Click the Take Action Now Link Below to Ask House Natural Resources Committee Members to Support H. Res. 1406!
As you may recall, ARRA recently asked you to send a letter to the Members of the House Natural Resources Committee supporting a Resolution of Inquiry (H. Res. 1254) that would have required the Secretary of Interior to turn over information related to potential National Monument designations and other public lands initiatives. Thank you for the thousands of letters you sent. A vote to favorably report that resolution was narrowly defeated in Committee by a vote of 20-22, a much smaller margin than expected. However, there is more to the story.
Prior to the vote Committee Chairman Rahall (D-WV) indicated he would be more likely to support a scaled back version of the measure that focused on requiring DOI to turn over the full document that contained the National Monument recommendations that were leaked to the Natural Resources Committee earlier this year, but not the more than 2,000 pages of background documents. As a result, House Committee on Natural Resources Ranking Member, Doc Hastings (R-WA) and Subcommittee on National Parks, Forests, and Public Lands Ranking Member Rob Bishop (R-UT) introduced a second Resolution of Inquiry (H. Res. 1406) that was drafted in an attempt to garner Rahall’s support. A Resolution of Inquiry is a method used by the House to obtain information from an executive branch official.
The House Natural Resources Committee will vote on H. Res. 1406 on June 16th.
TAKE ACTION NOW!We know from what has been leaked that the Administration is considering designating millions of acres of western lands as National Monuments. Passage of H. Res. 1406 will help us better understand what else the Administration is considering behind closed doors.Sweeping National Monument designations like those outlined in the leaked DOI memo represent a serious threat to recreation including motorized access. Any OHV use would almost certainly be forever banned in areas designated as National Monuments and riders would have no opportunity to formally weigh in on the process. Any decision that could potentially lock OHVs out of huge swaths of public lands should be made in the light of day, and that is why it is important for you to weigh in to support transparency.
Please click the Take Action Now link below to send a letter encouraging House Natural Resources Committee Members to support and cosponsor H. Res. 1406.
TAKE ACTION NOW!
