On the recordApril 29, 2021
I rise in opposition to this amendment by Senator Lee. His amendment would amend the Antiquities Act to prohibit the President from reserving water when designating a national monument. The amendment states that any water rights associated with a national monument may only be acquired under State law. The Lee amendment overturns decades of Supreme Court precedent that when a President designates a national monument under the Antiquities Act, the designation reserves the right to use enough water to fulfill the purpose of the monument. But the water infrastructure bill is not the appropriate place for this amendment. I urge my colleagues to oppose this amendment.
