USFWS Director Dan Ashe (Credit: FWS)
The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (FWS) Fiscal Year 2014 (FY14) budget request was the subject of two House of Representatives hearings on Thursday April 18, 2013. One hearing was within the House Appropriations Subcommittee on Interior, Environment, and Related Affairs and the other was within the House Natural Resources Subcommittee on Fisheries, Wildlife, Oceans, and Insular Affairs.
The House Appropriations Subcommittee on Interior, Environment, and Related Affairs hearing was an opportunity for in-depth questioning of the FWS’s FY14 budget request and included discussions regarding funding for international wildlife conservation and illegal trafficking efforts, land owner partnerships, and endangered species listing and delisting, among other issues. Chairman Simpson (R-ID) opened the hearing by repeating the themes of other recent hearings — that Congress has tough choices to make and needs to focus on necessary programs such as education, drinking water, responding to and mitigating disasters, and looking at expired authorizations.
In defense of the agency’s budget request of $1.55 billion, an increase of $76.4 million over the enacted fiscal year 2012 levels, FWS Director Dan Ashe reminded the committee that the FWS is unique in that its mission is global, and that it needs an increased capacity to match the increased capabilities of the new generation of wildlife traffickers, who are often linked to syndicated crime. The FWS requested an increase in funds for law enforcement training and international programs. Due to recent budget cuts the agency had to reduce their training program by more than 20 officers.
Most of the budget hearing focused on endangered, threatened, and candidate species. In response to concerns surrounding the impacts of potential listing of the greater sage-grouse (Centrocercus urophasianus), Ashe responded that he is confident about the development of effective greater sage-grouse management strategies, even if listed, because of all the good work that has been accomplished through partnerships and state conservation plans. He also added that the FWS, along with BLM, had recently sent letters to Idaho and Wyoming to support their state grazing plans.
Rep. Herrara Beutler (R-WA) questioned whether an ecosystem approach to the management of endangered and threatened species listed under the Endangered Species Act (ESA) would be more effective in light of the spotted owl, while also expressing her concerns about employment impacts to the “endangered American wage earner” in her state as a result of the spotted owl listing. Rep. Valadao (R-CA) also criticized the application of the ESA in the San Francisco Bay Delta Region, considering the biological opinions that had been thrown out of court (although the FWS is still operating under a standing biological opinion).
The House Natural Resources Subcommittee on Fisheries, Wildlife, Oceans, and Insular Affairs hearing primarily focused on the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s (NOAA) satellite budget, fisheries stock assessment, and natural disaster preparedness as well as the Council on Environmental Quality’s National Ocean Policy Implementation Plan. Chairman Fleming (R-LA) did voice some concern over the FWS’s FY14 budget request. Chairman Fleming’s primary concern was over the increase in requested funds to acquire new lands, stating that the FWS cannot adequately manage their current holdings within current budget constraints. Chairman Fleming did, however, compliment the FWS on their proactive measures in response to budget cuts and sequestration.
Deputy Director Stephen Guertin echoed Director Ashe’s comments when asked how the FWS will use the requested increase in funds to combat the rise in global poaching and wildlife trafficking, noting that they will use the funds to train law enforcement and for education and outreach.
When questioned about impacts from the sequester during Thursday’s hearings, both Director Ashe and Deputy Director Guertin stated that they have managed the cuts by not filling open positions and activating a hiring freeze, leaving 400 positions unfilled, as well as closing public hunting access at 29 wildlife refuges. Ashe noted, however, that they would like to systematically start re-hires for their needs rather than leaving positions open that were simply opportunistic cuts. They would also like to reinstate public hunting access to many refuges where recreation planners had to be cut.
Sources: Environment & Energy Daily (April 19, 2013), USFWS News Release: President Requests $1.6 Billion in Fiscal Year 2014 for U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (April 10, 2013), FWS 2014 Budget Justifications
