Revolutionary War And War Of 1812 Battlefield Protection Act - Motion To Proceed

Floor Speech

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Ms. MURKOWSKI. Madam President, I rise today to speak in favor of cloture on the motion to proceed to H.R. 146, which is the Revolutionary War and War of 1812 Battlefield Protection Act. This is being used as a vehicle for the omnibus public lands package.

I think it is probably safe to say that none of us had hoped to be voting on this package here in the Senate again, but it has become clear that despite procedural obstacles this package has broad bipartisan support on both sides of the Hill and should become law, and that is why we are back yet again.

Although each individual bill in this package is not the kind of thing that perhaps makes national headlines, as a whole it is important enough to justify the time this body has committed to it, and I appreciate the majority leader bringing this back, and I appreciate the cooperation of my chairman, Senator Bingaman, as we work to advance the very important provisions that are contained in this omnibus public lands package.

In the case of the Energy Committee, this package, along with a similar package that was passed by the Senate last spring, represents almost 2 years' worth of hearings, negotiations, and business meetings on the many facets of these public lands issues. This package contains over 160 public lands bills, the vast majority of which went through the regular committee process and then sat individually on the Senate calendar at the end of last session.

Now, clearly, when you have a package that is comprised of this many bills--160 different public lands bills--it does a great deal; it covers a great many things. It covers the full range of the committee's public lands jurisdiction, whether it be from small boundary adjustments and land exchanges to large wilderness designations. There will be some who will suggest that the sheer number of bills that is contained in this package is a bad thing and that somehow or other this is new; it is unprecedented. But for those of us who come from western States, which contain large amounts of public lands--and in my State of Alaska about 1 percent of our lands are privately held, everything else is Federal, or State, or part of the native claims settlements--public land is an important aspect of how we operate within our respective States. We understand that legislation, such as that contained in this package, is necessary to the day-to-day functioning of the western economy.

I said during the first debate of this bill when it was before the Senate that in the West simple real estate transactions that are taken for granted in the East often literally take an act of Congress. And that is what we are here doing today. It is taking an act of Congress. This bill protects some of our natural landscape and historical treasures.

Now, there are some who oppose such protections, claiming that we are threatening access to our Nation's resources. But I do not believe that this is an either/or situation. We as a nation can maximize the development of our domestic energy and mineral resources while at the same time protecting our Nation's other natural treasures and wilderness. In fact, the Department of the Interior and the U.S. Forest Service have certified in testimony, in response to questions, that none of the wilderness proposed in this legislation will negatively impact on the availability of oil, gas, or national energy corridors.

There is one section I should mention that does restrict oil and gas development in Wyoming, but as my colleague from Wyoming has mentioned, it is fully supported by their State delegation and their Governor. Almost all of the lands in this bill are already federally managed lands, most to be designated as wilderness, are either within the Federal parks or have been managed with restrictions, such as wilderness study areas or roadless areas. So in that case a designation as Federal wilderness does not further restrict use beyond what has been in place for quite some time.

On the other hand, this bill actually transfers 23,226 acres of Federal lands to private and State sectors through conveyance, exchange, or sale. The bill does authorize the expenditure of funds, but each of those is dependent on future appropriations that depend on the oversight provided by the appropriations committees and the Presidential budget request.

I think it is fair to say that this process is not my preferred method for passing legislation--putting multiple measures in an omnibus bill--but I believe that overall this package will improve our Nation's management of its public lands and its parks and will be a long-term benefit for our Nation. Therefore, I respectfully request my fellow Members support the passage of this omnibus legislation.

With that, Madam President, I yield the floor.

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