House Republicans held a hearing to attack the Endangered Species Act (ESA) and wrongfully blame the Act for delaying development and infrastructure projects. Republican witnesses resurrected claims that were debunked long ago, such as the myth that ESA consultation caused the catastrophic levee failure along California’s Feather River in 1997, and employ a similar ruse to falsely implicate the ESA for the recent Oroville Dam crisis. House Natural Resources Committee Ranking Member Raúl M. Grijalva (D-Ariz.) and Oversight and Investigations Subcommittee Ranking Member A. Donald McEachin (D-Va.) stuck to the facts and reminded Committee Republicans that since its passage 99 percent of species listed under the ESA have survived and 90 percent of listed species are recovering at a rate equal to or faster than that specified in their recovery plans. Despite the scientific fact that the Act works, Chairman Rob Bishop (R-Utah) was recently quoted by The Washington Post saying that the ESA “has never been used for the rehabilitation of species.” (Read More)