Markey: Scientists No Longer Endangered Species under an Obama Admin.

Markey: Scientists No Longer Endangered Species under an Obama Administration

Chairman Called for Legislative Language to Reverse Rules, Held Hearing on Bush Midnight Rules Same Day ESA Rule Was Issued

WASHINGTON (March 3, 2009) – Rep. Edward J. Markey (D-Mass.), who was first to call for Congressional review of Bush administration Endangered Species Act rule changes, praised President Obama and his administration today for reversing one of the last industry giveaways of the Bush administration. The president is set to announce today at a speech at the Interior Department that he will issue a presidential memorandum to put a hold on a rule issued by the Bush administration that would strip scientific review from the Endangered Species Act process and prevent scientists from considering the impacts of global warming.

“Today proves that, under an Obama administration, scientists are no longer an endangered species,” said Rep. Markey, whose Select Committee on Energy Independence and Global Warming held a hearing on Bush midnight rules the same day the Endangered Species Act (ESA) rule was issued. “Thankfully, ESA in the Obama administration now means we are ‘Ending the Scientific Aversion’ that characterized the Bush administration’s tenure.”

More information from the Bush rules hearing can be found here: http://globalwarming.house.gov/pubs/pubs_id=0061#main_content

The House included language passed last month in the omnibus spending bill that would give 60 days for the Obama administration to withdraw or reissue the ESA rule, as well as the special polar bear rule. And in the December, 2008 hearing on Bush midnight rulemakings, Chairman Markey said, “today's announcement that the Bush administration will be removing fish and wildlife experts from key decisions to protect the safety of iconic animals like the polar bear from global warming’s effects is absurd and a recipe for disaster.”

Rep. Markey was first to propose using Congressional Review Act authority to overturn this and other harmful executive rules in November of last year. Rep. Markey highlighted this ESA rule as one of the more egregious examples of poor rulemaking.

Rep. Markey also challenged the previous Interior Department Secretary, Dirk Kempthorne on the Bush administration’s budget cuts to the endangered species program. You can see a video of this exchange here: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MZLaV_JaJyc

“We stand at the ready here in Congress to help the Obama administration clean up the deregulated mess left over from the last eight years,” said Rep. Markey. “We applaud the president for taking such decisive action on this and other environmental rules.”

# # #

Return to Press Releases »

del.icio.us   Digg this   Reddit   Stumbleupon