Steve Daines: “I want to thank the chairman for his leadership on this important issue. I rise in support of the rule and H.R. 4315…”

“I want to thank the chairman for his leadership on this important issue. I rise in support of the rule and H.R. 4315, the 21st Century Endangered Species Transparency Act. My home State of Montana is called the Treasure State, where we found settlers. In fact, my great-great-grandmother came out and homesteaded in Montana. They found productive ag lands. They found riches of minerals to sustain our industries among the many species that are important to our fishing and hunting heritage. When the Endangered Species Act became law, Congress committed to helping to sustain our unique ecosystems and our way of life. However, too often ESA decisions are not based on sound science and it is about political science, unfortunately, and the law results in encouraging habitual litigation. The result has been fewer jobs and deteriorating forest health. And, as Mr. Bishop mentioned, the species aren't actually recovering with a batting average of .008. Frankly, the Endangered Species Act is like a 40-year-old ranch pickup: it once served a useful purpose but is in bad need of repair. By increasing transparency--and this is about repairing the Endangered Species Act, bringing it forward to the 21st century so it actually delivers the outcomes we all desire, and that is recovering the species versus just listing them. H.R. 4315 begins an important process toward modernizing this well-intentioned but out-of-balance and out-of-date law. I urge the House and Senate to pass it.”