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Congress

Congressional Sportsmen’s Foundation’s 20th Anniversary

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Last week I was back in Washington and had the chance to join in celebrating the 20th Anniversary of the Congressional Sportsmen’s Foundation. There were two events, a lunch and then the annual banquet and auction that night. In 1997 and 1998 I served as the president of the foundation and it was a special treat to help mark this important milestone.

The Congressional Sportsmen’s Foundation was started in 1989. The foundation created a link between the sportsmen’s community and the Congressional Sportsmen’s Caucus. The Caucus had been started earlier that year by a small group of liked-minded legislators who wanted to protect and promote the outdoor traditions of hunting, trapping and fishing in the U.S. Congress.

“This year’s banquet is sort of the culmination of a year-long celebration of our 20th Anniversary,” said CSF President Jeff Crane. “We were able to recognize and thank everyone who has contributed to the 20-year success of the organization including current and former Caucus members and all those who have contributed to our cause.”

The lunch was a small gathering of past members of the Congressional Sportsmen’s Caucus and Congressional Sportsmen’s Foundation. Many of the past board members and the five of us who had run the foundation all were there. It was a great chance for all of us to swap hunting, fishing and legislative stories.

The two original co-chairs of the caucus, Congressmen Dick Schulze and Lindsay Thomas both made it back for the lunch and banquet. Schulze has served on the foundation’s board of directors and Thomas currently sits of the board.

“This was a very special event and I am honored to have been invited back to witness the tremendous growth of this caucus and foundation since we founded it in 1989,” said Schultze.

“It was wonderful to be able to visit with and recognize publicly my founding Caucus leadership colleagues,” said Thomas.

Today there are 200 members of the U.S. House of Representatives and 52 Senators in the caucus, making it one of the largest in Congress. Twenty-one of the original caucus members are still in Congress.

The Valley’s own representative Bob Goodlatte is a member and has been since he was elected to Congress. There are five additional members from the Virginia congressional delegation — unfortunately neither of our senators is a member of the caucus.

I enjoyed my time at the foundation and have been especially excited to see them take the success of the Congressional Sportsmen’s Caucus model and expand on it in the states.

In 2004, the foundation replicated its model of raising awareness of sportsmen’s issues by creating the National Assembly of Sportsmen’s Caucuses. There are 38 states with bi-partisan caucuses, including Virginia.

The Virginia Legislative Sportsmen’s Caucus was formed in 2004. It is currently co-chaired by the Valley’s own Senator Emmet Hanger and gubernatorial candidate Senator R. Creigh Deeds.

According to the Caucus’ Web site, “The caucus has been very successful since its inception, working towards the passage of the ‘No Net Loss’ legislation in 2007 and the creation Virginia’s Migratory Waterfowl Conservation Stamp (Duck Stamp) program in 2005.”

The latest development in expanding the caucus model has been the formation of a bipartisan caucus of governors. The Governors Sportsmen’s Caucus was launched at the National Governor’s Association Annual Meeting in this summer. The goal is to increase communication and information exchange between states to promote and protect hunting and fishing.

America’s nearly 40 million hunters and anglers contribute more than $70 billion annually to the U.S. economy. The economic contribution that hunting and fishing makes in Virginia is significant. Sportsmen contribute over a billion dollars and account for more than 20,000 jobs each year.

Having a voice in our nation’s capital is great, having one in the state capitol is even better.

You can read more of my columns at the News Virginian.com.

Good news for wetlands protection

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Those of us who care about wetlands got some great news this week. the Senate Environment and Public Works Committee passed an amended version of the Clean Water Restoration Act. There is much work ahead but at least things are moving now.

Here is the release from the Theodore Roosevelt Conservation Partnership:

Sportsmen Laud the Senate Advancement of the Clean Water Restoration Act
The Senate Environmental and Public Works Committee moves this crucial conservation legislation forward to protect America’s waters

WASHINGTON – In a clear vote to protect clean water and essential habitat for fish and wildlife, the Senate Environment and Public Works Committee today passed an amended version of the Clean Water Restoration Act.  The bill as approved reaffirms the original intent of the Clean Water Act to broadly protect water quality and the streams, lakes and wetlands important to our country.  The vote today creates momentum for legislation to be introduced and quickly considered in the U.S. House of Representatives.

