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Congressman Valadao Leads Request for Answers from Interior on Biological OpinionsLawmakers' Latest Attempt at Oversight to Evaluate Potential Political Influence
Washington,
December 23, 2022
|
Faith Mabry
Tags:
Water
Today, Congressman David G. Valadao (CA-21) led Republican Majority Leader Kevin McCarthy (CA-23) Ranking Member of the House Natural Resources Subcommittee on Water, Oceans, and Wildlife Cliff Bentz (OR-02), Western Caucus Chairman Dan Newhouse (WA-04), and the entire California Republican delegation in a renewed request to Secretary of the Interior Deb Haaland to provide answers about the Department of Interior’s (Department) reconsultation process on the 2019 Biological Opinions (BiOps).
WASHINGTON – Today, Congressman David G. Valadao (CA-21) led Republican Majority Leader Kevin McCarthy (CA-23) Ranking Member of the House Natural Resources Subcommittee on Water, Oceans, and Wildlife Cliff Bentz (OR-02), Western Caucus Chairman Dan Newhouse (WA-04), and the entire California Republican delegation in a renewed request to Secretary of the Interior Deb Haaland to provide answers about the Department of Interior’s (Department) reconsultation process on the 2019 Biological Opinions (BiOps). The reconslutation of the 2019 BiOps has caused significant uncertainty for Central Valley farmers about the future of their water supply, and Congressman Valadao has led several efforts to obtain answers from Interior about their attempts to reverse them. All requests for information have gone unanswered. In the letter, lawmakers raise concerns about political influence on the Department in its attempt to cancel the BiOps: “We are concerned that this reconsultation process represents a departure from common practice, raising questions about whether outside entities may have exerted undue influence on the Department’s decisions,” the lawmakers wrote. The members highlighted that their August 8th request for information has gone unanswered, and if this pattern continues additional action could be taken in the Republican majority: “If the Department should continue to refuse to provide requests for information, the House Committee on Natural Resources will take additional steps to secure the information to fulfill our constitutional oversight duties,” the members wrote. Background: The 2019 Biological Opinions (BiOps) were independently peer-reviewed and informed by the most accurate, best available science. The corresponding operations plans for the Central Valley Project and State Water Project employ the 2019 BiOps science and data to ensure greater water reliability and availability for communities and farms across California, while continuing to protect at-risk species. Unfortunately, the Biden administration’s Bureau of Reclamation has ignored science and reinitiated consultation of these BiOps with no explanation, despite multiple requests for transparency. ### |
