Humboldt River Proposal For Conjunctive Management
Regular readers of this weekly newsletter will recall the number of times that Nevada Farm Bureau has requested input to the plans that the Division of Water Resources have for dealing with the Humboldt River System and moving forward with a conjunctive management program. The Division has requested proposed abstract ideas/concepts to be submitted by July 7th. From the initial process of submitting a proposal those submitting abstract ideas will be notified by July 18thon whether the proposal that they have submitted will be included in presentation that will be included in public meetings that are scheduled to start Tues, August 1.
Based on NFB policy for conjunctive management, we have prepared a draft abstract proposal to possibly submit for consideration by the State Engineer’s office. We have met with the State Engineer’s office to discuss whether the capture models are capable of providing the necessary information to fit within the proposed abstract that Farm Bureau is considering.
We would greatly appreciate your feedback to the proposal. Visit
tinyurl.com/DraftAbstract-CMHRB and take a look at what is being proposed. Your feedback can be provided by email to doug@nvfb.org or you are also welcomed to call and discuss your thoughts…phone (775) 870-3349.
House Committee Passes Bill To Scrap BLM Rule
On June 21st the U.S. House Natural Resources Committee passed HR 3397 introduced by Congressman John Curtis of Utah. HR 3397 basically directs the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) to pull the plug on their proposed rule of inventing a new multiple use that they label as “conservation.” The committee’s passage came on a party-line 20-16 vote.
As a result of the committee action HR 3397 will move forward for possible passage by the House.
It is unlikely that the Senate version of the legislation, S. 1435 that was introduced by Senator John Barrasso of Wyoming, will be considered, but the action does send a strong message. According to one of the media reports that we’ve seen there have been over 150,000 public comments that have been submitted to this point.
Another Department of Interior Agency Announces Regulation Changes
The Bureau of Land Management (BLM) aren’t the only agency crafting regulations to suit their vision of how the world should operate. The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service have announced a set of three regulation packages that they proclaim will “restore important protections for species, strengthen consultation and listing processes and reaffirm the central role that science plays in decisions that guide the protection and recovery of endangered and threatened wildlife.”
The three different regulation packages are being published in the June 22, 2023, Federal Register and with those publications the process will trigger a 60-day public comment period. This would bring the deadline for comments on these rules to August 21, 2023.
According to the agency’s news release, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service and the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s (NOAA) National Marine Fisheries Service are jointly proposing two sets of changes to the implementing regulations with the intent to improve both agencies’ ability to fulfill their responsibilities under the Endangered Species Act (ESA) to protect and recover listed species. The third rule, addressing protections for threatened species is being proposed by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service.
Rule to improve the interagency consultation process – this proposal seeks to revise language, definitions and responsibilities that clarifies and further improves federal interagency consultation processes. We’re told that this set of changes will revise the scope of reasonable and prudent measures in an incidental take statement to improve conservation outcomes.
Rule to clarify standards for listing, delisting, reclassifying species and revising some criteria for critical habitat designations – this proposal is mostly aimed at reinstating the prior language that the Trump Administration’s regulations put in place. The reversal is seeking to take out the references that the Trump Regulations had for possible economic or other impacts of determinations.
Rule to reinstate protections for species listed as threatened under ESA – this matter, for the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, puts back the “blanket 4 (d) rule.” In their view, doing so will provide a base level of protection for all species listed as “threatened” while retaining the option for the Service to adopt a species-specific 4 (d) rule.
House Ag Committee Creates Working Group To Address H-2A Program Issues
The H-2A program doesn’t fall under the House Agriculture Committee’s jurisdiction, but because of the critical nature of the issue for farm labor issues, the leaders of the Ag Committee have named a 14-member working group to dig into find solutions for the labor problems that agricultural producers are dealing with.
Those named to the working group represent districts where things are especially challenging. The membership is evenly divided between Republican and Democrats. Congressmen Rick Crawford of Arkansas and Don Davis of North Carolina will co-chair the working group.
American Farm Bureau Federation (AFBF) President Zippy Duvall commented on the House Agriculture Committee formation of a bipartisan Agricultural Labor Working Group to address pressing issues facing farmers.
“AFBF appreciates Chairman GT Thompson and Ranking Member David Scott for coming together to investigate the labor challenges facing America’s farmers and ranchers. Labor is one of the biggest limiting factors facing agriculture, and farmers need a system that provides long-term stability. We are committed to engaging with the newly formed working group to address meaningful H-2A reform and a reasonable wage rate that enables farmers to continue meeting the needs of America’s families.”
The working group’s other Congressional members include: Yadira Caraveo of Colorado, Salud Carbajal of California, Lori Chavez-DeRemer of Oregon, Jim Costa of California, Jasmine Crockett of Texas, Monica De La Cruz of Texas, Doug LaMalfa of California, Nick Langworthy of New York, David Rouzer of North Carolina, Darren Soto of Florida, Derrick Van Orden of Wisconsin and Gabe Vasquez of New Mexico.
AFBF President Weighs In On Proposed BLM Rule
Not only are Western State Farm Bureaus and others who are directly impacted by the proposed rule that the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) has invented getting engaged in the discussion of this controversy, but American Farm Bureau Federation President Zippy Duvall has gone on record with his thoughts. Read his remarks here: fb.org/the-zipline/ranchers-on-the-frontlines-caring-for-public-lands
Attention now is on getting public input comments submitted for the 75-day comment period that BLM has provided as the only opportunity to have a say. The email address to send your comment letter to is: via email to BLM_HQ_PRA_Comments@blm.gov. Please reference OMB Control Number 1004-0NEW and RIN 1004-AE92 in the subject line.
EDITOR’S NOTE: The Editor thought the PR readers would like to know where the National Deputy Director of BLM came from and who signs her paycheck. Hmm. Interesting… blm.gov/bio/nada-wolff-culver