Raúl Grijalva: “This amendment and the existing authority in the base bill would also give unprecedented power to the Forest Service to…”

“This amendment and the existing authority in the base bill would also give unprecedented power to the Forest Service to shield future final agency actions from any judicial review. This is an extremely dangerous power to give any agency. Allowing an agency to decide when and which actions to shield from oversight gives them power to ignore the laws passed by Congress. Under the language of this amendment, the Forest Service could advance any plan and be relatively sure their internal hand-picked arbitrator would approve it. Review by independent courts provides oversight to ensure agencies are carrying out a statute according to congressional intent. This check and balance ensures good governance and prevents abuse. Mr. Chairman, I urge a ``no'' vote on the amendment, and I yield back the balance of my time.”