Tom Udall

I write to request a legal opinion from the U.S. Government Accountability Office concerning whether the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) violated the annual governmentwide statutory prohibition on the use of funds for publicity or…

I think there's good bipartisan support, and Senator Shelby's trying to proceed in the direction so we don't have any more of these CRs and we do our bills on time.

However, these innovations raise questions about children growing up in a digital world.

Senator Udall noted a concern about not engaging as much with Tribes.

Public lands boost our local economies and add jobs, and special places like Las Vegas, New Mexico, benefit greatly.

Well, I think the reality is that, State flexibility, it ends up that we end up deteriorating the habitat for the sage-grouse.

You intend to follow the direction provided in the omnibus and the explanatory statement, and follow congressional intent.

Yes, and we really appreciate what you did in New Mexico.

I remain concerned that there is still a directive in place for BLM to offer quarterly lease sales that have the potential to impact Chaco.

What date are we releasing the budget to the field?

That is our point here.

the reason we have the Land and Water Conservation Fund and the reason the commission that Senator Alexander talked about was put in place, and the high numbers that Senator Tester talked about, are to have additional parks at the local…

Doesn't the public have a right to comment on the development of their public lands?

Mr. Secretary, you raised King Cove. Maybe Senator Murkowski is more up-to-date than I am on that, but could you provide the committee an update on the Izembek road?

Your budget request walks away from the decades-long Federal commitment to the Land and Water Conservation Fund.

I strongly urge you to not move ahead unless the plan amendment has been signed and there has been robust Tribal consultation and input from stakeholders.

You have said you want to uphold our Nation's trust and treaty responsibilities and support Tribal self-determination, but Tribal programs are decimated by this budget.

I do not see how drawing the lines really makes a difference there.

I would also point out that we have an example of where the bureaus were able to do that already, the regional sage-grouse plans at your Department, and your Department is now in the process of scrapping those.

I do not see how changing regional boundaries resolves the fact that the BLM has a different legal responsibility and legal responsibilities than the Park Service or the Bureau of Reclamation.

I do not support the administration's efforts to move full-steam ahead on the plan to drill in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge.

I appreciate you want to improve resource stewardship by getting bureaus to focus on regional landscapes and to work across Federal, State, and local lines.

The monuments review that the Department conducted, and the decisions to eviscerate Bears Ears and Grand Staircase-Escalante, are a travesty.

I am particularly troubled by the lack of Tribal consultation so far.

The decisions made by the Department determine whether our natural and cultural resources are protected and managed responsibly.