Political Quotes

“I ask unanimous consent that a letter from the U.S. Government Accountability Office, GAO, dated October 23, 2017, be printed in the Record. The letter provides notification that the 2016 Amendment to the Tongass Land and Resource Management Plan, USDA, Forest Service, Tongass Land and Resource Management Plan, Record of Decision, R10-MB- 769I, Washington, D.C.: December 9, 2016, is a rule subject to the Congressional Review Act, 5 U.S.C. Sec. 801 et seq. I wrote to GAO on February 13, 2017, asking it to determine whether the 2016 Tongass plan amendment constitutes a rule subject to the CRA. In response, as communicated in its letter of October 23, GAO determined that the plan amendment is a rule and does not fall within any of the exceptions provided in the CRA. Accordingly, with this GAO opinion and its publication in the Congressional Record, the rule will be subject to a congressional joint resolution of disapproval. The letter I am now submitting to be printed in the Congressional Record is the original document provided by GAO to my office. I will also provide a copy of the GAO letter to the Parliamentarian's office. For those who may be interested, the 2016 Tongass Plan Amendment can be found online at https://www.fs.usda.gov/detail/tongass/ landmanagement/?cid=stelprd3801708. GAO's determination can be accessed at http://www.gao.gov/products/B-238859. I look forward to debating the future of this rule in the weeks and months to come.…”