Hr 1487, the National Monument Nepa Compliance Act Hearing
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H.R. 1487, THE NATIONAL MONUMENT NEPA COMPLIANCE ACT HEARING BEFORE THE SUBCOMMITTEE ON NATIONAL PARKS AND PUBLIC LANDS OF THE COMMITTEE ON RESOURCES HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES ONE HUNDRED SIXTH CONGRESS FIRST SESSION JUNE 17, 1999, WASHINGTON, DC Serial No. 106±38 Printed for the use of the Committee on Resources ( Available via the World Wide Web: http://www.access.gpo.gov/congress/house or Committee address: http://www.house.gov/resources U.S. GOVERNMENT PRINTING OFFICE 58±958 u WASHINGTON : 1999 VerDate 11-SEP-98 07:11 Nov 17, 1999 Jkt 000000 PO 00000 Frm 00001 Fmt 5011 Sfmt 5011 58958 HRESOUR1 PsN: HRESOUR1 COMMITTEE ON RESOURCES DON YOUNG, Alaska, Chairman W.J. (BILLY) TAUZIN, Louisiana GEORGE MILLER, California JAMES V. HANSEN, Utah NICK J. RAHALL II, West Virginia JIM SAXTON, New Jersey BRUCE F. VENTO, Minnesota ELTON GALLEGLY, California DALE E. KILDEE, Michigan JOHN J. DUNCAN, JR., Tennessee PETER A. DEFAZIO, Oregon JOEL HEFLEY, Colorado ENI F.H. FALEOMAVAEGA, American JOHN T. DOOLITTLE, California Samoa WAYNE T. GILCHREST, Maryland NEIL ABERCROMBIE, Hawaii KEN CALVERT, California SOLOMON P. ORTIZ, Texas RICHARD W. POMBO, California OWEN B. PICKETT, Virginia BARBARA CUBIN, Wyoming FRANK PALLONE, JR., New Jersey HELEN CHENOWETH, Idaho CALVIN M. DOOLEY, California GEORGE P. RADANOVICH, California CARLOS A. ROMERO-BARCELO, Puerto WALTER B. JONES, JR., North Carolina Rico WILLIAM M. (MAC) THORNBERRY, Texas ROBERT A. UNDERWOOD, Guam CHRIS CANNON, Utah PATRICK J. KENNEDY, Rhode Island KEVIN BRADY, Texas ADAM SMITH, Washington JOHN PETERSON, Pennsylvania WILLIAM D. DELAHUNT, Massachusetts RICK HILL, Montana CHRIS JOHN, Louisiana BOB SCHAFFER, Colorado DONNA CHRISTIAN-CHRISTENSEN, Virgin JIM GIBBONS, Nevada Islands MARK E. SOUDER, Indiana RON KIND, Wisconsin GREG WALDEN, Oregon JAY INSLEE, Washington DON SHERWOOD, Pennsylvania GRACE F. NAPOLITANO, California ROBIN HAYES, North Carolina TOM UDALL, New Mexico MIKE SIMPSON, Idaho MARK UDALL, Colorado THOMAS G. TANCREDO, Colorado JOSEPH CROWLEY, New York RUSH D. HUNT, New Jersey LLOYD A. JONES, Chief of Staff ELIZABETH MEGGINSON, Chief Counsel CHRISTINE KENNEDY, Chief Clerk/Administrator JOHN LAWRENCE, Democratic Staff Director SUBCOMMITTEE ON NATIONAL PARKS AND PUBLIC LANDS JAMES V. HANSEN, Utah, Chairman  ELTON, GALLEGLY, California CARLOS A. ROMERO-BARCELO, Puerto JOHN J. DUNCAN, JR., Tennessee Rico JOEL HEFLEY, Colorado NICK J. RAHALL II, West Virginia RICHARD W. POMBO, California BRUCE F. VENTO, Minnesota GEORGE P. RADANOVICH, California DALE E. KILDEE, Michigan WALTER B. JONES, JR., North Carolina DONNA CHRISTIAN-CHRISTENSEN, Virgin CHRIS CANNON, Utah Islands RICK HILL, Montana RON KIND, Wisconsin JIM GIBBONS, Nevada JAY INSLEE, Washington MARK E. SOUDER, Indiana TOM UDALL, New Mexico DON SHERWOOD, Pennsylvania MARK UDALL, Colorado JOSEPH CROWLEY, New York RUSH D. HOLT, New Jersey ALLEN FREEMYER, Counsel TODD HULL, Professional Staff LIZ BIRNBAUM, Democratic Counsel GARY GRIFFITH, Professional Staff (II) VerDate 11-SEP-98 07:11 Nov 17, 1999 Jkt 000000 PO 00000 Frm 00002 Fmt 5904 Sfmt 5904 58958 HRESOUR1 PsN: HRESOUR1 C O N T E N T S Page Hearing held June 17, 1999 .................................................................................... 1 Statements of Members: Cannon, Hon. Chris, a Representative in Congress from the State of Utah ............................................................................................................... 11 Prepared statement of ............................................................................... 11 Hansen, Hon. James V., a Representative in Congress from the State of Utah ........................................................................................................... 1 Prepared statement of ............................................................................... 9 Inslee, Hon. Jay, a Representative in Congress from the State of Wash- ington ............................................................................................................. 10 Romero-Barcelo, Hon. Carlos, a Delegate in Congress from the Territory of Puerto Rico, prepared statement of ......................................................... 10 Udall, Hon. Mark, a Representative in Congress from the State of Colo- rado ................................................................................................................ 16 Statements of witnesses: Leshy, John, Solicitor, Department of the Interior ........................................ 18 Prepared statement of ............................................................................... 21 Additional material supplied: Text of H.R. 1487 .............................................................................................. 