Michael Bennet: “I congratulate the Presiding Officer for sitting in that chair. Amendment No. 18 I wish to speak about the Fischer…”

“I congratulate the Presiding Officer for sitting in that chair. Amendment No. 18 I wish to speak about the Fischer amendment which is slated to be voted on at some point. While I respect where my neighbor from Nebraska is coming from with this effort, the proposal unfortunately misses the mark by a mile. The amendment would set up a new and unprecedented process for protective land designations. It says the Secretary of the Interior or Agriculture has to publish in the Federal Register two findings before any congressional protections on public lands would go into effect. First, the Secretary has to find that new, protected land would not adversely affect our efforts to administer existing protected land. Second, the Department has to have ``sufficient resources''--whatever that is--to implement plans for existing protected land. While perhaps innocuous sounding, these would be huge changes in how we do business around here. Coming from a State that is over a third Federal land, I prefer that drastic reform proposals such as this at least have the benefit of a committee hearing before we vote on them on the floor. That way, we can hear expert testimony as to whether this is a good idea or consider ways we might be able to improve the measure. But as far as I know, this language hasn't had a hearing in this Congress, or any other Congress, for that matter.…”