By VERNON ROBISON
Moapa Valley Progress
New Nevada Congressman, Cresent Hardy (R-Mesquite) didn’t waste any time in introducing his first bill to the U.S. House of Representatives. On Wednesday, just a little more than two months since taking office, Hardy introduced a bill he called the Land Acquisition to cut National Debt Act, or LAND Act. The bill would prohibit the Departments of the Interior and Agriculture from purchasing land using federal dollars, during years in which the federal budget is not balanced.
The federal agencies that operate under the auspices of Interior and Agriculture include National Park Service, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, Bureau of Land Management and National Forest System.
“The federal government has bitten off more than it can chew, and it cannot be trusted to serve as a responsible steward of even more of our lands and resources,” Hardy said during a speech on the House floor Wednesday. “I’m a Nevadan. The federal government controls more than 81 percent of my state, and I think I speak for most of my constituents when I say, enough is enough.”
Hardy explained that the bill only prohibited federal land acquisition by these agencies that results in a net increase of public lands acreage. This allows the flexibility for the agencies to continue to use land acquisition to further the purposes of conserving species, preserving cultural sites and providing spaces for recreation. But it would now require the agencies to “focus their efforts on lands that truly need their oversight by turning over unnecessary land to those who are best able to manage it: the states,” Hardy said
“We need to get our fiscal house in order, and we can help that process along by passing my bill,” Hardy added. “Let’s allow state, local and tribal governments to invest in developing their lands, creating jobs and growing their economies instead of letting them fall into disrepair on the federal government’s watch.”
