The Congressional Record is a unique source of public documentation. It started in 1873, documenting nearly all the major and minor policies being discussed and debated.
“PETITIONS AND MEMORIALS” mentioning the Department of Interior was published in the Senate section on pages S541-S542 on Jan. 31, 2008.
The publication is reproduced in full below:
PETITIONS AND MEMORIALS
The following petitions and memorials were laid before the Senate and were referred or ordered to lie on the table as indicated:
POM-277. A resolution adopted by the Columbus City Council in the State of Ohio relative to the foreclosure crisis; to the Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs.
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POM-278. A resolution adopted by the Board of County Commissioners of Miami-Dade County of the State of Florida urging the Florida Legislature to pass legislation allowing for local licensing of tour guides; to the Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation.
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POM-279. A joint resolution adopted by the Alaska State Legislature urging Congress to take action to honor the sovereignty of individual states to regulate and command the National Guard of the states; to the Committee on Armed Services.
Legislative Resolve No. 6
Whereas the National Guard is the oldest component of the armed forces of the United States and one of the nation's longest-enduring institutions; and
Whereas the National Guard traces its history back to the earliest English colonies in North America, who were responsible for their own defense and, as such, organized their able-bodied male citizens into militias; and
Whereas the authors of the United States Constitution empowered the United States Congress to provide for organizing, arming, and disciplining the militia, and, to recognize the militia's state role, the founding fathers reserved the appointment of officers and training of the militia to the states; and
Whereas the federal government's preemption of the authority of the state or governor in natural and manmade disasters is opposed by all of the nation's governors; and
Whereas the role of the National Guard in the states and in the nation as a whole is too important to have major policy decisions made without full debate and input from governors through the policy process; be it
Resolved, That the Alaska State Legislature exhorts the United States Congress and the federal administration to understand the significant effect on Alaska and all the states by the expansion of presidential authority over the National Guard during natural and manmade disasters; and be it further
Resolved, That the Alaska State Legislature urges federal action to honor the sovereignty of the individual states to regulate and command National Guard troops during emergencies and disasters, and to take whatever actions are necessary to correct the encroachment of constitutional authority to protect the citizens of each state.
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POM-280. A joint resolution adopted by the Alaska State Legislature opposing any international designation of land in the state without the consent of the affected local governments; to the Committee on Energy and Natural Resources.
Legislative Resolve No. 18
Whereas the United Nations has designated over 60 sites in the United States as ``world heritage sites'' or ``biosphere reserves,'' which altogether are equal in size to the State of Colorado, the eighth largest state; and
Whereas art. IV, sec. 3, United States Constitution, provides that the United States Congress shall make all needed rules and regulations respecting the territory or other property belonging to the United States and nothing in the constitution shall be construed to prejudice any claims of the United States or of any state; and
Whereas many of the United Nations' designations include private property inholdings and contemplate buffer zones of adjacent land; and
Whereas some international land designations, such as those under the United States Biosphere Reserve Program and the Man and Biosphere Program of the United Nations Educational, Scientific, and Cultural Organization, operate under independent national committees such as the United States Man and Biosphere National Committee that have no legislative directives or authorization from the United States Congress; and
Whereas local citizens and public officials concerned about job creation and resource-based economies usually have no say in the designation of land near their homes for inclusion in an international land use program; and
Whereas these international designations are an open invitation to the international community to interfere in domestic economies and land use decisions; and
Whereas environmental groups and the United States Department of the Interior, National Park Service, have been working to establish an international park, a world heritage site, and a marine biosphere reserve called Beringia covering parts of western Alaska, eastern Russia, and the Bering Sea, and in Glacier Bay National Park; and
Whereas foreign companies and countries could use these international designations in western Alaska to block or inhibit economic development that they perceive as competition; and
Whereas animal rights activists could use these international designations to generate pressure to harass or block harvesting of marine mammals by Alaska Natives; and
