Federal Lawmaking

By Chris Heck Last Friday, Representative Rob Bishop, R-Utah, introduced the National Monument Creation and Protection Act, H.R.3990. The legislation seeks to modernize the Antiquities Act by protecting the president’s ability to establish a national monument and, based on the monument's proposed size, ensuring local government and community voices have been heard. Earlier this week,…… Continue reading →

Over the past year and a half, NACD’s Farm Bill Task Force, currently chaired by NACD First Vice President Tim Palmer, has worked to create a set of policy requests for the 2018 Farm Bill. Starting with a survey of our members last summer, the Task Force created a set of principles that helped to…… Continue reading →

By Coleman Garrison Since last week’s announcement that USDA is taking further steps in their efforts to reorganize the department, NACD has received additional information that we wanted to pass along to you, though many details are still to come. First, USDA has communicated to NACD that its most recent proposal is in no way moving…… Continue reading →

By Elijah Olomoniyi Yesterday, federal and state wildlife groups met north of Fort Collins, Colorado, at the National Black-footed Ferret Conservation Center to celebrate the ways voluntary conservation and a new sylvatic plague vaccine are helping to bring the black-footed ferret back from the brink of extinction. [caption id="attachment_9858" align="alignleft" width="489"] Black-footed ferret populations are mostly…… Continue reading →

By Chris Heck On Wednesday, June 7, Interior Secretary Ryan Zinke signed a secretarial order that charges an internal team with the review of all federal and state greater sage-grouse conservation plans finalized in September 2015. The team will have 60 days to evaluate whether the federal and state plans are complementary, and if deemed appropriate, will discuss modifying…… Continue reading →

By Chris Heck What is the Antiquities Act?  The Act for the Preservation of American Antiquities was signed into law by President Theodore Roosevelt in 1906. During his presidency, Roosevelt used the act 18 times. Seven of his original designations have been upgraded to “national park” or “national forest” by Congress, or in the case…… Continue reading →

By Eric Hansen Conservation districts draw on a variety of funding sources to protect and conserve our nation’s natural resources. Districts pull from farm bill conservation programs, state resource protection programs, and leverage private funds to achieve conservation objectives. They also can apply for funding through the Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA) Section 319 program. Fast…… Continue reading →

By Chris Heck On Tuesday, March 28, President Donald Trump issued an executive order rescinding several Obama-era executive orders and memoranda on energy, natural resources, and climate change, including the following: Executive Order 13653 of November 1, 2013 (Preparing the United States for the Impacts of Climate Change); The Presidential Memorandum of June 25, 2013 (Power…… Continue reading →

By Chris Heck WASHINGTON, March 30, 2017 - The Federal Land Policy and Management Act of 1976 established a process that requires the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) to develop resource management plans (RMPs) in cooperation with state, local, and tribal governments. The first BLM land planning process regulation was finalized by the agency in…… Continue reading →

By Chris Heck WASHINGTON, Jan. 19, 2017 – Speculation is flying on whether the new Congress will use the Congressional Review Act (CRA) to repeal several of the Obama administration’s more controversial regulations. These regulations include the Farmer Fair Practices or GIPSA rule, the SNAP retailers rule, the school lunch and breakfast program’s nutrition standards,…… Continue reading →