Out the outset, I want to make it clear that even though our focus today is on Habitat Conservation Plans, we really need to look at making substantial changes to the entire Act. As you know, I've introduced a bill S. 1305, the "Listing and Delisting Act of 1999" that deals with the core of the Endangered Species Act - sound science - specifically the quality of science used in the listing and petitioning process. Right now, it's basically a "postage stamp" petition: any person who wants to start a listing process may petition a species with little or no scientific support. We are simply going to have to make some real changes to an act that is not working.
Unfortunately, given the political reality, the Endangered Species Act is what it is. By that, I mean it is not going to be repealed and most likely is not even amendable with the significant modifications I and others have offered. Given that grim scenario, I will discuss Habitat Conservation Plans. HCP's are tools for some landowners to help manage their lands once a species has been listed. However, HCP's seem to be a better tool for very large companies rather than the small private landowner. For a small landowner, the HCP's could be very costly--where is the incentive? In many cases, these people depend on their land for their livelihood.
In general, we need to make the act more effective for the species we're trying to protect, and more effective for the local landowners, public land managers, communities and state governments who truly hold the key to the success of any effort to conserve species. If there's one lesson to be learned from the failures of the current act, it is that the only way we can successfully recover a species is through true partnerships.
Truthfully, our efforts are sure to fail if there isn't cooperation between federal, state, and local governments, as well as private interests. Many times, this is easier said than done. The average citizen of Wyoming or anywhere for that matter is extremely leery of federal agencies and they have a right to be. The city of Douglas, Wyoming just recently got caught up in the bureacracy of the administering of the ESA. The city's main water line broke and at the site of the break, a Prebles Meadow Jumping Mouse was found. It took two months for the Agency to issue a permit to fix the line which left half the city of Douglas at risk in terms of drinking water and the whole city at risk for fire protection. This example illustrates the inability of this particular Federal Agency to cooperate and deal with folks in a real world manner. Mr. Chairman, I look forward to hearing from our witnesses and working with you as we discuss and ultimately amend a law that is simply not working.