PRESS RELEASE

DEFENDERS OF WILDLIFE ACTION FUND SCORES AMENDMENT TO H.R. 418

Dear Representative:

The Defenders of Wildlife Action Fund is an independent organization committed to giving conservation issues a political voice on Capitol Hill and around the nation. In January 2005, the Action Fund published its second annual Conservation Report Card, which highlighted the voting records of Members of Congress on legislation vital to protecting our nation's wildlife and wild landscapes for future generations. The Action Fund considers portions of H.R. 418, The Real ID Act, to be extremely anti-conservation, and will strongly consider including the vote on this measure in its next Conservation Report Card. The Action Fund strongly urges you to vote "NO" on this unnecessary and excessively damaging legislation.

The Action Fund is extremely concerned about the sweeping exemptions from the landmark laws that protect our air, water, land, and wildlife that would be given to the U.S. Department of Homeland Security if H.R. 418, The Real ID Act of 2005 were to become law. The bill includes unprecedented language allowing the Secretary of Homeland Security to exempt the agency from all federal, state and local environmental laws when constructing walls, fences, roads and other barriers along U.S. borders.

It is also critical to note that this provision is not limited to a single fencing project along the San Diego border, but would apply to all areas along and "in the vicinity" of our international boundaries with both Mexico and Canada. Under this sweeping waiver, DHS would be free to undertake large construction projects anywhere along our borders without oversight, accountability, or legal constraints -- from the densely populated border communities in California, Texas and Washington, to the remote wilderness of Cabeza Prieta National Wildlife Refuge in Arizona, to the pristine islands and waters of the Boundary Waters Canoe Area in northern Minnesota. Never before has any federal agency been provided with such a breadth of unjustified exemptions from law.

We are a nation founded on the rule of law. To place any federal official above literally any law of their choosing -- whether environmental, labor or civil rights contracting -- is a step that should not be taken lightly. Yet, DHS has not demonstrated a need to waive any or all laws. In fact, there has not been a single Congressional hearing that has illustrated a need for these broad exemptions.

Furthermore, the removal of all avenues of judicial review is a direct affront to the most basic Constitutional principles of checks and balances and separation of powers in our constitution. We believe that it is possible to ensure border security while shielding the public and the environment from harm and have not seen evidence otherwise.

Again, the Defenders of Wildlife Action Fund strongly urges you to reject this legislation that would allow the DHS to waive environmental laws and other important health and safety statutes. For more information, please contact Robert Dewey in our office at (202) 682-9400.

Sincerely,
Rodger Schlickeisen, President

Affiliated with Defenders of Wildlife, the Defenders Action Fund is 501(c)(4) organization created to provide the wildlife conservation community with a stronger voice in the political process. For more information, see www.defendersactionfund.org.