Lands Legislation Signed Into Law
May 8, 2008
03:04 PM
“Today is a great day for public lands across America. This new law encompasses lands and activities in more than 30 states and the District of Columbia, and I’m pleased that President Bush has signed it into law.” -- Sen. Jeff Bingaman (D-NM).
With gusto, we note that the President today signed the Consolidated Natural Resources Act (S. 2739), a bipartisan bundle of 62 individual bills which includes new protections for outstanding wilderness, historic sites, national parks and precious water resources. The legislation contains roughly an equal mix of Democratic bills, Republican bills and bills with bipartisan sponsorship that is illustrative of the Senate Energy Committee’s long-standing record of moving bills out of committee and to final enactment.
That successful pattern was in view again yesterday when the Committee favorably reported 45 more bills that deal with public land, national forest, national parks and water issues. Reflecting the balanced, bipartisan approach that is a typical of our committee, nearly all of those bills were reported with a unanimous vote. These new bills will be part of a second package of resources legislation that the Committee is preparing for floor consideration later this session.
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