NEWS RELEASE
WASHINGTON, D.C. – July 30, 2015 – (RealEstateRama) — U.S. Congressman Paul A. Gosar, D.D.S. (AZ-04) released the following statement after being joined by 34 members of the House in formally requesting the Natural Resources Subcommittee on Energy and Mineral Resources hold a hearing on H.R. 2663, the Public Lands Renewable Energy Development Act of 2015:
“Since federal lands are not taxable, state and local governments deserve a fair share of the revenues from the sale of energy production on lands within their borders. Furthermore, this commonsense bill supports a true all-of-the-above domestic energy policy and will streamline the permitting process for energy on public lands.
“Public land management agencies need a permitting process tailored to the unique characteristics and impacts of these energy sources. This bipartisan bill removes government red tape and drives investment towards the highest quality wind, solar and geothermal development projects. I am honored to be joined by so many colleagues in formally requesting that this groundbreaking legislative effort continue to move forward.”
Background:
The 35 members that signed the H.R. 2663 hearing request letter include: Mark Amodei, Rod Blum, Tony Cardenas, Matt Cartwright, Paul Cook, Jim Costa, Suzan DelBene, Jeff Duncan, Trent Franks, Paul Gosar, Cresent Hardy, Joe Heck, Jared Huffman, Ann Kirkpatrick, Doug LaMalfa, Alan S. Lowenthal, Ben Lujan, Michelle Lujan Grisham, Martha McSally, Steve Pearce, Ed Perlmutter, Marc Pocan, Jared Polis, Raul Ruiz, Matt Salmon, David Schweikert, Mike Simpson, Kyrsten Sinema, Chris Stewart, Mike Thompson, Dina Titus, Scott Tipton, Dina Titus, Niki Tsongas, Don Young and Ryan Zinke.
H.R. 2663 currently has 45 bipartisan cosponsors in the House of Representatives.
The Senate held a hearing on the Senate companion of the bill for this Congress on June 9, 2015. Click HERE to read more.
Last Congress, the House Natural Resources Subcommittee on Energy and Minerals held a hearing on a previous version of the bill, H.R. 596, on July
Congressmen Paul Gosar (R-AZ), Mike Thompson (D-CA) Trent Franks (R-AZ), Joe Heck (R-NV), Jared Polis (D-CO) and Raul Ruiz (D-CA) introduced the Public Lands Renewable Energy Development Act of 2015 on June 4,
Multiple organizations have endorsed the bill including: Western Governors’ Association, National Association of Counties, Congressional Sportsmen’s Foundation, American Fly Fishing Trade Association, American Sportfishing Association, Backcountry Hunters & Anglers, Dallas Safari Club, Mule Deer Foundation, National Marine Manufacturers Association and the Northwest Sportfishing Industry Association.
