Washington, D.C. (June 7, 2013) – Today, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service announced their proposal to remove the gray wolf from the list of threatened and endangered species. This proposal would leave future management and conservation efforts to states for all gray wolf populations in the lower 48 states with the exception of the southwestern Mexican gray wolf. This announcement comes after the delisting of wolves in the Great Lakes and Rocky Mountain States earlier this year. Read more »
Washington, D.C. (May 23, 2013) – Last night, the U.S. House of Representatives voted for H.R. 3, the Northern Route Approval Act. The legislation approves the construction, operation, and maintenance of the Keystone XL Pipeline, providing lower gas prices, reduced reliance on Middle-Eastern oil, valuable energy jobs, and investment in the U.S. Economy.
Read more »
Washington, D.C. (May 17, 2013) – Western Caucus Co-Chairs Steve Pearce and Cynthia Lummis released the following statements in response to the new proposed regulations of hydraulic fracturing on federal and tribal lands announced yesterday by the Department of the Interior: Read more »
Washington, D.C. (May 15, 2013) – Yesterday, the Competitive Enterprise Institute (CEI) announced that it had obtained information that the IRS isn’t the only government agency targeting conservative groups- the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is doing it too. It took a lawsuit filed by CEI under the Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) to get to the bottom of it, but the findings were shocking. There was a clear pattern of EPA making it more difficult for limited-government groups to access public records, while fees were waived and doors were opened without fuss for liberal-leaning groups. Public interest groups were the intended beneficiaries of the FOIA’s provision for waiving fees. But it turns out that fee waivers are quite common for some groups, and yet scarce for others. Overall, green groups, like Sierra Club, Natural Resources Defense Council, and EarthJustice, were granted 92% of their waiver requests. Unfortunately, the same courtesy was not extended to groups who’s beliefs don’t line up with those of the Administration- their requests were denied 93% of the time. Read more »
Washington, D.C. (May 15, 2013) – Yesterday, Congressional Western Caucus Co-Chair Cynthia Lummis (R-WY), along with Chairman Steve Pearce (R-NM), Congressman Rob Bishop (R-UT), Congressman Jason Chaffetz (R-UT), Congressman Chris Stewart (R-UT), Congressman Kevin Cramer (R-ND), Congressman Scott Tipton (R-CO), and Congressman Ben Ray Luján (D-NM), introduced the State Mineral Revenue Protection Act, a bill that streamlines how mineral royalty payments are distributed to the state and federal government. Read more »
Denver, CO (May 2, 2013) – Earlier today, Congressional Western Caucus Co-Chairmen Steve Pearce (R-NM) and Cynthia Lummis (R-WY), along with Members of Congressional Western Caucus from Colorado held a hearing entitled “Seeking State Solutions: Forest Health, Wildfires, and Habitat Protection” at the Colorado State Capitol. Read more »
Washington, D.C. (May 1, 2013) – Thursday, May 2, 2013, Congressional Western Caucus Co-Chairmen Steve Pearce (R-NM) and Cynthia Lummis (R-WY), along with the Colorado Members of the Congressional Western Caucus will hold a hearing entitled “Seeking State Solutions: Forest Health, Wildfires, and Habitat Protection” in Denver, CO. Read more »
Washington, D.C. (April 24, 2013) – Thursday, May 2, 2013, Congressional Western Caucus Co-Chairmen Steve Pearce (R-NM) and Cynthia Lummis (R-WY), along with the Colorado Members of the Congressional Western Caucus will hold a hearing entitled “Seeking State Solutions: Forest Health, Wildfires, and Habitat Protection” in Denver, CO. Read more »
Washington, D.C. (April 23, 2013) – Last week, Senator Durbin (D-IL) and Congressman Holt (D-NJ) introduced a bill that would designate 9.1 million acres in Utah as wilderness . These 9.1 million acres, referred to as the ill-named Red Rock Wilderness Act, would designate large swaths of land as wilderness without the support of the people that actually live there. While we admire the Senator from Illinois and the Congressman from New Jersey for their efforts to involve themselves in the local land-use planning process, it is not their job to step on the people of Utah in the process. This bill does not have the support of any members of Utah’s Congressional delegation, the governor, or locally elected officials. Nevertheless, Eastern Democrats introduce this bill year after year, and it has become yet another example of Eastern Democrats viewing the West as their playground without any regard for the people who live there. Read more »
Washington, D.C. (April 16, 2013) – Thursday, May 2, 2013, Congressional Western Caucus Co-Chairmen Steve Pearce (R-NM) and Cynthia Lummis (R-WY), along with the Colorado Members of the Congressional Western Caucus will hold a hearing entitled “Seeking State Solutions: Forest Health, Wildfires, and Habitat Protection” in Denver, CO. Read more »
