[Extensions of Remarks]
[Pages E434-E435]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]

HUMMINGBIRDS, LEAKY PLUMBING, AND WILDERNESS

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HON. DON YOUNG

of alaska

in the house of representatives

Tuesday, March 11, 1997

Mr. YOUNG. Mr. Speaker, hardly a day goes by without hearing about
some outrageous ruling by a Federal agency that defies common sense and
victimizes average citizens.
Syndicated columnist and environmental scholar Dr. Alston Chase has
an uncanny ability to uncover these bureaucratic excesses and explain
them in plain English. One of his recent columns entitled
``Hummingbirds and Other Prey of the EPA'' began by asking the
following question. ``What do rescuing hummingbirds, owning leaky
plumbing, getting lost in the wilderness, and smuggling refrigerator
coolants have in common?''
This column, which appeared in the February 28, 1997 edition of the
Washington Times, cited specific horror stories involving how Federal
agencies dealt with all these items. I urge my colleagues to read this
well-written column by Dr. Alston Chase.

[From the Washington Times, Feb. 28, 1997]

Hummingbirds and Other Prey of EPA

(By Alston Chase)

Question: What do rescuing hummingbirds, owning leaky
plumbing, getting lost in the wilderness, and smuggling
refrigerator coolants have in common?
Answer: They're all crimes against nature, punishable by
stiff fines or imprisonment or both. And if one federal
agency has its way, our jails may soon be filled with folks
who have committed equally harmless offenses.
As to hummingbirds, last fall one of these creatures,
having summered around Billings, Mont., didn't migrate south
as it should have. Bad decision. Probably, it had been
surprised by the sudden cold snap that made that autumn the
second most frigid on record. Whatever the reason, a kindly
couple found the shivering bird and took it to Jill Herzog,
owner of a local bird store. Miss Herzog was making
arrangements to ship it south when officials of the U.S. fish
and Wildlife Service knocked at her door.
Release the bird immediately, they told her, or pay a
$10,000 fine. So, release it she did. By this time it was
January, and outdoor temperatures hovered around 18 below
zero. End of hummingbird.
As to the other criminals:
In November, a New York court convicted Kent and Glenda
Druell of 164 counts of pollution. The couple, who are of
modest means, face $32.6 million in fines and 1,000 years in
prison. Their crime? Owning a leaky septic system. The case
is on appeal, as the state never adduced a shred of evidence
to show that this effluent was contaminating state waters, as
charged.
In December, race car driver Bobby Unser got lost in a
blizzard when snowmobiling in Colorado. While trying to find
his way, he accidentally strayed a half-mile into federal
wilderness. For this offense, the U.S. Forest Service brought
charges against Mr. Unser that carry a $5,000 fine and a six-
month prison term.
Then, there's the case of the banned coolant. In January,
federal authorities brought charges against several people
and businesses for smuggling the refrigerant Freon into the
United States. Relying on what many scientists believe is a
flawed theory claiming this substance causes stratospheric
ozone depletion, the government forbids its manufacture or
import. Yet since millions of air conditioners cannot run
without it, prices are skyrocketing, which leads to
widespread smuggling.
And lest you think that's the end of the matter, Freon
substitutes--so-called HCFCs--which are currently being
installed in new car air conditioners, are slated to be
banned by the year 2020, thus promising to generate another
lucrative illegal trade when supplies run out.
Notice the pattern? Each year, the list of eco-crimes gets
longer. Each year, more erstwhile law-abiding behavior is
declared illegal. Each year, environmental agencies extend
their police powers. Each year, Americans lose a little more
liberty to laws that

[[Page E435]]

don't protect plants and animals but do put people at risk.
This process proceeds by such incremental steps that few
take notice. But it continues as you read this. Consider
regulations currently proposed by the Bureau of Land
Management:
Two days after last November's general election, the bureau
published in the Federal Register rule changes for law
enforcement. These revisions are touted as merely stylistic,
as only rephrasings couched in ``plain English'' to help
ordinary citizens understand them. But actually, that's a
deception. Under the guise of simplifying law, the bureau is
pursuing vast extensions of its police powers.
The proposed regulations would criminalize thousands of
minor offenses that previously were not deemed criminal. They
would give bureau police unparalleled authority of arrest,
search and seizure. They would extend federal enforcement to
surrounding private properties. They would raise the maximum
punishment for violations from $1,000 to $100,000 and
authorize bureau agents to enforce not only their own rules
but all other local, state and federal laws as well.
And they redefine guilt. No longer would ignorance of the
law be an excuse. Instead, one could be declared criminally
responsible for breaking a rule few ever heard of.
Thus, individuals could go to jail for violating ``any
regulation, authorization or order''--such as walking a dog
in a recreation area without a leash, not wearing a seat
belt, failing to display a state inspection sticker on one's
car or entering ``wilderness areas without a permit, where
permits are required by BLM.''
The bureau has set a March 7 deadline for receiving public
comments on these provisions. And on March 20, the House
Subcommittee on Parks and Public Lands will hold hearings on
them.
Let's hope Congress can stop this power grab. Otherwise,
those who hike in wilderness may discover the greatest
dangers they face are neither bad weather nor grizzly bears
but green police, and that their most essential survival tool
is neither tent nor cook stove but a copy of the Federal Code
of Regulations.

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