“ America’s waters are closer to again having the comprehensive Clean Water Act protections that Congress intended,” said Jan Goldman-Carter, wetland and water resources counsel at the National Wildlife Federation. “This bill restores critical protections for our nation’s increasingly-precious fresh water resources while respecting private property rights and continuing longstanding Clean Water Act exemptions for agriculture and forestry.”

“This is a huge step toward restoring the Clean Water Act’s safety net for prairie potholes and well over 20 million acres of wetlands throughout the U.S. that provide critical habitat for waterfowl and other fish and wildlife – and hunters and anglers,” said Scott Yaich, director of conservation programs for Ducks Unlimited

By a vote of 12 to 7, the committee approved a substitute amendment offered by Sens. Max Baucus (Mont.), Amy Klobuchar (Minn.) and Chairman Barbara Boxer (Calif.) that:

  • Adopts a statutory definition of “waters of the United States” based on the long-standing definition in EPA and Army Corps regulations.  In addition, the amendment specifically excludes previously converted cropland and manmade waste treatment systems from the definition.
  • Deletes the term “navigable” from the Clean Water Act therby clarifying that Congress’ primary concern in 1972 was to protect waters from pollution rather than simply sustain navigation.
  • Includes a set of findings that clearly explains the Constitutional authority Congress has over an array of waters and wetlands.
  • Preserves existing exemptions from the Clean Water Act for farming, ranching,mining, energy development and forestry activities.  

A series of amendments to gut the definition of “waters of the United States,” including removing protections for streams and prairie potholes, were defeated.

“Hunters and anglers know first-hand the importance of wetlands, lakes and streams,” said Geoff Mullins, Policy Initiative Manager at the Theodore Roosevelt Conservation Partnership. “Restoring these clean water protections will ensure that sportsmen can enjoy these resources for generations.  Thursday’s committee vote represents the biggest step yet towards restoring these much needed protections in the past eight years.”

“Today’s vote is a major step toward restoring traditional Clean Water Act protections for streams, lakes and wetlands in our communities,” said Scott Kovarovics ,Conservation Director at the Izaak Walton League of America.  “There’s clear momentum now for legislation to be introduced and considered in the House of Representatives this summer.”

“This is not ‘the biggest bureaucratic power grab in a generation,’ as some have said, but rather it is about clean water and healthy watersheds for future generations,” said Steve Moyer, Vice President for Trout Unlimited. “Two bad Supreme Court decisions have derailed the Clean Water Act, and today’s courageous action by the Committee gets us a big step closer to getting the law, and all its clean water benefits, back on track,” said Moyer.

Thursday’s vote would not be possible without leadership from Sen. Russell Feingold (Wisc.) and EPW Chairman Barbara Boxer (Calif.).  Sen. Feingold has introduced the Clean Water Restoration Act in multiple Congresses and consistently championed the fight to protect drinking water and critical habitat.  This year, Chairman Boxer seized brought the bill to a vote less than three months after it was introduced.  We also commend Sens. Baucus and Klobuchar who brokered the amendment language that facilitated passage of the bill.

Contact: Geoff Mullins, 202-654-4609, gmullins@trcp.org

Sportsmen Laud the Senate Advancement of the Clean Water Restoration Act
News for Immediate Release
June 18, 2009
Contact: Geoff Mullins, 202-654-4609, gmullins@trcp.org

Filling the need to teach our youth

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The $70 million in funding for a new youth conservation education initiative proposed by the Obama administration recently got a bit of attention in Washington.

This new initiative, know as the 21st Century Youth Conservation Corps, was included in the president’s 2010 budget request for the Department of the Interior.

On June 3, more than 140 groups, including many prominent hunting, fishing and outdoor recreation organizations, co-signed a letter to Congress urging them to support full funding for this initiative. The letter points out that the initiative “will bolster environmental education, recreation and service programs throughout the Department, and engage thousands of youth in the outdoors.”

On Monday, Secretary of the Interior Ken Salazar and Valerie Jarrett, senior advisor to the president, were on the National Mall in Washington to talk about the program. At the event, Salazar signed a Secretarial Order establishing an Office of Youth in Natural Resources at the Department of the Interior.

