The House of Representatives on Tuesday was working on the spending bill that funds the Interior Department, which typically has a lot of relevance for Alaska.
Congressman Don Young is trying to add five big amendments to the bill that would essentially rollback key parts of the Obama administration’s resource agenda for Alaska. One of his amendments would keep things as they are. It would prevent the administration from removing three Alaska lease sales from the offshore leasing program.
If anyone does develop their offshore leases in Alaska, Young has an amendment that says they don’t have to follow the new Arctic drilling standards that the Obama administration is looking to finalize.
These are amendments to a spending bill, so they technically just say the government can’t spend any money to develop or enforce these rules.
And remember the controversy over predator hunting on federal lands, specifically preserves and refuges? Young has an amendment that would keep the states’ more permissive rules for hunting predators in place on those federal lands.
It’s very emotional for a lot of Alaskans, not only the sovereignty issue, but they think the state does a better job managing fish and game because it manages the number of predators in order to keep game populations healthy. And it’s an emotional issue for environmentalists because they don’t like the idea of killing wolf pups and bear baiting and a lot of other things that are sometimes allowed under state rules.
And no Alaska-issues grab bag would be complete without something about the Alaska National Wildlife Refuge. Back in January 2015, the federal government announced some new management rules for the Arctic refuge. A lot of Alaskans got really mad about this, when the plan recommended new wilderness areas. Young’s plan would block this management plan, but it also wouldn’t open ANWR. That would take an act of Congress.
These amendments are a long way from becoming law. The spending bills are must pass legislation, but Congress hasn’t followed its rules lately on spending bills. It usually does an omnibus bill at the end of the year, and we don’t know what that’s going to look like.
The House was expected to pass the Interior Appropriations bill Thursday.
