• Home
• 2016 General Session
• H.C.R. 13

H.C.R. 13 Concurrent Resolution Urging Congress to Support the Implementation of Utah's Sage-grouse Conservation Plan

• Bill Text
• Status
• Hearings/Debate

Bill Sponsor: Rep. Sandall, Scott D.

Floor Sponsor: Sen. Van Tassell, Kevin T.

• Drafting Attorney: RuthAnne Frost
• Fiscal Analyst: Gary K. Ricks

---

• Bill Text
  • Introduced (Currently Displayed)

---

• Related Documents
  • Fiscal Note
  • House Transmittal Letter 1
  • Agency Perf Note

---

• Information
  • Last Action: 10 Mar 2016, House/ filed
  • Last Location: House file for bills not passed

---

• Similar Bills
  • Resolutions
  • Natural Resources
  • Legislative Affairs

---

Introduced

Printer Friendly

H.C.R. 13

1     CONCURRENT RESOLUTION URGING CONGRESS TO
2     SUPPORT THE IMPLEMENTATION OF UTAH'S
3     SAGE-GROUSE CONSERVATION PLAN
4     2016 GENERAL SESSION
5     STATE OF UTAH
6     Chief Sponsor: Scott D. Sandall
7     Senate Sponsor: Kevin T. Van Tassell
8     

---

9     LONG TITLE
10     General Description:
11          This resolution urges Congress to support Utah's sage-grouse conservation plan.
12     Highlighted Provisions:
13          This resolution:
14          ▸     urges Congress to provide protections for the implementation of Utah's sage-grouse
15     conservation plan on both federally managed and private land in the state;
16          ▸     encourages Congress to provide protections against litigation challenging the "not
17     warranted status" of sage-grouse;
18          ▸     declares that the state will continue to implement the state's sage-grouse
19     conservation plan; and
20          ▸     urges Congress to enact legislation recognizing and encouraging state primacy in
21     the long-term management of sage-grouse and sage-grouse habitat.
22     Special Clauses:
23          None
24     

---

25     Be it resolved by the Legislature of the state of Utah, the Governor concurring therein:
26          WHEREAS, the state of Utah is committed to the conservation of the greater
27     sage-grouse (Centrocercus urophasianus) and the present sage-grouse habitat located within the

---

28     state;
29          WHEREAS, the state of Utah has produced a statewide sage-grouse conservation plan
30     in support of this commitment;
31          WHEREAS, the Division of Wildlife Resources in the Department of Natural
32     Resources possesses significant expertise in the management of the greater sage-grouse and
33     sage-grouse habitat, and experts in the division have been working extensively and in full
34     cooperation with the federal agencies managing land within the borders of the state;
35          WHEREAS, the United States Secretary of the Interior has determined that listing the
36     species as endangered or threatened under the Endangered Species Act is not warranted;
37          WHEREAS, Congress and the President of the United States are to be commended for
38     recognizing, through the enactment of Section 117 of the Consolidated Appropriations Act of
39     2016, Pub. L. No. 114-113, the unprecedented collaboration among various states regarding
40     greater sage-grouse conservation and the need to continue on-the-ground conservation and
41     monitoring activities;
42          WHEREAS, implementation of the state's conservation plan will produce scientific data
43     related to disease, predation of the species, the adequacy of existing regulatory mechanisms,
44     and other natural or human-influenced factors affecting the existence of the species, all of
45     which must be considered by the United States Fish and Wildlife Service in determining
46     whether to list the greater sage-grouse as threatened or endangered under the Endangered
47     Species Act;
48          WHEREAS, categorical exclusions from the National Environmental Policy Act are
49     necessary to allow federal land-management agencies to remove pinyon-juniper trees that are
50     harmful to greater sage-grouse habitat;
51          WHEREAS, the state of Utah wishes to continue its collaboration with other states
52     possessing current habitat for greater sage-grouse; and
53          WHEREAS, time is needed to finalize and implement the state conservation plan over a
54     period of multiple, consecutive sage-grouse life cycles to determine the efficacy of the plan and
55     the need for modification, if any:
56          NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED that the Legislature of the state of Utah, the
57     Governor concurring therein, urges Congress to enact legislation that provides protections for
58     the adoption and implementation of state sage-grouse conservation plans by making no funds

---

59     available for a period of 10 years through the end of fiscal year 2026 to either the United States
60     Secretary of the Interior or the United States Secretary of Agriculture for the implementation of
61     recent federal land-use plan amendments if they are inconsistent with the state's sage-grouse
62     conservation plan.
63          BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the Legislature and the Governor call upon
64     Congress to provide a mechanism for the governor of a state to ensure that state sage-grouse
65     plans can be implemented on lands managed by the Bureau of Land Management and the
66     United States Forest Service, that any federal resource management plans are consistent with
67     state sage-grouse plans, and that any inconsistencies of the federal resource management plans
68     can be resolved by the governor of the affected state in such a way as to remain consistent with
69     state management plans for a period of at least 10 years.
70          BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the Legislature and the Governor encourage
71     Congress to continue to make no funds available for use by the United States Secretary of the
72     Interior to consider, prepare, write, or issue a petition finding or a proposed regulation for
73     greater sage-grouse for a period of 10 years through the end of fiscal year 2026.
74          BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the Legislature and the Governor urge that during
75     this 10-year period Congress provide a safe harbor protecting state sage-grouse management
76     plans from litigation by private activist organizations that would interfere with implementation
77     of state sage-grouse management plans and protecting the status of sage-grouse as "not
78     warranted" pursuant to Section 4 of the Endangered Species Act, such that neither a state plan
79     nor the "not warranted" status is subject to judicial review.
80          BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that during this 10-year period, Utah will continue to
81     implement its sage-grouse conservation plan, thereby establishing and enhancing the plan's
82     efficacy over time.
83          BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the Legislature and the Governor urge Congress to
84     enact legislation that recognizes and encourages state primacy in the long-term management of
85     the greater sage-grouse and sage-grouse habitat to ensure an effective and balanced approach
86     that seeks to recover and protect sage-grouse populations and protect state economic interests,
87     educational funding from state lands, and valid existing rights, including private property
88     rights.
89          BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that a copy of this resolution be sent to the Majority

---

90     Leader of the United States Senate, the Speaker of the United States House of Representatives,
91     and the members of Utah's congressional delegation.

---

---

Legislative Review Note
Office of Legislative Research and General Counsel