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From the Daily Caller: Republican Texas Sen. Ted Cruz introduced a new bill to nix the Biden administration’s protections for a lizard species that critics argue will restrict oil and gas development.
Cruz unveiled his Congressional Review Act (CRA) bill to walk back the Biden administration’s decision to protect the Dunes Sagebrush Lizard, a species that is indigenous to parts of New Mexico and western Texas, under the Endangered Species Act (ESA). Cruz and other critics of the designation have asserted that the lizard’s protections are more likely intended to complicate oil and gas development in the Permian Basin, an oil- and gas-rich region of western Texas and New Mexico.
The lizard is less than three inches long, excluding the length of its tail, according to the Fish and Wildlife Service (FWS).
In a press release, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife wrote, “The dunes sagebrush lizard is a rare species found only in the shinnery oak and sand dune ecosystems in extreme southeast New Mexico and west Texas. The lizard occurs in about 4% of lands that make up the 86,000 square mile Permian Basin. Primary threats to the lizard include loss of habitat associated with oil and gas development, sand mining, and changing climate.”
760. U.S. Fish and Wildlife Services final rule “Endangered and Threatened Wildlife and Plants; Endangered Species Status for the Dunes Sagebrush Lizard”. The lizard occurs in about 4% of lands that make up the 86,000 square mile Permian Basinhttps://t.co/9faTYeq4os.
— CommissionShift (@CommissionShift) June 25, 2024
Rep. August Pfluger (R-Tex.) said in a statement, ““Listing the dunes sagebrush lizard as an endangered species is another effort by the Biden Administration to shut down drilling in the Permian Basin. Our Congressional Review Act is President Biden’s attempt to use a lizard as a weapon against the oil & gas industry. We will not allow the President to take control of private property and kill energy jobs in the Permian Basin.”
Cruz declared in a statement, “The Biden administration has used the federal government to suppress American energy production at the exact time when the country and indeed the world needs access to affordable American energy. This disastrous rule threatens American jobs and undermines the production of energy in the Permian Basin. I call on the Senate to expeditiously take up and pass my legislation to reverse it.”
Ted Cruz CRA Bill by Nick Pope
WIN 🎉: The dunes sagebrush lizard has finally been granted endangered species act protections!
The 2.5-inch-long dunes sagebrush lizards are native to a small portion of the Permian Basin and have lost more than 95% of their habitat.
More info ➡️ https://t.co/8Ziie6bd4o pic.twitter.com/52VgMDdR0A
— Center for Biological Diversity (@CenterForBioDiv) May 20, 2024
The dunes sagebrush lizard lives in the same West Texas land that supports the state’s biggest oil and gas fields.
Industry leaders say its new designation as an endangered species will hurt drilling and production. https://t.co/X9GUDNqOby
— Texas Tribune (@TexasTribune) May 22, 2024
