Robert L. Ehrlich, Jr. letter to S. Y., March 20, 1996

Congress of ttje ®niteb States ftouie of fieprtsmtatibeg 2®ajrt)ington, 30C 20515-2002 March 20, 1996 Dear | Thanks for conveying to me your concerns about environmental issues. I benefit by hearing your views. You raise several issues in your letter which I will seek to. address separately. With respect to H. R. 2560- introduced by Congressman Don Young (R-Alaska)-this bill has been pending in the House Resources Committee since last October. It is uncertain when this bill may be brought to the House floor. As you know, H. R. 2560 seeks to amend existing law governing the transfer of certain Alaskan lands to Native American corporations. Given that this issue directly affects the citizens of Alaska, I believe that Congress should give strong preference to their wishes-and the wishes of their duly elected representatives-in resolving such an issue. With respect to reauthorization of the Endangered Species Act (ESA), I believe we must reform existing law so it protects species without saddling the economy with overburdensome regulations. There are currently several different reform proposals pending before Congress. I am in the process of reviewing each of them. Ultimately I plan to support that which best balances the interests of our nation’s wildlife with the need to maintain economic growth. With respect to Congress’ general approach to environmental issues, I share some of your concerns. On the two most important environmental votes to come before Congress in 1995, 1 supported the position endorsed by most environmental groups. I opposed H. R. 96 1 , a Republican-sponsored Clean Water Act reauthorization bill, because I believed it would adversely impact ongoing efforts to clean up the Chesapeake Bay. I also voted, on three separate occasions, to delete from an appropriations bill 17 legislative provisions unilaterally restricting EPA’s ability to enforce environmental laws and regulations. Please be assured that I will continue to give all environmental legislation taken up by Congress thorough, careful, and individual consideration. Thanks again for writing. Let me know if I may be of further assistance. Sincerely, Robert L. Ehrlich, Jr. Member of Congress