Rob Bishop

I am sad to say it has been abused by Republican Presidents as well as has been abused by Democrat Presidents.

You can easily create conservation and energy development if you go through the process ahead of time and plan for that, which I truly believe.

Enacting this legislation is vital to help complete the world famous San Antonio Mission Trail.

It is time it was reformed.

Thank you. And I thank you for supporting my bill with that. That is a really good thing on the NEPA process.

The bills here do not remove a tool from the President, they try to reform a tool for the President.

I am sad that Representative DeFazio left, because he was wrong in what he said.

We weren't involved. And that is why I said that it was kind of--you know, it is kind of a back-door deal.

I found out about it the day after. I read it in the paper.

I would hope that we approach this in a way that recognizes there are two sides to this issue.

I would suggest that maybe there is a different route here than just saying we are going to remove this tool from future Presidents.

We had something of extraordinarily unique national value, something very precious to Oregonians, but also an area which is important for other uses.

I had a very different experience with the Antiquities Act in Oregon, and I find some value in the Antiquities Act.

This is why I, on behalf of UCA, am also testifying to the importance of the Utah Land Sovereignty Act to myself and fellow Utahans.

Though we believe (as might Rep. Bishop) that NEPA has been overused and implemented in situations that do not fall under the original intent...

We believe the NEPA requirements of the Act are the crux of Rep. Bishop's legislation.

Congress must not allow such abuse by the executive branch to continue.

Communities in the area are suffering. Schools are shutting down.

Historically, special land designations like national monuments have had a strangling effect on livestock grazing.

The Act must be amended to include one or all of these steps to limit that power and assure adequate prior public involvement and support;

We've lived in actual fear of this raw Executive power ever since President Clinton and Vice President Gore, in a cowardly, infamous act, failed to engage the people of Utah in a public process...

Without objection, it will be done.

I don't oppose public lands. I simply oppose efforts by an out-of-touch administration to forcibly lock up public lands with no Congressional oversight.

If any administration were to impose additional restrictions to the public lands in Idaho through the designation of new monument areas, the detriment to my State could be vast.

It is unacceptable to make lands off-limits through any process that is not an act of Congress.