Political Quotes

“Mr. President, I rise today to introduce the Blackrock Land Exchange Act of 2017. The legislation supports a mutually beneficial effort between the Bureau of Land Management and the J.R. Simplot Company in Idaho that began over 20 years ago. Simplot proposed an exchange of their privately owned land with superior natural resources and recreational opportunities for a similar sized parcel of BLM land adjacent to a Simplot phosphate processing facility. This facility adds significant value to the Pocatello, Idaho area as a large employer that sustains over 350 jobs with an over $55 million annual economic impact. In 2007, BLM issued a Final Decision Record on the Environmental Assessment concluding the exchange would have no significant environmental impact, which was reaffirmed in 2009 by the Department of Interior Board of Land Appeals. However, the exchange has been held up since 2011 due to the District Court for Idaho ruling that BLM needed to prepare a full Environmental Impact Statement including detailed future use to comply with the National Environmental Policy Act of 1969. This raises the possibility of a dangerous precedent for future land conveyances, as the exchange itself does not authorize further activities. Future use of the proposed adjacent land by the phosphate facility would still be subject to NEPA with opportunity for public comment.…”