that promotes the utilization of those lands for multiple uses and ends the costly and destructive consequences of managing federal lands through the courts.
The Idaho Representative says for those concerned about the constant drain of taxpayer dollars through endless litigation and the impact that litigation has on the ability of public land managers to do their job - the status quo is unacceptable and must change. |