Whereas international designations may be used to harass or block industrial development in the state, including projects related to fishing, mining, timber harvesting, railroads, power transmission lines, pipelines, and other oil and gas development; and
Whereas the subsistence and recreational use of fish and game resources in the state could be severely and negatively affected by international land use designations; and
Whereas the United Nations Educational, Scientific, and Cultural Organization, with the collaboration of the United States Department of the Interior, has recognized the Kluane/Wrangell-St. Elias/Glacier Bay/Tatshenshini-Alsek World Heritage Site in Alaska, and has listed the Aleutian Islands Unit of the Alaska Maritime National Wildlife Refuge, Arctic National Wildlife Refuge, Cape Krusenstern Archaeological District, Denali National Park, Gates of the Arctic National Park, and Katmai National Park on the Tentative List of areas nominated for full status; and
Whereas the United Nations Educational, Scientific, and Cultural Organization's Man and the Biosphere Programme has identified the Glacier Bay--Admiralty Island, Noatak, Denali, and Aleutian Islands Biosphere Reserves in Alaska; and
Whereas, under current law, the United States Secretary of the Interior can nominate world heritage sites, and the United States Secretary of State can nominate biosphere reserves, both without approval by the Congress; be it
Resolved, That the Alaska State Legislature recognizes and reaffirms the constitutional authority of the United States Congress as the elected representatives of the people over the federally owned land of the United States; and be it further
Resolved, That the Alaska State Legislature objects to the nomination or designation of any site in Alaska as a world heritage site, biosphere reserve, or any other type of international designation without the prior consent of the Alaska State Legislature and affected local governments; and be it further
Resolved, That the Alaska State Legislature urges the United States Congress to pass and the President to sign legislation that will require approval by an Act of Congress before any area in the United States or its territories can be studied as a potential, or nominated to be a, world heritage site, biosphere reserve, or any other type of international designation.
Copies of this resolution shall be sent to the Honorable George W. Bush, President of the United States; the Honorable Richard B. Cheney, Vice-President of the United States and President of the U.S. Senate; the Honorable Dirk Kempthorne, United States Secretary of the Interior; the Honorable Condoleezza Rice, United States Secretary of State; the Honorable Nancy Pelosi, Speaker of the U.S. House of Representatives; the Honorable Harry Reid, Majority Leader of the U.S. Senate; the Honorable Mitch McConnell, Minority Leader of the U.S. Senate; the Honorable Steny Hoyer, Majority Leader of the U.S. House of Representatives; the Honorable John Boehner, Minority Leader of the U.S. House of Representatives; the Honorable Ted Stevens and the Honorable Lisa Murkowski, U.S. Senators, and the Honorable Don Young, U.S. Representative, members of the Alaska delegation in Congress; and all members of the 110th United States Congress by electronic transmission.
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POM-281. A joint resolution adopted by the Alaska State Legislature urging Coeur Alaska, Inc., to pursue all legal options to resolve the issues present in a court case it is involved with; to the Committee on Environment and Public Works.
Legislative Resolve No. 19
Whereas the state is rich in natural resources and is dependent on the development of those resources for its well-being; and
Whereas the policy of the federal government expressed in 30 U.S.C. 21a is to foster and encourage private enterprise in the development of economically sound and stable domestic mining, minerals, metal, and mineral reclamation industries; and
Whereas the United States District Court for the District of Alaska found that the decision of the United States Army Corps of Engineers to allow the disposal of tailings from the proposed Kensington Mine into Lower Slate Lake is consistent with the requirements of the Clean Water Act; and
Whereas the United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit stated in an order issued in Southeast Alaska Conservation Council v. United States Army Corps of Engineers, Case No. 06-35679, that the court intends to reverse and vacate the Record of Decision authorizing the use of Lower Slate Lake as a disposal facility, and remand the case to the district court with instructions to enter summary judgment in favor of Southeast Alaska Conservation Council; be it
Resolved, That the Alaska State Legislature encourages Coeur Alaska, Inc., to pursue all legal options, including an appeal to the United States Supreme Court, to resolve the issues presented in Southeast Alaska Conservation Council v. United States Army Corps of Engineers, Case No. 06-35679, on behalf of itself and consistent with the state's efforts to enforce its rights as a state over its resources.
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POM-282. A joint resolution adopted by the Alaska State Legislature urging Congress to defeat H.R. 39; to the Committee on Environment and Public Works.
