Dems slam proposed changes to Endangered Species Act

Senate Democrats on Tuesday criticized multiple GOP-backed changes to the Endangered Species Act (ESA), saying they threaten the conservation program’s successes. The debate came at a hearing examining Environment and Public Works Committee Chairman John Barrasso’s (R-Wyo.) major proposal to overhaul the law. Barrasso’s bill aims to give states a bigger role in species recovery, mostly through “recovery teams” — at least half of whose members would represent state and local interests — with power to oversee an imperiled plant or animal’s recovery. “The discussion draft elevates the role of states in partnering with the federal government in implementing the Endangered Species Act. It affords states the opportunity to lead wildlife conservation efforts, including through the establishment of recovery teams for listed species in development and implementing recovery plans,” Barrasso said at the committee’s hearing on the legislation. “It provides for increased regulatory certainty, so stakeholders are incentivized to enter into voluntary conservation recovery activities,” he said. “It increases transparency. It codifies a system for prioritizing species listing petitions, so limited resources flow to the species most in need.” The bill is modeled on an ongoing process by the Western Governors' Association to recommend changes to the law, a process that has been endorsed by numerous GOP governors and one Democrat — Hawaii Gov. David Ige. While Democrats on the Environment Committee recognized that the ESA might warrant some changes and expressed an openness to contributing to the process, they said Barrasso’s bill was unacceptable...MORE