National

 

AP | Watchdog to investigate Interior moves on Utah monument. “A government watchdog will investigate whether the U.S. Interior Department broke the law by making plans to open lands cut from a Utah national monument by President Donald Trump to leasing for oil, gas and coal development, a pair of Democratic congress members said Monday. The Government Accountability Office’s investigation into whether the Interior violated the appropriations law by using funds to assess potential resource extraction in the lands cut from the Grand Staircase-Escalante National Monument is the latest chapter in a long-running saga over the sprawling monument created in 1996 on lands home to scenic cliffs, canyons, dinosaur fossils and coal reserves.” [Washington Post, 6/17/19 (+)]

Interior held back FOIA’d documents after political screenings. “Documents sought under the Freedom of Information Act were withheld by the Interior Department under a practice that allowed political appointees to review the requests, internal emails and memos show. The policy allowed high-ranking officials to screen documents sought by news organizations, advocacy groups and whistleblowers, including files set to be released under court deadlines. In some cases, the documents’ release was merely delayed. In other cases, documents were withheld after the reviews.” [Roll Call, 6/18/19 (+)]

Green groups ask Interior watchdog to investigate agency's public records policies. “A number of conservation groups are asking the Interior Department’s internal watchdog to investigate reports that political appointees are improperly interfering in the release of public records. Two separate complaints filed Monday by Earthjustice and the Campaign for Accountability say officials are using an "awareness review" policy to unlawfully delay the release of Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) requests, and demand Interior’s Office of Inspector General (OIG) look into the situation.” [The Hill, 6/17/19 (+)]

Department's FOIA program prompts IG complaint. “The Interior Department's Office of Inspector General is now facing a flood of requests to investigate how agency officials allegedly installed political screens on Freedom of Information Act requests. Citing news reports and internal Interior documents, five organizations led by the Campaign for Accountability filed a complaint today questioning an "Awareness Process for Freedom of Information Act Productions" adopted in May 2018.” [E&E News, 6/17/19 (+)]

Outdoor recreation industry faces ballooning costs if new tariffs are slapped on, analysis shows. “Between tariffs already in effect and the potential for more, a new analysis shows the outdoor recreation industry could face $1.5 billion in additional costs per month if the U.S.-China trade war continues to escalate. The Outdoor Industry Association released the data Tuesday, the opening day of Outdoor Retailer, the outdoor recreation industry’s premier trade show, which is in its second year in Denver. The review by The Trade Partnership, an economic research and consulting firm in Washington, D.C., found the last round of tariffs, imposed on $200 billion worth of imports, cost outdoor recreation companies a total of $1.1 billion from September 2018 through April of this year.

” [Denver Post, 6/18/19 (+)]

Trump’s Department of Interior Axing 7,500 Regs to Give Americans Access to Federal Land. “Trump’s Cabinet is putting his America First policies into place, including at the Department of Interior, where Secretary David Bernhardt announced a plan to open up more than 1.4 million acres of federal land through the elimination of some 7,500 regulations.” [Breitbart, 6/17/19 (-)]

Senators eye maintenance backlog. “The multibillion-dollar backlog of deferred maintenance on public lands, and what could be done about it, will be the subject of a Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee hearing today. The Interior Department's backlog topped $18 billion in 2018; $12 billion of that belonged to the National Park Service. The hearing today will examine deferred maintenance at the Interior Department and Forest Service.” [E&E News, 6/18/19 (=)]

Committee sets vote on LWCF, parks bills. “Bills that would reduce the massive deferred maintenance backlog on public lands and establish mandatory funding for the Land and Water Conservation Fund, among others, are poised to advance tomorrow in the House. The House Natural Resources Committee will vote on the "Restore Our Parks and Public Lands Act," H.R. 1225, and the "Land and Water Conservation Fund Permanent Funding Act," H.R. 3195, which both have bipartisan support.” [E&E News, 6/18/19 (=)]

 

BLM removes top law enforcement official. “The Bureau of Land Management has placed its top law enforcement official on administrative leave after a 2018 inspector general's report concluded he was using a government-owned vehicle without proper authorization. William Woody, director of BLM's Office of Law Enforcement and Security, was escorted out of the Interior Department's Washington, D.C., headquarters last Wednesday and required to surrender his firearm and badge, according to several sources with knowledge of the situation.” [E&E News, 6/17/19 (=)]

Committee to vote on picks for Interior, TVA. “The Senate Environment and Public Works Committee is set to vote tomorrow on two Trump administration nominees. In a morning session, the panel will vote on Robert Wallace to be assistant Interior secretary for fish, wildlife and parks and William Kilbride to be a member of the Tennessee Valley Authority's board of directors. A legislative grab bag is also on the docket.” [E&E News, 6/18/19 (=)]

 

State and Local

 

A new day for Colorado’s $62 billion outdoors industry as it balances promotion with conservation. “Overseeing the Colorado Outdoor Recreation Industry Office isn’t just a walk in the park, a hike up a mountain trail or a raft ride down the rapids. A day on the job might involve any of those. But it also means helping grow the state’s $62 billion outdoor recreation industry. It involves promoting conservation of the stunning landscapes that make the Centennial State a huge draw and promoting the economic and health benefits of being outdoors.” [Denver Post, 6/17/19 (+)]

BLM bends on climate review for Utah lease sale. “The Bureau of Land Management in Utah is suspending oil and gas leases sold in a contested patch of the high desert last year in what environmentalists are calling a win for climate action on public lands. BLM notified the Southern Utah Wilderness Alliance last week that it would suspend leases covering about 200,000 acres from a September auction until it had completed additional environmental analysis. The environmental group had argued that BLM failed to take climate change impacts fully into account before offering the acreage to the oil and gas industry, echoing recent arguments that had prevailed in federal court.” [E&E News, 6/18/19 (=)]

 

Op-Ed, Editorial, and Analysis

Op-Ed: Western states need to hold Interior secretary Bernhardt accountable. “Bernhardt will undoubtedly pull from the same bag of tricks he used as a lobbyist to try to appease Western governors, but they shouldn’t be fooled — this regime is recklessly undermining our American birthright of accessible public lands that will have lasting impacts now and for future generations. Western governors must side with Western families and hold the Trump administration’s most conflict swamp creature accountable for the damage being done to our outdoor heritage. ” [The Hill, 6/17/19 (+)]

Op-Ed: 'Git-R-Done': Trump opens 1.4 million federal acres to hunters, anglers. “President Trump isn’t much of an outdoorsman, aside from golf. But maybe more than any president since Teddy Roosevelt, he understands the importance of others getting outside to boat, hunt, fish, shoot, and hike and their demands for access to federal lands and waterways. “He’s basically said, ‘Git-R-Done,'” said Interior Secretary David Bernhardt, who is spearheading the opening of 1.4 million acres and elimination of 7,500 regulations limiting access.” [Washington Examiner, 6/17/19 (-)]

Editorial: Funds needed for upgrades. “Pence said Sens. John Barrasso and Mike Enzi, and Rep. Liz Cheney, have been helpful in Washington D.C. to encourage this funding model in a budget bill, but the reality of divided government is that generally nobody gets everything they want. While that may be for the best on a number of issues, in the case of the National Parks, which Pence called the best throughout the world, we hope everyone sees eye-to-eye and provides the funding needed.” [Cody Enterprise, 6/17/19 (~)]