On the recordJuly 29, 2014
My colleague from Oregon said it well: All does not equal best. The other side evidently is embarrassed by the language in the bill. There are many problems with this bill, but this particular section has some language that they should be embarrassed about, and so they are saying what they wish the language said or what they want it to say. The best scientific data includes all such data. It does not say we will consider all data. It says all equals best. That cannot be true. That should be removed from the bill. That is what this amendment does. Decisions on whether or not a particular study or data set have scientific merit with respect to an individual species listing should be made in the context of peer-reviewed science, not because one State wants one thing and one county wants another thing. It should be based on the best scientific data. That is what this amendment would ensure. I yield back the balance of my time.
Said by
Steven Holt