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March 22, 2001
The Honorable Ann M. Veneman
Secretary of Agriculture
United States Department of Agriculture
14th and Independence Avenue, S.W.
Washington, D.C. 20250
Dear Secretary Veneman:
In a February 4, 2001 letter to OMB Director Mitchell E. Daniels,
Jr., I expressed my concern that the Administration’s
government-wide regulatory review plan should not be used to turn back
the clock on important health, safety, and environmental protections
put in place after years of research, public comment, and agency
consideration. My concern has grown considerably as the Administration
has taken steps to reverse or weaken a number of regulations aimed at
guarding the environment and the health and safety of the American
people.
As part of this regulatory review plan, you have already delayed
the effective date of a rule safeguarding roadless areas of the
national forests against environmental degradation, and it has been
reported that your department intends to propose a further suspension
of the regulation while you study whether to weaken or eliminate the
new environmental safeguards. As you know, this regulation was the
result of two years of agency review and widespread involvement of the
public, including hundreds of public meetings and solicitation and
consideration by the agency of thousands of public comments.
As Ranking Member of the Committee on Governmental Affairs, which
is responsible for overseeing the proper conduct of regulatory
decision making, I am very troubled by this decision to undo so many
years of work and by the quick and closed-door decision-making process
that led to it. So that Congress can appropriately review this process
and the decisions resulting from it, I would appreciate your sending
me the following materials regarding the roadless-areas regulation:
- All documents reflecting or relating to any communications or
correspondence between anyone in your department and any person or
entity outside your department (including both any individual
working for another agency or branch of government and any
individual not associated with the government) on or after January
20, 2001, or between anyone in your department and anyone on or
representing the Bush Administration transition team after
November 7, 2000, regarding the subject matter of the regulation
or the possibility of delaying, suspending, rescinding, or
otherwise modifying it.
- A description of any meetings between anyone in your department
and anyone outside of your department on or after January 20,
2001, or between anyone in your department and anyone on or
representing the Bush Administration transition team after
November 7, 2000, regarding the subject matter of the regulation
or the possibility of delaying, suspending, rescinding, or
otherwise modifying it.
- Copies of all documents prepared by or reviewed by anyone within
your department on or after January 20, 2001, in connection with
your department’s review of the regulation or the possibility of
delaying, suspending, rescinding, or otherwise modifying it.
- A description of the process by which you and others in your
department have reviewed and intend to review the regulation,
including a description of the involvement of other agencies or
departments, OMB, and the White House.
Please provide me with these documents by April 6, 2001. My staff
will contact your office to discuss the schedule for your providing
these materials.
Thank you very much for your assistance.
Sincerely,
Joseph I . Lieberman
Ranking Member
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