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House okays changes to Endangered Species Act

WASHINGTON - The House on Thursday passed legislation that could greatly expand private property rights under the environmental law that is credited with helping keep the bald eagle from extinction but also has provoked bitter fighting.

By a vote of 229-193, lawmakers approved a top-to-bottom overhaul of the landmark 1973 Endangered Species Act, one of the nation's most powerful environmental measures. The law has led to battles over species such as the spotted owl, the snail darter and the red-legged frog.

The rewrite faces an uncertain future in the Senate, where Lincoln Chafee, R-R.I., head of the panel that oversees the law, has expressed concerns about the bill.

The bill would require the government to compensate property owners if steps needed to protect species thwarted development plans. It also would make political appointees responsible for some scientific determinations and would stop the government from designating "critical habitat," which limits development.

The changes were pushed through by the chairman of the House Resources Committee, GOP Rep. Richard Pombo. The California rancher said the current rules unduly burden landowners while doing too little to save plants and animals.

"You've got to pay when you take away somebody's private property. That is what we have to do," Pombo told House colleagues. "The only way this is going to work is if we bring in property owners to be part of the solution and to be part of recovering those species."

The Fish and Wildlife Service says there are 1,268 threatened and endangered plants and animals in the United States. About a dozen have gone off the list over the years after they were determined to have recovered; nine have become extinct.

[Last modified September 30, 2005, 01:37:04]