Government does have to step in, but only as a last resort, not because some agency or some bureau feels like--some service feels like--'Hey, we don't have enough to do...'

I have got a piece of legislation we have passed out of the Full House twice now, bipartisan, I think was unanimous earlier--in this Congress called the FCC Consolidated Reporting Act...

I do think that is one area where we found a lot of bipartisan support in the way it passed the House.

A lot of us that want to continue to maintain a free and open Internet want to make sure that we are going about it the right way.

I do, Senator, thank you. I am chairing a hearing in 15 minutes, if I could proceed.

any new Federal regulations must recognize that States are already regulating development, and should have primacy over these oil and gas wells within the refuge system.

it is essential that the Service make it crystal clear that it will honor the private property rights of subsurface mineral owners.

Today the subcommittee will examine the Fish and Wildlife Service's recent efforts to further regulate oil and gas activities within the National Refuge System.

the Service must not establish unreasonable new fees that would have the effect of denying access to non-Federal minerals legally owned by large and small energy companies.

horizontal drilling from private lands to access oil and gas under a refuge should not fall under the Service's jurisdiction.

If you did deny access, that would be a violation of the Fifth Amendment, the Constitution?

So the statement that, 'I am from the Federal Government, I am here to help you' may not apply always in the case of Alaska.

So it just seems to me that we are only adding just yet another layer of regulatory bureaucracy to the one that we already have.

We do not have any privately operated wells that have been abandoned or currently don't have a sponsor for dismantlement, repair, and restoration.

the expertise and the experience lies with the States. States have been doing this for many years, and doing a very good job.

I would rather have it in the hands of Louisiana, rather than blanket regulations across the United States by the Service.

We believe it is for Congress, not DOI, to weigh the needs of the refuge lands and interests of mineral owners.

The right to own property... sets America apart from every other Nation in history.