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Help put a dent in the money train for the greenies

nenmrancher

Well-known member
EAJA Reform Welcome News for New Mexico Agriculture Groups
Legislation that would bring oversight and accountability to payments made under the Equal Access to Justice Act (EAJA) is gaining broad support in New Mexico and across the country.
The New Mexico Cattle Growers Association (NMCGA), New Mexico Wool Growers, Inc. (NMWGI), New Mexico Federal Lands Council (NMFLC), Dairy Producers of New Mexico (DPNM) and AZ/NM Coalition of Counties (Coalition) are joining producers nationwide in support of the Open EAJA Act of 2010 (H.R. 4717), introduced by Representative Cynthia Lummis (R-WY) and co-sponsored by Representatives Stephanie Herseth Sandlin (D-SD) and Rob Bishop (R-UT).
The EAJA was passed by Congress in the 1980s as means to protect the rights of non-profits, small businesses and individual citizens from unreasonable government actions. Along the way, however, it has been co-opted by special interest and environmental groups, who use the law to get paid after suing the federal government.
“When the EAJA was passed, it was meant to protect people like family ranchers and others from the federal government,” said Bert Ancell, NMCGA President, Bell Ranch. “Today, these activist groups are using our tax dollars to sue the federal government and try to put us out of business. According to the only research to date, activist environmental groups have gotten paid $42 million dollars to sue the federal government in the last decade.”
The Open EAJA Act of 2010, brought about by the efforts of the Western Legacy Alliance, www.westernlegacyalliance.org , and the research of attorney Karen Budd-Falen, Cheyenne, Wyoming would bring accountability and transparency to payments made under the EAJA. Specifically, the bill requires an accounting of how attorneys’ fees are being awarded under EAJA, an annual report to Congress outlining the number, stature and amount of the awards, and a Government Accounting Office (GAO) audit of the uses of EAJA funds over the past 15 years.
Every year, activist groups file thousands of motions and petitions with various government agencies across the country. The resulting paperwork keeps the agencies from actually getting any on the ground work done, and guarantees that a deadline will eventually be missed by the agency, opening the door for a lawsuit. Rather than go to court, the federal agencies settle the suit with the activist group, and typically agree to pay them for their attorneys’ fees under EAJA.
“These lawsuits keep the agencies in turmoil, and have a big impact on our operations,” said Jim Cooper, NMWGI President, Arabela. “Our tax dollars fund the government agencies and their attorneys. To make sure our rights as landowners and producers are protected, we have to intervene in the lawsuit, spending our own money on attorneys and court costs. Then, the government pays these groups’ attorneys’ fees – using our tax dollars again – giving them money for the next lawsuit.”
New Mexicans have spent hundreds of thousands of dollars over the past 15 years in an attempt to protect natural resources users who make up the custom, culture and economy of the state, according to Louise Peterson, Hatchita, President of the Arizona/New Mexico Coalition of Counties.
“On rare occasions we have been reimbursed for some of the actual expenses incurred in protecting New Mexico families,” she said. “But it is shocking to see that $300,000 was paid on a single case --- that was not even decided in favor of the Forest Guardians and the Center for Biological Diversity.”
What the public doesn’t know is that not only are these suits keeping federal agencies from doing their jobs in terms of conserving wildlife and lands, but they are driving at the heart of the nation’s food supply, notes Al Squire, Hagerman, DPNM President.
“Americans pay less than ten percent of their disposable income for the most abundant and safest food supply in the world,” says Squire. “While we are producing that cheap and wholesome food under government controlled caps, so that we cannot pass along increased production costs, we are paying up to three times for litigation that is aimed at eliminating us.”
Congresswomen Lummis and Herseth Sandlin and Congressman Bishop deserve the support, praise and heartfelt appreciation of nature resources users ---which includes every member of the public who eats, drives a car, and uses utilities like water and electricity, points out Don L. “Bebo” Lee, Alamogordo, NMFLC President.
“As a nation we have come to expect that electricity is automatic when we flip a switch, that water is magically in the tap when we turn it and that our grocery stores will always be stocked with all the food we want or need,” Lee comments. “Many don’t realize that the production of these necessities of life are the fruits of the land --- and that someone has to have the ability to work that land.”
The DPNM, Coalition, NMCGA, NMFLC, and NMWGI are asking the New Mexico Congressmen Ben Lujan, Harry Teague and Martin Heinrich to co-sponsor and support H.B. 4717. They are also asking for other groups and individuals to join with them in this effort.
 

nenmrancher

Well-known member
Last week NMCGA, NMWGI, NMFLC, the Coalition of AZ/NM Counties, and the Dairy Producers of New Mexico sent out information in support of the newly introduced OPEN EAJA ACT of 2010 (HR 4717). Since then the New Mexico Association of Conservation Districts has signaled support as well.

Now we need to be sure that the New Mexico Members of the U.S. House of Representatives co-sponsor the legislation!!!

