STATEMENT: Rep. Mann condemns listing of Lesser Prairie-Chicken

Press Release

Today, U.S. Representative Tracey Mann (KS-01) released the following statement in response to the Biden Administration's decision to list the Northern Distinct Population Segment of the lesser prairie-chicken as a threatened species under the Endangered Species Act.

"In their final rule, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service first commended landowners' voluntary efforts to increase lesser prairie-chicken populations in Kansas, and then unilaterally decided that the federal government is better equipped to address these local areas.

This ruling is more than another example of federal overreach - it is a proxy war on American agriculture and energy sectors that are vital to our economy. At a time when inflation is at a 40-year high, energy prices are the highest they have been in years, and families are struggling to fuel their cars and keep food on their tables, we should be working to eliminate barriers for the agriculture and energy sectors, not hamstringing hardworking Americans.

I will continue to work in opposition to this ruling. I will soon introduce legislation that will prohibit the listing of threatened or endangered species without Congressional input, and I have asked the Government Accountability Office to produce a thorough report on the data the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service used to make their decision.

Farmers, ranchers, and landowners are the original conservationists, and the federal government must get out of their way and let them do what they do best."

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