“President Obama and I believe that during tough economic times, a new national youth program is needed to provide jobs, outdoor experiences and career opportunities for young people — especially women, minorities, tribal and other underserved youth,” Salazar said.

This type of funding is long overdue. Education, especially when it connects young people with the outdoors, is a wonderful investment. It is the young people who will be the next stewards of out great natural resources heritage.

One of the challenges those of us who love the outdoors face is connecting, or in some cases, reconnecting our kids to the outdoors. Funding like this can go a long way to help support existing programs like Trout in the Classroom or the Archery in the Schools Program or high school fishing teams like the one at Orange County High School. It also means there will be resources for the states and local communities to start new programs.

Here in the Valley we are fortunate to have an abundance of outdoor opportunities and a rich heritage of hunting, fishing and conservation. But even the Valley is not immune from the distractions of modern society. Our young people need both guidance and opportunity to learn about and contribute to our rich natural resource heritage.

Unfortunately, fewer and fewer young people are being exposed to traditional outdoor recreation. They are out of touch with nature. They are missing the connection to hunting, fishing and the food on the table. They don’t learn about the connection of fish and wildlife habitat, natural resources conservation and economic activity.

We are facing an emerging “conservation gap”. As the population becomes more urbanized, the ties to nature and the value and need to conserve our fish and wildlife habitat is broken. The loss of this connection to our outdoor heritage poses a growing threat to conservation of that fish and wildlife habitat.

We must engage this and future generations in fish and wildlife related recreation and conservation. And, we have to do it on their terms and in a way that is relevant to them.

If Congress approves the funding, $40 million will be used to supplement existing programs at the Department of Interior. This will create greater opportunities to engage young people across all of the Department’s natural resources agencies.

The best part of this initiative is the new $30 million in funding for grants to state and tribal programs for hunting and fishing education and outreach. Special attention will paid to urban and minority youth programs.

The importance of reaching urban and minority youth cannot be over-stated. The model for wildlife conservation in this country is successful because it engaged hunters and anglers in conserving our natural resources. If that connection is lost because we fail to reach growing segment of our population then those of us that enjoy the great outdoors may lose the chance to pass it on to future generations.

You can read more of my columns at News Virginian.com

Learning on the Potomac

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I spend a fair amount of time in Washington, D.C. Recently, I was there for the Nation’s River’s Bass Tournament. The Nation’s River Bass Tournament is an annual event connecting students from Washington D.C. and nearby Virginia and Maryland schools with the outdoors.

The event is put on by Living Classrooms of the National Capital Region in partnership with the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service. The event takes place at National Harbor on the Potomac River in Maryland.

More than 300 students came out for a morning of fishing and education. The event helps raise money for Living Classrooms’ academic and workforce development programs. Last year the event raised over $40,000. Living Classroom uses a “hands-on” approach to education and job training. They use urban, natural and maritime resources as “living classrooms”.

Selected students had a chance to fish “tournament style” with volunteer bass “pros” from the local area. These anglers are organized by Captain Steve Chaonas of National Bass Guide Service. Chaconas, a former radio and TV talk show host, has been fishing on the Potomac for nearly forty years. He and his fellow “pros” make sure the kids learn while they are on the water.

Fishing from volunteer guide Peter Yanni’s boat, students Brennen Mayer and Kevin Brown boated the winning catch. Their five “keepers” total more than fifteen pounds with one “lunker” weighing five pounds and five ounces. Winmar Construction sponsored this winning team.

Students who did not go out to fish with the pros moved in groups to fifteen educational stations set up along the East Pier at National Harbor. They also had a chance to get out on the water on Living Classrooms’ ship, the Half Shell. The Half Shell, a Chesapeake Buyboat, is one of several “floating classrooms” that Living Classrooms conduct their shipboard education programs on.

The event much like the, Jim Range National Casting Call, helps highlight the Potomac River as an important economic, educational and community resource. The Potomac River is considered one of the top ten rivers in the country for largemouth bass fishing.

The Potomac is also home to both migratory fish like the stripped bass, American and Hickory shad and herring as well as freshwater fish like bass and sunfish.

