Chenoweth Says Law Threatens Jobs

Ranchers, miners and others in the West who rely on the land for their livelihood and recreation are being threatened on both counts by federal overregulation, Idaho Congresswoman Helen Chenoweth said Sunday.

“We have to free the West from the bondage we have been put under,” the freshman Republican told a Wise Use Leadership conference here. “We will win this war because it’s the right war to win.”

Chenoweth last week lost an attempt in the House to block merit raises and bonuses in the coming fiscal year for federal Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms employees in the wake of the raid on the Branch Davidian compound near Waco, Texas, and the Randy Weaver standoff in her home state.

On Sunday, she focused on the Endangered Species Act and federal control of streams and rivers.

“The Endangered Species Act is locking up our land,” she said. “I hope we’re able to come forth with a reasonable Endangered Species Act. Reform is not an acceptable alternative.”

The theme of this year’s meeting at the Sparks Nugget was “Fixing the Endangered Species Act.”

“Those who are the extreme environmentalists don’t have a vision for human beings,” Chenoweth said. “It’s not just the living we’re fighting for. It’s our way of life.”

She also called on regulatory agencies to stop trying to control waterways, which she said belong to the states and the permittees.

“Water rights are personal property rights belonging to the holder,” she said. “Normally, your sheriffs are the ones responsible for seeing that water is managed. Our states will manage how the water is used.”

Chenoweth sits on the resources and agriculture committees.

She said one of her concerns was that staff members who work with the House panels are not familiar with the West and its lifestyle.

“They’re good people, but they spend too much time within the Beltway,” she said.

She said the Republicans’ Contract with America calls for balancing the budget within seven years, but restricting agriculture and mining could hinder that goal.

“All new wealth comes from the earth. We need to get to the earth and pull out the wealth while being good stewards of the land,” she said. “That’s why it’s so important that we win the war on the West. We settled it once. We’re in the process of resettling it once again.”