Volume 161, No. 32 covering the 1st Session of the 114th Congress (2015 - 2016) was published by the Congressional Record.
The Congressional Record is a unique source of public documentation. It started in 1873, documenting nearly all the major and minor policies being discussed and debated.
“PRINCIPLED STEWARDSHIP OF THE AMERICAN WEST” mentioning the Environmental Protection Agency was published in the Senate section on pages S1087-S1088 on Feb. 25, 2015.
The publication is reproduced in full below:
PRINCIPLED STEWARDSHIP OF THE AMERICAN WEST
Mr. BARRASSO. Mr. President, over the past week while I was home in Wyoming traveling around our State, I had a chance to talk with students about their hopes for the future, and I talked with many small business owners about their efforts in trying to create jobs.
The people of Wyoming work hard and take seriously the Western values of family and community. They are committed--they are committed--to preserving the West's role in providing natural resources that improve the lives of millions of people all across America.
This commitment is shared by the Senate Western Caucus--a caucus which I chair in the Senate--as well as is shared by the Congressional Western Caucus under the leadership of Wyoming Congressman Cynthia Lummis.
Recently, we released a joint report titled ``Principled Stewardship of the American West.'' This new report has details about specific things we should be doing right here in Congress, specific things Washington should let the people in the West do for themselves. The whole report is available on my Web site, Barrasso.senate.gov.
Now I want to talk about four specific principles that guide the work of the Western Caucus that are contained in this very report. These principles are based on the idea that the people who live on the land are the best stewards of the land. Our main goal is to empower the residents, the workers, and the leaders in the West and local leaders throughout the country to make the decisions that best serve their families and their communities. These principles stand in stark contrast to the failed approach Washington has taken for far too long.
The first principle in our report has to do with energy. The members of the Western Caucus are united. We will promote access to our Nation's abundant, affordable, secure, diverse, and reliable energy and mineral resources. That means increasing energy security for the United States. We can do that by producing more energy responsibly right here at home. It also means opening access to international markets so we can help the energy security of our allies as well.
The second principle we talk about in the report ``Principled Stewardship of the American West'' focuses on environmental stewardship in the West. We take very seriously our commitment to ensuring the health of the land, the wildlife, and the environment. Thousands of people are working across the West to protect our communities. These are people who live in the West, not bureaucrats in Washington, DC. Nobody is better qualified than the people who actually walk the land and breathe the air they are trying to protect.
Our report encourages locally led conservation partnerships to build on the work being done by people who rely on the health and the safety of the land. This means making sure regulators base their decisions on science, not on personal ideology, and that their work is done out in the open. On this front I will be introducing legislation to stop the Environmental Protection Agency's takeover of the waters of the United States.
The third principle in this report focuses on agriculture and forestry. As an environmental stewardship, the Western Caucus believes the States are better equipped than Washington to develop good farm policies. Crops, breeds of livestock, soil types, and the growing seasons vary greatly across this country. These factors come together in the West very differently from what might be seen in the Northeast or in the South. A bureaucrat in Washington simply cannot write regulations that cover every part of the country with any hope of success. Western States must be allowed to make these decisions for themselves to help the farming and ranching way of life continue to thrive in America.
One task we can do at the national level is to promote active management of our forests to ensure that our forests remain healthy. As many as 82 million acres of our National Forest System need treatment to deal with the threats of fire, insects, and invasive species. When forests deteriorate, they are more vulnerable to wildfire. Fires cause erosion and threaten water quality. When forests get overgrown and unhealthy, they stifle habitats critical for deer, elk, wild turkeys, and other animals. The members of the Western Caucus know how important it is to responsibly manage our national forests, and we will push for legislation to make sure that continues to happen.
Finally, the report focuses on a Western approach to judicial and regulatory reform. This includes stopping the lawsuit abuse that special interest groups have used to set public policy without the public actually being involved. It includes protecting private property owners from excessive Washington regulations.
Agencies such as the Environmental Protection Agency and the U.S. Forest Service have a history of interfering with the use of private property. These agencies have fined and bullied landowners throughout the West. Too often the goal of the bureaucrats is to protect their own turf, not to protect the land or to serve the people. Honest, hard-
working taxpayers get crushed beneath the resources of a Federal legal system that operates without oversight. The Western Caucus favors conservation through local cooperation and partnership, not through intimidation and an attitude that ``Washington knows best.''
This report's four principles and the ideas it discusses are based on what members in the Western Caucus hear back home. These are the topics I hear from people as I travel around Wyoming. These principles promote responsible energy, food and timber production, while preserving what makes the West a unique place in America.
Last year more than 10 million people from around the world visited Wyoming. They are drawn by its beauty and natural splendor. The people of Wyoming and all Western States know they have a responsibility to manage and protect the land and waters in a way that allows all of us to enjoy them. The goal of the Senate and Congressional Western Caucus is to preserve and protect everything that is special about the West so that families who have lived there for generations can continue to live there for generations in the future.
Thank you, Mr. President.
I yield the floor.
The PRESIDING OFFICER. The assistant Democratic leader.
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