Billions targeted to wildlife conservation under bipartisan push in Congress

A bipartisan pair of senators have called for Congress to approve billions in new funding for states to manage wildlife recovery work.

During a hearing of the Senate Environment and Public Works Committee on Wednesday, Sens. Martin Heinrich (D-N.M.) and Roy Blunt (R-Mo.) said a bill they introduced this year would help protect 1,600 threatened species, relieve the burden on state wildlife agencies, and spare private landowners from having to deal with federal regulations related to the Endangered Species Act.

The bill would provide $1.3 billion annually for states, tribes, and territories to do species conservation work. It would be paid for with revenue from enforcement actions against those who violate environmental regulations.

Reps. Debbie Dingell (D-Mich.) and Jeff Fortenberry (R-Neb.) introduced companion legislation in the House.

Heinrich and Blunt have won support from both parties for the bill, although senators from both sides of the aisle cautioned that the revenue source was too unpredictable — and perhaps too paltry.

Heinrich said the extra federal cash for state and local efforts would add a critical tool for species recovery. The numbers of endangered or threatened species have continued to increase, despite the successes of state programs and federal Endangered Species Act protections, he said.

“We have a once-in-a-generation opportunity to change this paradigm and save thousands of species with a solution that matches the magnitude of the challenge,” he said.

Sara Parker Pauley, the director of the Missouri Department of Conservation, told the panel the bill would help states complete federally mandated conservation plans. Existing funding only enables 5 percent of the actions called for across state plans, she said.

“The states have done their parts, really without the funding,” she said. “We’ve been given a mandate. The funding hasn’t come with it.”

While boosting federal money for wildlife conservation, the bill is also meant to distance federal involvement in species management, in part by keeping species off the Endangered Species Act list.

“A significant part of the goal here is to work with these state agencies so the federal government never has to be involved in an endangered species situation,” Blunt said.

Collin O’Mara, the president & CEO of the advocacy group National Wildlife Federation, told the panel that the Endangered Species Act designations that would result from inaction would be much more costly to the federal government and private sector.

“Imagine if the monarch butterfly ends up listed. The impact on farms all across the country is massive,” O’Mara said, referring to the insect with a famously broad range in the Western Hemisphere.

“I’m convinced we can save most species through proactive, collaborative work and save hundreds of billions of dollars of private-sector cost.”

The funding would help keep species numbers from reaching critical lows, O’Mara said. Working to protect species before they reach endangered status is more cost-effective and gives species a greater chance of survival.

Funding from fines, penalties

The bill would use money raised through criminal fines and penalties from violations of natural resource and environmental laws.

Leaders of the committee, Chairman Thomas Carper, (D-Del.), and ranking Republican Shelley Moore Capito of West Virginia, raised concerns the source of the bill’s funding could be too unstable to support the ambitious spending.

“As drafted, the legislation identifies a funding source that may not be reliable or fully pay for the bill’s spending,” Carper said.

“As I understand it, the bill will still result in $14 billion in direct, mandatory spending over a 10-year period,” Capito said. “This is an issue that we need to consider against the background of the growth of our debt and deficit during this pandemic.”

Blunt said he and Heinrich “found a funding source we believe works.”

Carper also said he wanted to see more funding for federal agencies, including the Fish and Wildlife Service.

“While we should absolutely address the funding needs of our states and tribes, we cannot afford to ignore the legitimate needs of our federal agencies and other partners,” he said.

In addition to Blunt and Heinrich, 16 Democrats and 15 Republican senators co-sponsored the bill, although neither Carper nor Capito have attached their names. U.S. Sen. Marco Rubio of Florida is a co-sponsor, but not U.S. Sen. Rick Scott.

In the House, Florida Democrats Charlie Crist, Al Lawson, Stephanie Murphy, and Darren Soto are cosponsors and Republicans Carlos Giménez, John Rutherford, and Maria Elvira Salazar.

Capito said Wednesday she was “eager” to work with Heinrich and Blunt to improve the bill and was hopeful the bill could move forward.

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