2 Communications submitted: Leavitt, Hon. Michael O., Governor, prepared statement of ......................... 67 (III) VerDate 11-SEP-98 07:11 Nov 17, 1999 Jkt 000000 PO 00000 Frm 00003 Fmt 5904 Sfmt 5904 58958 HRESOUR1 PsN: HRESOUR1 H.R. 1487, THE NATIONAL MONUMENT NEPA COMPLIANCE ACT THURSDAY, JUNE 17, 1999 HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES, SUBCOMMITTEE ON NATIONAL PARKS AND PUBLIC LANDS, COMMITTEE ON RESOURCES, Washington, DC. The Subcommittee met, pursuant to call, at 10 a.m. in Room 1324, Longworth House Office Building, Hon. James V. Hansen [chairman of the Subcommittee] presiding. Mr. HANSEN. The meeting will come to order. We expect Con- gressman Stump to be here in a minute. I understand that he is over at the Capitol Hill Club and is his on his way over. We would like to have our Ranking Member from Puerto Rico with us for this very important piece of legislation. So with the indulgence of our witness Mr. Leshy and other folks who are here, if we could just put things on hold for a moment, I would appreciate it. Thank you. [Recess.] STATEMENT OF HON. JAMES V. HANSEN, A REPRESENTATIVE IN CONGRESS FROM THE STATE OF UTAH Mr. HANSEN. Good morning. Welcome to the Subcommittee on National Parks and Public Lands hearing on H.R. 1487, the Na- tional Monument NEPA Compliance Act. [The information follows:] (1) VerDate 11-SEP-98 07:11 Nov 17, 1999 Jkt 000000 PO 00000 Frm 00004 Fmt 6633 Sfmt 6633 58958 HRESOUR1 PsN: HRESOUR1 2 VerDate 11-SEP-98 07:11 Nov 17, 1999 Jkt 000000 PO 00000 Frm 00005 Fmt 6633 Sfmt 6633 58958 HRESOUR1 PsN: HRESOUR1 3 VerDate 11-SEP-98 07:11 Nov 17, 1999 Jkt 000000 PO 00000 Frm 00006 Fmt 6633 Sfmt 6633 58958 HRESOUR1 PsN: HRESOUR1 4 VerDate 11-SEP-98 07:11 Nov 17, 1999 Jkt 000000 PO 00000 Frm 00007 Fmt 6633 Sfmt 6633 58958 HRESOUR1 PsN: HRESOUR1 5 VerDate 11-SEP-98 07:11 Nov 17, 1999 Jkt 000000 PO 00000 Frm 00008 Fmt 6633 Sfmt 6633 58958 HRESOUR1 PsN: HRESOUR1 6 VerDate 11-SEP-98 07:11 Nov 17, 1999 Jkt 000000 PO 00000 Frm 00009 Fmt 6633 Sfmt 6633 58958 HRESOUR1 PsN: HRESOUR1 7 Mr. HANSEN. I would like again welcome our witness John Leshy from the Interior Department. Thank you for being with us today. In 1906, the Antiquities Act was passed as a method to quickly withdraw small parcels of land from the public domain to preserve archaeological sites. Today it is being used to thwart Congressional control over the public lands, to avoid the National Environmental Policy Act, and to deny the American people the right to have input in public land decisions. An article in Monday's Washington Times quoted Secretary Babbitt as having said the following: Quote, ``We switched the rules on the game. We are not trying to do anything legislatively.'' The implication is that if Congress does not pass the laws that the Secretary wants passed, he will make his own laws through regulations, Executive Order, policy directives, et cetera. This is clearly an abuse of power. The Constitution specifically gives Con- gress the power over public lands. If Secretary Babbitt does not like a law such as the mining law, then he should work with Con- gress to change it. However, until Congress does, it is still the law of the land, and the Secretary has taken an oath to uphold it. It is not his place to change the law. The September 1996 creation of the Grand Staircase-Escalante National Monument is a good example of how Interior is trying to use the antiquity law to thwart Congress and avoid NEPA. It ap- pears that as early as August 1995, people in the Interior Depart- ment were talking about the possibility of designating national monuments as a way of thwarting Congress's control over the pub- lic lands. As the Utah wilderness debate started to heat up, the In- terior Department started looking for a way to create wilderness without Congress. In August 3, 1995, memo within the Interior So- licitor's Office, from Dave Watts to Robert Baum, Mr. Watts says that John Leshy wanted to talk to them about the choices and legal risks involved in using the antiquity law. In that memo he warns that, quote, ``To the extent the Secretary proposes a national monu- ment, NEPA applies. However, monuments proposed by the Presi- dent do not require NEPA compliance because NEPA does not cover Presidential actions,'' end of quote. Mr. Watts then opines that the court case Alaska v. Carter held that the Secretary could do all of the work on a national monument withdrawal without triggering NEPA if the monument is the Presi- dent's proposal and the President asks the Secretary to help him. Later the Solicitor's Office sent a memo to Sam Kalen saying that they believed that they needed a letter from the President to the Secretary asking for national monument recommendations if they were to avoid NEPA problems on Antiquities Act work. They also expressed