2021 WCCA Spring Meeting: Agriculture, Water, State and Public Lands Committee Meeting

2021 WCCA Spring Meeting: Agriculture, Water, State and Public Lands Committee Meeting

Thursday, May 20

Ballroom, Holiday Inn Rock Springs

Rock Springs, Wyoming

Agriculture, Water, State and

Public Lands Committee

Chairman John Espy, Carbon County

Co-Chairman Dave Neves, Big Horn County

Energy and Environment Committee

Chairman Robert Short, Converse County

Co-Chair D.G. Reardon, Campbell County

• Committee Meeting Agenda Topics

• Welcome and Introductions (5 minutes)

• Approve Minutes – Commissioners Espy and Short (5 minutes)

• NACo Update – Commissioner Wolf, NACo Board Member (10 minutes)

• Executive Update– Joe Budd (15 minutes)

• Congressional Update – Shelby Schields, Senator Barrasso’s office; Tyler Lindholm, Senator Lummis’s office; and

• Esther Wagner, Representative Cheney’s Office (30 minutes)

• Biden Administration Executive Actions – Commissioners Espy and Short (15 minutes)

  • Lease Moratorium

  • 30 x 30 Initiative

• WPLI Update and Discussion – Shelby Schields, Senator Barrasso’s Office (10 minutes)

• Report from the Energy Strong Conference (Uintah County, Utah) – Jason Begger (15 minutes)

• Congressional Tour Subcommittee Report – Commissioner Short (10 minutes)

• Big Game Migration Corridor Initiative – Commissioner Espy (15 minutes)

• Aquatic Invasive Species and Carcass Disposal – Alan Osterland and Rick King, Wyoming Game and Fish (20 minutes)

• Interim Topics Discussion

  • Predator management

  • Biden administration executive actions

Minutes of Previous Meeting

Public Lands/ Energy & Environment Steering Committee Meeting

January 14, 2021 1-3 pm, virtual

Meeting Minutes (taken by Bailey Brennan)

Energy & Environment Committee members present: Robert Short, DG Reardon, Tony Lehner, Terry Wolf, Colleen Faber, Christi Haswell

Agriculture, Water, State & Public Lands Committee members present: John Espy, Dave Neves, Joel Bousman, Rick Grant, Patrick Wade, Lloyd Thiel, Bob Maul

The meeting began at 1:02.

The committee reviewed the minutes from the August 6, 2020 meeting minutes. Commissioner Maul moved to approve the minutes. Commissioner Bousman seconded. The motion passed unanimously. The committee also considered the minutes from the September 2019 meeting. Commissioner Maul moved to approve the minutes.

Commissioner Bousman seconded. The motion passed unanimously.

Shelby Shields, with Senator Barrasso’s office, provided an update on the Wyoming Public Lands Initiative. She anticipates the WPLI Bill will be introduced during the first quarter of 2021. Shelby also provided updates on additional legislation that passed during the last Congressional session and the Endangered Species Act modernization bill.

Commissioner Bousman provided an update as the NACo Public Lands Steering Committee. He let the group know that Brian Ferebee will be the new NACo liaison. He also presented the U.S. Forest Service’s Climate 21 Project Memo, information from NACo on the Biden transition and the Forest Service Guidebook. Commissioner Bousman discussed a Secretarial Order issued in relation to the Great American Outdoors Act and Land and Water Conservation Fund.

He recommended that WCCA develop a resolution directing NACo to support keeping the state/county approval requirement as policy under the Biden Administration.

Bailey gave an update on FNRPA funds remaining for county natural resource plans. Committee members provided updates regarding the county’s progress with their plans.

Karen Budd-Falen gave a presentation on the National Environmental Policy Act and Endangered Species Act regulation changes, including a review of regulatory changes relating to local government involvement, critical habitat designations and the role of state and local government in defining “habitat” for a threatened or endangered

species.

Chairman Espy and Chairman Reardon gave a presentation on a proposal to invite Congressional staffers to visit Wyoming during the August recess. Commissioner Reardon shared the initiative the Campbell and Converse and municipalities have hosted over the years. Bailey provided background on research she has done on Utah’s program.

The group discussed potential funding, which could include counties, FNRPA and maybe funds from the Legislature.

The committee discussed perhaps beginning with a tour in the Big Horn Basin in 2022.

Jerimiah provided an update on the 2021 Legislative Session.

Commissioner Faber provided an update on the Converse County Environmental Impact Statement and project.

The meeting adjourned at 3:03 pm.