If this event was any indication than I can personally attest to the excellent fishing. Twenty-plus boats went out Wednesday morning and by 11:30 a.m. everyone had returned with fish. Most boats returned with fish tipping the scales over three pounds.

Recreational Fishing is an important contributor to our national economy. In Virginia alone it accounts for more than $800 million in retail sales and 15,000 jobs each year. When anglers also make an important contribution by introducing fishing and conservation to young people who might not otherwise have a chance to participate in the sport then you have a real winning combination.

Last Thursday, representatives from the five federal agencies responsible for most of the federal investment in fishing and aquatic habitat provided a group of us an informal briefing on the funding they had proposed for fish and aquatic habitat programs.

Across the board, there was more funding proposed for the various fisheries programs than I have seen in a long time. There is also money included for more youth education including grants for programs to “educate and energize young hunters and anglers.”

Those investments are what will keep the wonderful outdoor recreation we have here possible.

You can read more of my columns at News Virginian.com

Tax incentives for land conservation

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For all the bad news coming out of our nation’s capital, sometimes our elected officials actually introduce legislation that makes good sense for conservation.

There are a couple of pieces of legislation that would, if they become law, be a great help to conservation not only here in the Valley but across the country.

The first bill is the Conservation Easement Incentive Act. It was introduced on April 1, in the U.S. House of Representatives, by Representatives Mike Thompson, D-Calif. and seventh district representative Eric I. Cantor, R-Va.

A similar bill, known as the Rural Heritage Conservation Extension Act, was introduced in the U.S. Senate by Senators Max Baucus, D-Mont. and Charles Grassely, R-Iowa.

These bills would make permanent the enhanced tax deduction for landowners who donate the fair market value of their land under a qualified conservation easement.

The deduction allows farmers and ranchers to claim a charitable deduction for up to 100 percent of the donated value of the land they place under an easement. Other landowners can deduct up to 50 percent of the value, an increase from 30 percent under the previous law.

These enhanced tax incentives became law in 2006 and were extended in 2008. Unfortunately, this enhanced deduction expires at the end of the year.

“I have seen firsthand how conservation easements are being used by family farms in my district,” said Cantor. “Providing a permanent tax incentive for conservation easements is a great way to encourage conservation efforts while also reducing the tax burden on these hard working families.”

Easements are an important conservation tool. According to the Valley Conservation Council, on whose Board of Directors I sit, easements have helped protect more than 48,000 acres here in the valley.

A conservation easement is a legal agreement, usually between the landowner and a land conservation organization or a public entity. The landowner continues to own the property but gives some rights to the easement holder.

Landowners often put some or all of their land under a conservation easement because they want to protect the important natural, historic or scenic qualities or their land.

Besides the charitable deduction, there can be other important tax benefits to landowners who place a conservation easement on their property.

Because of the way land is taxed, state and local taxes may be reduced.

Conservation easements could also mean lower estate and inheritance taxes. Heirs might be able to retain land they otherwise would have been forced to sell in order to pay those taxes.

Now the tax code is a tricky thing, so I won’t offer any advice on whether a donated easement makes tax sense for you. You will need to talk to the tax professionals about your specific situation.

You can also contact the Valley Conservation Council for more information as well.

What I will tell you is conservation easements are a good thing.

They help keep farmers and ranchers on their land.

Easements are also an important tool for protecting water and air quality, scenic vistas, open space and important fish and wildlife habitat. Benefits we often take for granted because they originate on private land.

The enhanced tax incentives favor working farms and ranches. By doing so, it creates an incentive to keep working lands working – less likely to become strip malls and subdivisions.

Here in the Valley that is a good thing.

You can read more of my columns at News Virginian.com

Wildlife should benefit from stimulus

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We are all reading or hearing about the economic stimulus package that President-elect Barack Obama and Congress will be working on. Whether you think it is a good idea or not, the likelihood that some form of stimulus package will become law is pretty much a certainty.

Last month, 31 hunting, fishing, conservation and environmental organizations jointly sent a letter to the leadership of the U.S. House of Representatives and U.S. Senate, supporting additional funding for habitat conservation and green infrastructure projects.

