By Colton Young
The Endangered Species Act is currently under review in the House Natural Resources Committee, with new legislation aimed at updating a law that has seen few significant changes since its passage in 1973.
Montana Congressman Troy Downing told Northern Ag Network’s Colton Young that while the original intent of the Act remains important, reforms are necessary.
“One of the problems with the Endangered Species Act, as I understand it, is that none of us want to see any threatened species go extinct,” Downing said. “It’s important that we provide those protections. But it’s become the ‘Hotel California,’ you can check in any time you want, but you can never leave.”
Downing pointed to Montana’s grizzly bear population as an example, noting it has met and exceeded recovery targets.
“We’ve seen that here in Montana with the grizzly population,” he said. “It’s reached its numbers and exceeded them, and as an apex predator, it really has no natural threats.”
He emphasized that the goal is not to remove protections where they are still needed, but to return management authority to the states once recovery goals are met.
“Nobody’s saying we want to eliminate protections where they’re due,” Downing said. “But once those benchmarks set by scientists are met and even surpassed, it’s time to give states the power to manage those species appropriately.”
A major focus of the proposed reforms is reducing regulatory burdens, particularly around permitting and litigation.
“The goal is really simple, get this law back to what it was meant to do,” he said. “This legislation cuts unnecessary red tape and streamlines permitting. Right now, permitting delays are slowing down too many projects, with duplicative processes and excessive litigation.”
The legislation has advanced out of the House Natural Resources Committee with some bipartisan support.
“I sit on the Natural Resources Committee, and Chairman Bruce Westerman was instrumental in getting this bill out of committee,” Downing said. “We expect to see it on the House floor shortly. We had a couple of Democrats sign on in committee, which is a good sign.”
Downing added that bipartisan support in the House could improve the bill’s chances in the Senate.
“If we can pass this with bipartisan support in the House, that’s a good indication we can reach the 60 votes needed in the Senate and ultimately get it to the president’s desk,” he said.
Meanwhile, a Senate committee has also held hearings on potential updates to the Endangered Species Act, signaling that lawmakers in both chambers may be ready for long awaited reforms.
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Northern Ag Network
