Congressionally Directed Spending, Earmarks, Member Requests

Any currently elected member of Congress can initiate "Programmatic Request' through the annual budget Member Request system.  This is the Interior Request list for 2025.

Examples of Congressional Representatives making use of Member Requests

Senate 2023-4 List                              House 2023-4 List 

Dina Titus 

Steve Cohen 

• Address Animals already removed lifetime cost

• Adoption Incentive Curtailment

• Budget Oversight Program Wide

• Comply with Land Policy Act

• Comply with NEPA regulations

• Current AML determinations

• Curtail euthanasia for pre-existing conditions

• Eliminate exemption 6 from FOIA response

• End deceptive reporting to Congress

• Execute Environmental Assessments

• Forage for animals in holding sourced on public lands

• Formalize and enforce the CAWP process

• Grazing Rate equal to commercial

• Improve FOIA Response times

• Mare Sterilization 

• Mandate Native Species designation

• Establish primacy of equine access to forage and water

• Account for livestock environmental impact

• Report actual livestock numbers

• Require open records portal

• Return animals in holding to public lands

• Simplify Grazing Lease Retirement Process

• Wildfire Control Plan

UNDER CONSTRUCTION (16Mar24) 

Specifically for the Wild Horse and Burro Program advocates should direct their corresponding representatives to request:

The request should state that the BLM WHB budget request is deceptive through misinformation.  The request uses analysis of incomplete data in order to skew the proposed utilization for agendas which are not in line with the lawful mandate of the Wild Horse and Bureau program..

HIGHLIGHTS

• The ONLY CRITICAL COMPONENT which must be preserved intact if not increased are the funds for care and feeding of animals already removed from western lands 

• The "GATHERING" program component should be eliminated along with the "ADOPTIONS" program component.  These should receive zero funding.

Individual Programmatic Request Templates for withholding, adding or initiating new funds for the Department of Interior, Bureau of Land Management, Wild Horse and Burro Program specifically as follows:

1. Funding for animal removals, trapping and roundups should be zero for 2025

2. Funding for the 'Adoption Incentive Program" for 2025 should be zero.  Funding to administer animals previously consigned should be allocated appropriately in alignment with the number of animals actually consigned to lawful adopters

3. Accounting for all lawful adoptions and direct sales should be made freely available and open to the public through a simple portal

4. Funding should be provided (at minimum as requested) for care for animals already taken off public lands.  The programmatic stipulation should retain and preserve intact the request for funding allocation for care and feeding of animals already removed from western lands.  An increase should be considered.

5. The programmatic stipulation should require that America's Wild Horses be declared a 'Native Species' and managed by assigning primacy for access to forage and water on public lands designated as Herd Management Areas.  

6. The programmatic stipulation should require FOIA activities should upgraded so that the agency can properly respond to public requests for information in a timely manner.  Open records regarding the status and resolution of FOIA requests should be made accessible on a public portal.  

7. The programmatic stipulation should require funding for completion of environmental impact and NEPA study requirements to comply with The Federal Land Policy and Management Act and other defining statutes.

   1. A stipulation should require a report to Congress be  provided every six months from date of executive execution for the 2025 DOI/BLM/WHBP budget.  This report should identify those matters which are required by law and provide a status as to when the reports were last updated

   2. A stipulation should require a report to Congress on the re-evaluation of all AML determinations for all Herd Management Areas.

   3. A stipulation should require an open public portal which reveals the status and outcome of NEPA study reports as due to Congress.

8. A stipulation should specify that the forage needed for animals already removed from the range should be produced on lands managed by the BLM and that no allocated funds should be used to procure forage on the commercial market.  

   2. 1. This is to remove the burden the taxpayer is suffering due to the increased forage costs sustained with the BLM engaging in massive purchases of commercial forage.

9. A stipulation should include a requirement for the Secretary of the Interior to demonstrate that the calculation of AML which is a critical management benchmark, is accomplished with actual data obtained from current study and evaluations not more than three years post date.  The decision making process, the underlying data, and the implementation planning should be open to public access.

10. A stipulation should modify the Federal Grazing Program rate beginning in 2025 to establish a grazing fee commiserate with commercial grazing rates prevailing in similar private western lands.  Ref:  detailed grazing fees review

11. A stipulation should require the Secretary of the Interior to make it possible and less cumbersome to facilitate grazing permit retirements.

12. A stipulation should require grazing allocation should not be prioritized for commercial livestock but rather equitably apportioned among the native species and commercial interests ahead of any use by public lands ranching interests.

13.  A stipulation should require the Secretary of the Interior to gather and report actual livestock numbers on public lands in the Federal Grazing Program rather than relying on ‘self-reporting’ by the holders of the grazing permits.

14. A stipulation should require the establishment of studies and pilot programs to test the viability of returning animals already taken from public lands to wilderness areas to determine whether the control of wildfires is improved.

15. A stipulation should require the formalization and enforcement implementation of the CAWP process which is now a matter of unenforceable policy.

16. A stipulation should mandate that policy permitting euthanasian of animals with 'pre existing conditions' be terminated.

17. A stipulation be initiated to require as much data as possible regarding animal management be open and transparent  to the public.   

    1. Data to be made freely available through FOIA or simple written request Consignment information for any animal sold or assigned through prior  adoption.

    2. Name of consignee, Location, Phone, Freezemark, Chip Number, etc 

    3. FOIA Exemption 6 should be eliminated from reasons permitted to withhold information