What I found very interesting and frankly refreshing about who had signed the letter was that these 31 groups have not always been willing to work together.

Environmental groups like Defenders of Wildlife, Environmental Defense Fund, National Audubon Society and the Wilderness Society joined with the American Sportfishing Association, the Boone and Crockett Club, Ducks Unlimited, the National Wild Turkey Federation and the Theodore Roosevelt Conservation Partnership in support of specific conservation funding.

The letter stated, “The attached recommendations represent a unique consensus among a wide range of organizations specifically aimed at habitat-oriented projects that benefit fish and wildlife while stimulating local economies, particularly through job creation.”

This is a remarkable turn of events. Hopefully one that will become a pattern and not an exception.

Like many, I am not sure the answer to our nation’s economic woes is more government spending. But, if taxpayer funds are going to be used to stimulate the economy then using that money for habitat conservation, public access and recreational opportunity makes sense.

Investments in our natural resources offer a variety of economic benefits. Hunting, fishing and other recreational activities are economic engines that provide tax revenue, conservation dollars and jobs for local economies.

These organizations point out that investments in conservation projects provide job-creation opportunities in engineering, landscaping, hydrology and other biological fields. These types of projects need specialized equipment operators, construction crews and many other skilled laborers.

The group noted, “Our estimates indicate that over 160,000 jobs would be created through this funding request. This figure represents direct job creation as a result of the proposed stimulus investments and does not include secondary job creation. Most of these programs and projects would be initiated and jobs created within 3-6 months, with the goal of completing obligations within one year.”

When you add it all up, these groups are recommending an investment of nearly $9 billion. Seems like a lot of money doesn’t it? Sure does to me.

But if you look at it as part of the whole and if the current $700 billion being discussed is close to the final amount, then these programs will only get a bit more than one and a quarter percent of the total.

I think our natural resources, fish and wildlife habitat and recreational opportunities deserve that and more.

Let’s take a look at some of the specific recommendations.

For the U.S. Department of Interior’s Fish and Wildlife Service, they recommend increased funding for Habitat Restoration Programs like the Partners for Fish and Wildlife Program, the National Fish Habitat Action Plan, the Fish Passage Program and the Coastal Program. Because of the project backlog in each of these programs increased funding would immediately lead to more jobs.

Another U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service program that could use more money is the North American Wetland Conservation Act grants program. NAWCA has a great track record of success. Demand for these grants is growing and exceeds current funding levels.

New funding would mean engineering and construction related jobs. Given the importance of wetlands and the continued projected losses of this critical habitat, more NAWCA grants make sense.

The National Park Service is another important agency in desperate need of funding. Estimates of the operations and maintenance backlog are somewhere north of $8 billion, more than half of that amount is needed just for road and trail repair.

The U.S. Department of Agriculture has a number of important conservation programs at the U.S. Forest Service and Natural Resources Conservation Service.

The groups making the recommendations point out that U.S. Forest Service could use funding assistance for sustainable forests. Funds would be used to improve water quality and wildlife habitat while ensuring a supply of wood and forest products.

Programs like Legacy Roads and Trails Remediation with a backlog of more than $400 million, would use the funding to improve recreational access and enhance fish and wildlife habitat.

Wildfire is a growing worry. More than 100 million acres of state, private and national forests are at risk across the nation. Funding for hazardous fuels reduction and post-fire restoration would help make our rural communities safer, provide jobs, support local economies and enhance fish and wildlife habitat.

Valley residents and visitors know what an asset our National Parks and National Forests are. Using new funding to improve these important recreational venues is a smart investment.

Hunting, Fishing and Outdoor recreations are important contributors to our national economy. Hunters and anglers spend $76 billion each year to enjoy their sports. They are an economic engine with a “ripple effect” of $192 billion.

That ripple effect means people have jobs and local economies thrive. Besides the direct hunting and fishing jobs, other businesses benefit – businesses like gas stations, retail, restaurants and hotels in every state and congressional district.

As taxpayers we have a right and duty to express our views on how the government spends our money. If we are going to spend the money, then these programs and projects are worthwhile investments.

Take the time to tell our elected officials that hunting, fishing and outdoor recreation are important to our economy and deserve financial support.

You can read more of my columns in the News Virginian.