Huizenga Introduces Tort Reform Legislation to Preserve Environment, Protect Taxpayer Dollars

Press Release

Today, Congressman Bill Huizenga (MI-02), Congressman Cresent Hardy (NV-04), and other members of the House Endangered Species Working Group, announced the introduction of H.R. 2019, The Endangered Species Litigation Reasonableness Act. For years, litigating attorneys haven taken advantage of the Endangered Species Act (ESA) by filing meritless lawsuits against the federal government, costing taxpayers millions of dollars. Rep Huizenga's legislation places reasonable caps on attorneys' fees that may be awarded under the ESA, bringing them in line with current law.

"The goal of the Endangered Species Act is to enhance wildlife preservation, not line the pockets of trial attorneys with taxpayer dollars," said Rep. Huizenga. "Every taxpayer dollar spent on litigation is a dollar that could have been spent protecting the environment. This commonsense reform deserves bipartisan support because it ensures that taxpayer dollars designated for species protection and recovery are used for their intended purpose. It's time to make the Endangered Species Act more effective and ensure the same reasonable limits apply to everyone when taxpayer dollars are on the line."

"In our overly litigious society, hardworking Americans are seeing their tax dollars go toward exorbitant attorney fees instead of responsible conservation efforts," Rep. Hardy said. "This runs entirely against the spirit of ESA, which is why I am pleased to join Congressman Huizenga in introducing the Endangered Species Litigation Reasonableness Act."

Source