Please find attached and below a draft letter than can be sent to each Congressman or just give them a call.
Their contact information is:

Congressman Ben Ray Lujan / https://forms.house.gov/lujan/contact-form.shtml
202.225.6190
Congressman Harry Teague / https://forms.house.gov/teague/contact-form.shtml
202.225.2365
Congressman Martin Heinrich / https://forms.house.gov/heinrich/contact-form.shtml
202.225.6316



The EQUAL ACCESS TO JUSTICE ACT (EAJA) was passed by Congress in the 1980s as means to protect the rights of non-profits, small businesses and individual citizens from unreasonable government actions. Along the way, however, it has been co-opted by special interest and environmental groups, who use the law to get paid after suing the federal government.

The Open EAJA Act of 2010 would bring accountability and transparency to payments made under the EAJA. Specifically, the bill requires an accounting of how attorneys’ fees are being awarded under EAJA, an annual report to Congress outlining the number, stature and amount of the awards, and a Government Accounting Office (GAO) audit of the uses of EAJA funds over the past 15 years. NMCGA strongly supports HR 4717 and respectfully requests that the New Mexico delegation co-sponsor and support this measure as well as any on the subject that may be introduced in the U.S. Senate.


March , 2010
Dear Congressman:

I am writing to respectfully request you to support and co-sponsor Congressman Cynthia Lummis’ H.R. 4717, the “Open EAJA Act of 2010”.

The goal of the Equal Access to Justice Act (EAJA) was to make the justice system more accessible to individuals of modest means, small businesses, and nonprofit organizations, by allowing the recovery of their attorney fees when they prevail in disputes with the Federal Government. The Act, along with other attorney fee-shifting statutes, provides an important citizen protection against overzealous regulators.

Currently there are certain environmental groups that have greatly abused the original intent of these fee-shifting statutes. Rampant litigation by environmental plaintiffs in Federal District Courts in the West has resulted in payments of millions of dollars in EAJA fees and other fee shifting statutes by federal agencies. These lawsuits involve no more than challenges to small missteps by the agencies in complying with the procedural requirements of environmental laws such as the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA). When they are able to find procedural flaws in agency actions they sue the government and receive millions of federal taxpayer dollars in attorney fees for settling or winning these cases which in turn, allows them to continue litigating against the government.

Over the past 12 years, the New Mexico Cattle Growers’ Association and other livestock industry groups in our state have spent hundreds of thousands of dollars in the courts just to protect the ability of livestock owners and ranchers to stay on the ground. As you are well aware, the last place cowboys want to be is in court. However, that is exactly where we have had to go just to maintain the custom, culture and economy of our state.
Federal agencies budgets, such as U.S. Fish & Wildlife Services (FWS), are being dramatically impacted due to these cases. Important programs that put dollars on the ground to help imperiled fish and wildlife are being redirected to pay the “awarded” costs to these environmental groups who file suit over agency procedural flaws, this in turn allows them to continue to litigate against the government. Of more concern to NMCGA is that these litigious actions have direct and devastating impacts on New Mexico’s family ranchers and farmers.

FWS spokeswoman Valerie Fellows has said that the agency’s listing and critical habitat budget had been usurped by lawsuits and court-ordered actions for nearly a decade. “We essentially lost all of our own discretion to use funding for listing candidates and making petition findings, as we were completely driven by the court orders.”

Ranchers and other natural resource industries are struggling to stay in business, and are forced to defend themselves against cases brought by these groups. Industry must pay its own bills and pay an attorney to counter litigation in court. The federal government is overwhelmed by the sheer numbers of petitions and filing, they cannot get the necessary on-the-ground work done, and often settle the lawsuit.

Ranchers and farmers good people that are excellent stewards of the land and care about the environment, the survival of endangered species, clean water, their families and the safety and security of our nation. On more than one occasion certain environmental groups have attacked our members character and/or other ranchers and farmers in the United States by stating we are “large, heavily –subsidized corporate farmers.”

Incongruously, some of these same groups are receiving millions of federal taxpayer’s dollars in attorney fees for settling or “winning” cases against the federal government. Inappropriately, accurate statistics have not been kept by the Justice Department or federal agencies, thus there is no accounting for the total amount of tax dollars paid.

We must have transparency and reporting of government’s expenditures of taxpayer’s dollars when attorney fees are awarded have better oversight.
I encourage you to support efforts to bring substantive reform to Equal Access to Justice Act and other environmental fee shifting statutes. I support the provisions in this legislation that requires the Attorney General to issue an online report to Congress providing the amount of the EAJA-related fees and other expenses awarded during the preceding fiscal year. I further applaud the bill’s requirement that the Comptroller General commence an audit of EAJA, starting in 1995.

Again we encourage you to support and co-sponsor H.R. 4717 the “Open EAJA Act of 2010” legislation. Thank you in advance for your time and efforts in the above matter.

Sincerely,
 
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