On the recordJuly 7, 2015
I am pleased to cosponsor this commonsense amendment as we work to stop the Federal Government from enforcing the ill-advised listing of the lesser prairie chicken. As a fifth-generation farmer and possibly the only Member on the floor who has actually seen the real-life bird on a family farm that we are talking about, I am strongly opposed to this listing. As was mentioned, this listing occurred during a massive, historical multiyear drought in my home area in my region and State, which obviously limits habitat growth and reduces the numbers of prairie chickens. The best solution is for it to rain; and that, it has. Thank you, Lord, though I fully expect the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service to take credit for the resulting increase in the lesser prairie chicken population. For the last 4 years, I have heard from farmers, ranchers, homebuilders, energy producers, and other small businesses concerned about what this listing would do to our rural economy. Our farmers and ranchers are in a state of uncertainty as to whether certain farming and conservation practices, like we have in my own farm, will result in fines or perhaps even jail time. Many energy producers have stopped drilling new wells for fear of risking the consequences of the listing. Unless Congress does something and does it soon, this threat to our rural economy will probably continue forever.…
