Submitted by: Nancy Battle
The Lujan Amendment: A Job Killer
September 28, 2013 by Jack Inglewood Comments (17)
The
House of Representatives is set to vote on an amendment offered by Rep.
Ben Lujan (D-NM) that would empower radical environmentalists across
the nation to stop most construction projects with a push of a button.
This
week, the House will consider H.R. 687, a bipartisan bill to swap land
with the federal government to start construction of a mine in Arizona.
Mr. Lujan plans on offering an amendment that would allow one person —
the Secretary of the Interior — to designate any land in America a
Native American “cultural site,” stopping construction in its tracks.
Supporters
of the Lujan Amendment have said that the bill would prevent
construction anywhere where Native Americans have lived, prayed, and
performed religious ceremonies. If one thinks about it, that could be
anywhere in America. Road construction, land swaps, housing
developments, and even the Keystone Pipeline would be killed instantly
with such a designation.
Rep.
Doc Hastings (R-WA) has said that the Lujan amendment would place the
future of job creating projects in the hands of one government official.
There is no doubt that there is some acre of land somewhere that the
propose Keystone Pipeline runs across where Native
Americans lived and
prayed. The Secretary of the Interior could kill the project
instantaneously. Additionally, there is little doubt that the amendment
will open a flood of lawsuits from environmental groups seeking to stop
other construction projects.
Some
Republicans view the amendment as a way of currying favor with Native
Americans. That is a mistake. The Lujan Amendment will have a
devastating impact on job creation across the nation and must be
stopped.
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