Jeff Bingaman: “I rise in opposition to the motion of the Senator from South Carolina to suspend rule XXII and offer an amendment to…”

“I rise in opposition to the motion of the Senator from South Carolina to suspend rule XXII and offer an amendment to prohibit the establishment of national monuments under the Antiquities Act or any other law. I understand that the proposed amendment is in response to allegations that a portion of an internal planning memo at the Department of the Interior identified several areas throughout the country as areas that may be appropriate for potential national monument consideration. The Secretary of the Interior has stated that the document was simply a brainstorming exercise to identify sites on public land that might merit more serious consideration for possible management options, and that no decisions have been made about which areas, if any, might merit more serious review and consideration. I don't think it makes sense to try to legislate every time an article appears in a newspaper. I would observe that even the document in question that was leaked to certain Members of Congress states that 'further evaluations should be completed prior to any decision, including an assessment of public and Congressional support,' and Secretary Salazar has publicly stated his view that new designations and conservation initiatives work best when they build on local efforts. So I think that any attempt to legislate at this time is very premature.”