NorthwestJuly 20, 2000

Sen. Larry Craig of Idaho will attempt to add amendments to the Conservation and Reinvestment Act today to make it more palatable to Western Republicans.

But even if he is successful, his press secretary said the senator may still oppose the bill that would fund state and federal wildlife conservation programs to the tune of $3.8 billion each year.

"It's still going to depend on the outcome of the bill," said Will Hart at Washington, D.C. "There is a significant problem with federal land acquisition that Sen. Craig and many other Western Republicans feel they cannot support."

Craig and his colleagues are opposed to provisions in the bill that make money available for the federal and state governments to purchase private land.

Craig plans to strengthen a provision that says any land purchased with CARA funds would have to come from a willing seller and add language to protect state water rights.

The senior senator from Idaho also will try to tack a rider onto the bill that aims to limit President Clinton's use of the Antiquities Act to name new national monuments.

The rider would require the designation of new national monuments to go through a full public comment period under the National Environmental Policy Act, be approved by Congress and undergo a strategic mineral survey.

"We feel (the administration) needs to go through the public process the rest of the nation has to go through and that is the NEPA process," said Hart.

He said he did not know if the rider would spell the death of the bill that enjoys wide bipartisan support and is backed by Idaho Gov. Dirk Kempthorne and many conservation organizations.

"I don't know if any of Sen. Craig's amendments are poison pills. The debate in the committee looked to me like the bill has a 50/50 chance of getting out of committee.

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"I'm seeing people on both sides who are upset with where it is at."

Craig will attempt to make the changes today while the bill is being marked up in the Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee.

Sen. Mike Crapo, also of Idaho, has serious reservations about the bill, but his spokesman said the senator is waiting to see what the bill looks like when it hits the Senate floor before he will make a final decision.

"We were against the House version but it is too soon to say we are going to vote against what comes of the Senate," said Lindsay Nothern at Boise.

Crapo, too, is opposed to provisions that allow for federal land acquisition but also is concerned the bill that taps money generated from the drilling of off shore oil reserves will remove too much money from the national treasury.

"It seems easy to support because it's a big pot of money out there, but that money has to come from someplace," said Nothern.

Former Idaho Fish and Game Commissioner Keith Carlson of Lewiston said the bill will take pressure off sportsmen who finance many nongame programs through the purchase of hunting and fishing licenses and tags.

It also will make money available for local governments to develop parks and preserve open space, he said.

"It would take an awful lot of pressure off the states," said Carlson.

If the bill passes it could mean as much as $3.8 million to the Idaho Department of Fish and Game and $7.2 million to the Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife annually.

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