Lubbock Times

This week, Chairman Jodey Arrington (TX-19) introduced amendments to the Department of the Interior, Environment, and Related Agencies Appropriations Act. The amendments aim to defund two initiatives by the United States Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS): the proposed expansion of the Muleshoe National Wildlife Refuge from 6,400 acres to 700,000 acres and a rule that would use an endangered species designation for several types of freshwater mussels to federalize over 1,500 miles of Texas rivers.

These amendments were adopted into the Department of the Interior, Environment, and Related Agencies Appropriations Act and subsequently passed by the House of Representatives.

When discussing his amendment to defund the USFWS’s proposed Muleshoe Expansion on the House floor, Chairman Arrington stated, “I rise to offer an amendment to defund the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service’s plan to expand the Muleshoe Wildlife Refuge by an unprecedented 1,000%. At a time when we have the highest level of indebtedness in the history of our nation, while we spend almost a trillion dollars in interest to service the debt, the last thing we need to do is spend money to buy up more land to somehow either appease an environmental group or maybe just achieve - what seems to be an odd objective - having the federal government own and operate a third of our land.”

Speaking further about his amendment to defund the USFWS rule regarding freshwater mussels, Chairman Arrington remarked, “The critical habitat that I'm concerned most about is Rural America - the backbone of this country, the breadbasket and the energy basin that's feeding, clothing, and fueling America. The Biden administration has decided to list six freshwater mussel species that - in their own report, in their own words - is moderately healthy, and in doing so jeopardize the livelihoods, the way of life, and the tremendous contributions of our ag and energy producers and lock up 1,500 miles of rivers.”