[Congressional Record Volume 145, Number 91 (Thursday, June 24, 1999)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Pages E1403-E1404]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]


         IN SUPPORT OF COLORADO HOUSE JOINT RESOLUTION 99-1020

                                 ______
                                 

                           HON. BOB SCHAFFER

                              of colorado

                        HON. THOMAS G. TANCREDO

                              of colorado

                            HON. JOEL HEFLEY

                              of colorado

                           HON. SCOTT McINNIS

                              of colorado

                    in the house of representatives

                        Thursday, June 24, 1999

  Mr. SCHAFFER. Mr. Speaker, in the matter of designating certain 
additional wilderness lands in Colorado, the Colorado General Assembly 
has spoken clearly.
  By the passage of Colorado House Joint Resolution 99-1020, the 
General Assembly has established Colorado's official position on 
pending federal legislation designating approximately 1.4 million acres 
of land in Colorado as wilderness.
  We hereby submit for the Record the full text of the resolution 
adopted in both houses of Colorado's General Assembly and urge all 
colleagues to consider the stated official policy of our state 
regarding this important matter.
  Furthermore, we commend the leadership of the authors and prime 
sponsors of H.J.R. 99-1020, State Representative Diane Hoppe and State 
Senator Gigi Dennis.
  Mr. Speaker, we hereby serve notice of our intent to support and 
represent Colorado's official position, as expressed in H.J.R. 99-1020, 
regarding the relevant legislation pending consideration by the U.S. 
House of Representatives.

                     House Joint Resolution 99-1020

       By Representatives Hoppe, Smith, Alexander, Berry, Clapp, 
     Kester, Larson, McKay, Miller, Mitchell, Spradley, Taylor, 
     Webster, T. Williams, Allen, Dean, Decker, Fairbank, Hefley, 
     King, Lawrence, Lee, McElhany, McPherson, Nunez, Paschall, 
     Scott, Young.
       Also Senators Dennis, Anderson, Arnold, Chlouber, Dyer, 
     Epps, Evans, Hillman, Musgrave, Teck, Wattenberg, Wham, 
     Congrove, Lamborn, Owen, Powers.


  Concerning Opposition to H.R. 829, the ``Colorado Wilderness Act of 
                                 1999''

       Whereas, H.R. 829, the ``Colorado Wilderness Act of 1999'', 
     proposes to designate another approximately one million four 
     hundred thousand acres of land in Colorado as wilderness 
     prior to the revision of many of Colorado's forest plans, 
     thereby usurping the United States Forest Service's land 
     management review process and ignoring the original 
     wilderness recommendations made to the United States Congress 
     by the United States Bureau of Land Management (``BLM'') that 
     totaled four hundred thirty-one thousand acres; and
       Whereas, H.R. 829 was drafted without input from either the 
     general public or local elected officials and does away with 
     local control over land management; and
       Whereas, Federal lands in Colorado have been exhaustively 
     studied for their wilderness suitability under the 
     ``Wilderness Act'' of 1964, the Department of Agriculture's 
     second roadless area review and evaluation (RARE II), the 
     wilderness evaluation by the BLM, the ``Colorado Wilderness 
     Act of 1980'', and the ``Colorado Wilderness Act of 1993''; 
     and
       Whereas, Many acres of federal lands slated for wilderness 
     designation do not qualify as pristine as required by the 
     ``Wilderness Act'' of 1964; and
       Whereas, The United States Congress considered the option 
     of wilderness designation for federal lands in Colorado and 
     designated several areas under the ``Wilderness Act'' of 1964 
     and approved two statewide wilderness bills. One of those 
     statewide wilderness bills was enacted in 1980 and classified 
     one million four hundred thousand acres as wilderness. The 
     other was enacted in 1993 and provided wilderness protection 
     for six hundred eleven thousand seven hundred acres, bringing 
     the total wilderness acreage in Colorado to three million 
     three hundred thousand to date; and
       Whereas, The United States Congress declared that lands 
     once studied and found to be unsuitable for wilderness 
     designation should be returned to multiple-use management; 
     and
       Whereas, H.R. 829 creates a federal reserved water right 
     for each wilderness area, an approach specifically rejected 
     in the 1980 and 1993 wilderness bills; and
       Whereas, The designation of downstream wilderness areas may 
     result in the application of the federal ``Clean Water Act of 
     1977'' requirements in a manner that interferes with existing 
     and future beneficial water uses in Colorado; and
       Whereas, The overall effect of the designation of 
     downstream wilderness areas will be to destroy Colorado's 
     ability to develop and use water allocated to the citizens of 
     this state under interstate compacts, thereby forfeiting 
     Colorado's water to downstream states; and
       Whereas, Many of our rural economies are dependent on a 
     combination of multiple uses of our public lands, such as 
     timber production, oil, gas, and mineral development, and 
     motorized and mechanized recreation, all of which are 
     prohibited by a wilderness designation and also severely 
     inhibits the ability to conduct grazing activities on public 
     lands; and
       Whereas, Wilderness designations limit the land management 
     options available to public land managers to protect forest 
     health and dependent watersheds; and
       Whereas, Additional wilderness designation puts increased 
     pressure on the new designated lands as well as lands 
     currently open to multiple-use activities and limits access 
     to only the most physicially capable individuals; now, 
     therefore,

[[Page E1404]]

       Be It Resolved by the House of Representatives of the 
     Sixty-second General Assembly of the State of Colorado, the 
     Senate concurring herein:
       That the members of the Sixty-second General Assembly 
     oppose H.R. 829, the ``Colorado Wilderness Act of 1999''.
       Be It Further Resolved, That copies of this resolution be 
     transmitted to the President of the United States, the United 
     States Secretary of the Interior, the Director of the United 
     States Bureau of Land Management, the President of the United 
     States Senate, the Speaker of the United States House of 
     Representatives, and to each member of Colorado's delegation 
     in the United States Congress.
     Russell George,
       Speaker of the House of Representatives.
     Ray Powers,
       President of the Senate.
     Judith M. Rodrigue,
       Chief Clerk of the House of Representatives.
     Patricia K. Dicks,
       Secretary of the Senate.