Legislative Resolve No. 21
Whereas H.R. 39, titled ``To preserve the Arctic coastal plain of the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge, Alaska, as wilderness in recognition of its extraordinary natural ecosystems and for the permanent good of present and future generations of Americans,'' has been introduced in the United States House of Representatives; and
Whereas the oil industry, the state, and the United States Department of the Interior consider the Arctic coastal plain to have the highest potential for discovery of very large oil and gas accumulations on the continent of North America, estimated to be as much as 10,000,000,000 barrels of recoverable oil; and
Whereas oil and gas exploration and development of the Arctic coastal plain of the refuge and adjacent land could result in major discoveries that would reduce our nation's future need for imported oil, help balance the nation's trade deficit, and significantly increase the nation's security; and
Whereas, in 16 U.S.C. 3142 (sec. 1002 of the Alaska National Interest Lands Conservation Act (ANILCA)), the United States Congress reserved the right to permit further oil and gas exploration, development, and production within the coastal plain; and
Whereas enhancements in technology can be used in a manner that minimizes the area within the refuge that is used for exploration and development, while providing the nation with a needed supply of oil and gas; and
Whereas the oil industry is using innovative technology and environmental practices that are directly applicable to operating on the Arctic coastal plain and that enhance environmental protection beyond traditionally high standards; and
Whereas the state will strive to ensure the protection of the land, water, and wildlife resources during the exploration and development of the Arctic coastal plain; and
Whereas 8,900,000 of the 19,000,000 acres of the refuge have already been set aside as wilderness; be it
Resolved, That the Twenty-Fifth Alaska State Legislature urges the United States Congress to defeat H.R. 39.
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POM-283. A resolution adopted by the California State Lands Commission expressing its support for the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea; to the Committee on Foreign Relations.
Resolution
Whereas, California's 1,100 mile coastline, with its beautiful beaches, wild cliffs, abundant fish stocks and fragile environment is a national treasure and a valuable state resource, which is at the heart of a tourist industry that generates nearly five billion dollars in state and local taxes each year; and is central to the state's $46 billion ocean economy; and
Whereas, the California State Lands Commission has jurisdiction over the state- owned tide and submerged lands below the mean high tide line out to three miles from the coast as well as the lands underlying California's bays and rivers; and
Whereas, the Commission is charged with managing these lands pursuant to the Public Trust Doctrine, a common law that requires these lands to be used for commerce, fishing, navigation, recreation and environmental protection; and
Whereas, protecting and improving the environmental integrity of the Pacific Ocean affects the public trust values of the lands under the Commission's jurisdiction and the utility of these lands to the public and the environment; and
Whereas, the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS) is an international treaty ratified by more than 150 countries; and
Whereas, UNCLOS secures a member country's sovereign rights over the waters and natural resources off its shores, while also obligating the member country to protect the marine environment within its territorial seas, along its continental shelf, and on the high seas; and
Whereas, specifically, UNCLOS's marine environmental protections address marine pollution, dumping, fisheries, living resources, mining, oil and gas exploration, and scientific research; and
Whereas, UNCLOS provides a general governance framework that establishes a means to address future marine environmental problems not specifically addressed in the convention; and
Whereas, the United States has not ratified UNCLOS despite the fact that there is strong bipartisan support for ratification; the treaty is supported by all major environmental groups, shipping and oil interests, and current and former political figures across the ideological spectrum; and
Whereas, if the United States ratifies UNCLOS, it could, among other things, enforce its environmental laws in its exclusive economic zone. Moreover, the United States will be in a position to lead in the future application and development of UNCLOS, and develop regional and international cooperation to protect and preserve the marine environment; and Therefore be it
Resolved by the California State Lands Commission, That it supports the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea, which would promote the United States' interest in the environmental health of the oceans, secure sovereign rights over extensive marine areas, and protect national security interests; and, be it further
Resolved, that the Commission's Executive Officer transmit copies of this resolution to the President and Vice President of the United States, to the Governor of California, to the Majority and Minority Leaders of the United States Senate, to the Speaker and Minority Leader of the United States House of Representatives, and to each Senator and Representative from California in the Congress of the United States.
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