[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 163 (2017), Part 8]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page 10753]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




  MORLEY NELSON SNAKE RIVER BIRDS OF PREY NATIONAL CONSERVATION AREA 
                   BOUNDARY MODIFICATION ACT OF 2017

                                 ______
                                 

                        HON. MICHAEL K. SIMPSON

                                of idaho

                    in the house of representatives

                        Wednesday, July 12, 2017

  Mr. SIMPSON. Mr. Speaker, I would like to thank the following people 
who have worked with me to achieve the Morley Nelson Snake River Birds 
of Prey National Conservation Area Boundary Modification Act of 2017 
which was legislation I drafted and was included in the Fiscal Year 
2017 Consolidated Appropriations Act. They each played a role in their 
own way and because of their help, the West is building critical energy 
infrastructure that will improve reliability and efficiency and also 
increase continuing conservation efforts while saving Idaho ratepayers 
money.
  Let me start by thanking Brian O'Donnell and Danielle Murray from the 
Conservation Lands Foundation. Their solution oriented attitude helped 
guide the success of this effort. I would also like to thank Rick 
Johnson, Craig Gehrke, Will Whelan, Kai Anderson, and Amelia Jenkins 
from the conservation community.
  I want to thank Jeff Malmen and his terrific team at Idaho Power, 
including Mark Stokes and Mitch Colburn who were there every step of 
the way to ensure the project recognizes conservation and saves Idaho 
ratepayers. Their friends at Rocky Mountain Power, including Pat 
Reiten, were also great partners.
  I would also like to thank the hard working men and women at the 
Bureau of Land Management. Tim Murphy and his team in Idaho include 
Peter Ditton and Erin Curtis. Their work was instrumental throughout 
the entire Gateway West project and I thank them for their public 
service in Idaho.
  Additionally, I need to thank Governor Otter and his team of John 
Chatburn and Scott Pugurd for their diligent work. I also want to thank 
Senator Risch and his staff members John Sandy, Darren Parker, and 
Melanie Steele.
  Thanks to Chairman Bishop and the House Natural Resources Committee 
for their thoughtful consideration of the Gateway West legislation. 
Erica Rhoad and Aniela Butler were a huge help to guiding this 
legislation through Chairman Tom McClintock's subcommittee.
  I want to thank Gregory Kostka, Lisa Daly, and Hank Savage at 
Legislative Counsel. They drafted and redrafted countless versions of 
this bill under tight deadlines.
  I would also like to thank the Senate and House Interior and 
Environment Appropriations Subcommittee Chairmen Lisa Murkowski  and 
Ken Calvert along with their ranking members Tom Udall and Betty 
McCollum. Their staff were relentless in guiding this agreement to the 
finish line and a special thanks is owed to Dave LesStrang, Betsy Bina, 
and Rita Culp for their efforts in finalizing the agreement in the 
Fiscal Year 2017 Consolidated Appropriations Act.
  Finally, I want to thank my staff, Lindsay Slater, Jamie Neill, Nikki 
Wallace, and Craig Quarterman who helped in many different ways to 
ensure this was the best possible deal for my constituents in Idaho.

                          ____________________