President Obama’s budget may well be dead on arrival, but its fetid corpse tells a tale of just what his administration thinks of the West.
The budget proposes to raise grazing fees on both Bureau of Land Management and U.S. Forest Service land by $1 a head per month — a 74 percent increase that would soak cattle and sheep ranchers for $6.5 million in 2014 to offset a $14 million cut in the budget for Rangeland Management.
The budget also seeks to pick the pockets of drillers of oil and natural gas wells on federally controlled land by increasing royalty payments by $2.5 billion over the next 10 years.
Hard rock miners on both federal and private land would be hit with fees totaling $1.8 billion over the next decade to reclaim abandoned mines. The 1872 mining law would be changed to generate an additional $80 million for the U.S. Treasury over 10 years, with a matching amount going to the states.
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While the Obama administration is trying to declare various species across the West threatened or endangered — most of which are threatened or endangered due to the huge increase in wildfires — his budget proposes to slash funding for a program to reduce the dried brush and trees that fuel those fires by $90 million in 2014.
The budget also throws $23 billion over 10 years at wind and solar projects that sprawl across thousands of acres of public land.
Both Reps. Mark Amodei and Steven Horsford — who together represent the bulk of rural Nevada, 85 percent of which is controlled by various federal agencies — were dismissive of the Obama budget.
Amodei, a Republican, commented, “With yet another budget from the president that doesn’t balance, increases spending, raises taxes, raises grazing fees, and continues to block American energy production, I suspect it will meet the same fate as his last budget — voted down 97-0 in the Senate and 419-0 in the House.”
Horsford, a Democrat, said, “The president’s budget is just one of many budget proposals, and as we hopefully continue through the budget process, we will have to consider a variety of funding priorities. I will fight to make sure the rural communities in my district have the resources they need and the representation they deserve to maintain their livelihood.”
“Our nation is nearly $17 trillion in debt,” observed Sen. Dean Heller. “At a time when Nevadans are simply trying to keep their heads above water, the president is asking for another $8.2 trillion, partly on the backs of our ranchers and rural communities. This parade of reckless spending is mind-boggling. More fees and more regulations that do nothing but prevent Nevadans’ from accessing resources in our own backyard are simply unacceptable. We need long-term sustainable solutions regarding Nevada’s vast public lands, not more interference from the federal government. Nevadans can’t afford it and don’t deserve it.”
In an editorial board with the Carson City newspaper, even Sen. Harry Reid called the president’s budget “just a message” and “fluff.”
Dustin Van Liew, a spokesman for both the Public Lands Council and the National Cattlemen’s Beef Association, said the budget shows this administration has no understanding of American agriculture.
“The president’s lack of understanding for the federal lands grazing industry, as evidenced by his proposed 74 percent tax on federal land ranchers, is extremely disappointing,” Van Liew said. “Effectively increasing the grazing fee during these times of economic uncertainty will unnecessarily increase burdens on livestock producers and hamper their ability to create jobs and generate economic growth in their communities. We are not going to stand by and let that happen.”
The co-chairs of the Congressional Western Caucus released statements blistering the Obama budget.
“I am very disappointed that the president has decided to continue his war on the West by piling on new regulations and fees for oil and gas producers in his 2014 budget,” said Congressman Steve Pearce, a Republican from New Mexico. “Oil and gas producers already have to jump through hoops to drill on federal lands, and the provisions outlined in this budget proposal will make it nearly impossible for the industry to develop energy on federal lands.”
Congresswoman Cynthia Lummis, R-Wyo., said, “It’s as if they sit around and try to out-do each other on how badly they can hurt Western economies and communities. … Some have wondered about the ‘War on the West.’ Here is your proof.”
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Thomas Mitchell is a longtime Nevada newspaper columnist. You may share your views with him by emailing thomasmnv@yahoo.com.
