Rep. Mann says lesser prairie-chicken listing burdens Kansas producers, urges regulatory relief

Summary

Representative Mann told the House Natural Resources Committee that the listing of the lesser prairie-chicken as threatened imposes onerous restrictions on Kansas farmers and ranchers and argued the bird's population fluctuates with rainfall; he urged committee action to overturn what he called "burdensome regulation."

Representative Mann, speaking for Kansas' 1st Congressional District, told the committee that the designation of the lesser prairie-chicken as threatened in parts of Kansas has created regulatory burdens for producers who he said had voluntarily conserved habitat.

Mann said Kansas producers "have voluntarily conserved more than 40,000 acres of habitat for the lesser prairie chicken" and described a rancher who, after spotting a bird, was required to move cattle from adjacent pastures the same day because U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service staff recorded the sighting. "Imagine having upended your livelihood for something like that in your own life," he said.

Mann argued that lesser prairie-chicken numbers fluctuate with rainfall and said historic droughts had affected both the bird and wheat harvests. He expressed support for committee efforts to "stand up for producers' rights to private property and self determination" and asked colleagues to consider overturning what he termed the burdensome regulation.

His oral remarks were made as member testimony; no committee vote or formal directive resulted from his comments.