House To Vote On Controversial ‘No More National Parks’ Policy

[babylonsister]

I despise these people with a white-hot passion...


House To Vote On Controversial ‘No More National Parks’ Policy

By Matt Lee-Ashley, Guest Blogger on March 20, 2014 at 12:00 pm



Responding to President Obama’s decision last week to protect a stretch of California’s Coast near Point Arena as a new national monument, the House of Representatives is planning to vote next week to overturn a 108 year-old law that presidents of both parties have used to protect iconic American places, including the Grand Canyon, the Statue of Liberty, and Arches National Park.

The bill, H.R. 1459, aims to block presidents from using the Antiquities Act of 1906 to establish new national monuments by putting caps on how many times it can be used, requiring congressional review of proposed monuments, and forcing local communities to engage in an ironic exercise of reviewing the environmental impacts of protecting lands for future generations.

The bill’s sponsor, Rep. Rob Bishop (R-UT), criticized President Obama’s use of the Antiquities Act to expand the California Coastal Monument last week as an end-run around Congress. “In other words, the House was punked by the President,” said Bishop.

However, despite arguments from Bishop and Rep. Doc Hastings (R-WA) that Congress should hold exclusive power to decide whether or not to protect public lands, the House has effectively shut down all legislative efforts to protect wilderness, parks and monuments since the Tea Party takeover in 2010.

Until the passage of a bill to protect wilderness lands in the Sleeping Bear Dunes National Lakeshore last week, Congress had not protected a single new acre of public lands since 2009, the longest such drought since World War II. Adding injury to insult, Congress also forced a 16-day government shutdown last fall that cost national parks and local communities 8 million lost visitors and $414 million in lost visitor spending.

Coupled with the ongoing freeze on new parks and public lands bills, a vote next week to block the President’s creation of new monuments and park units would represent the endorsement of a de facto “No More National Parks” policy in the U.S. House of Representatives. Although members of the House could be casting controversial votes next week against new monuments and parks, H.R. 1459 is not expected to be considered by or passed in the Senate. The President would also be likely to veto such a bill.

more...

http://thinkprogress.org/climate/2014/03/20/3416916/house-no-more-national-parks/

[Wounded Bear]

1. Oh, good. It's the "Let us Rape the Earth for Profit" bill...

That's what they should call it.

[sharp_stick]

2. Yet one more in the many reasons

to not stay home on election day.

[babylonsister]

4. It's exhausting trying to keep up. nt

[Wellstone ruled]

3. Bishop is such a Twit

If you every lived in Utard Land,you could see this type of legislation coming. Ask yourself who runs this so called state. This is just another piece of junk legislation wanted by the ALEC and Temple Square crowd to shove it up Mr. Obama's ass.

The Forest Service has been trying to take back grazing lands in Southern Utardland and in the Arizona Strip. These areas are just way over grazed,nothing left but Varnish bush and Cheat grass. I know of one case were a politically connected rancher owes about a million bucks in back payments for grazing rites to the BLM. There could be more of these Slugs out there. This Turkey has about ninety thousand acres in his lease all Strip lands.

Most of these lands are in the cross hairs of the Mineral Extraction Companies. Mostly rare earth minerals. Nat gas deposits on the Strip and in the Great Basin area. Like it or not,this whole game is about this election cycle and making Mr. Obama the Boogie Man.

[Sugarcoated]

5. Will they start fracking the Grand Canyon soon?

Disgusting greedy pigs.