House Joint Resolution No. 25

Introduced By _______________________________________________________________________________



A Joint Resolution of the Senate and the House of Representatives of the state of Montana urging Congress to reaffirm its power over international agreements that concern the use and management of land and resources belonging to the United States, the individual states, and the people.



WHEREAS, the federal government has signed various treaties and agreements with the United Nations; and

WHEREAS, the federal government has signed various agreements with foreign countries and other international organizations; and

WHEREAS, many of these treaties and agreements jeopardize the sovereign right of the people of the United States to regulate domestic decisions regarding the use of public lands, environmental protection, and natural resources; and

WHEREAS, federal agencies have readily adopted implementation of the harmful policies, including world heritage areas, biosphere reserves, and the American heritage areas program; and

WHEREAS, the federal and international proposals invite the destruction of private property rights; and

WHEREAS, the western states depend on the reasonable multiple use of public and private land to sustain their economies and the livelihood of their citizens; and

WHEREAS, prohibiting specific uses on nonfederal lands could cause significant negative impact on the value of nonfederal property and on local economies; and

WHEREAS, the power to plan or zone private land is a power reserved to the sovereign states and to the people of the states; and

WHEREAS, the enormity of some of the proposed plans, such as the Rocky Mountain Heritage Corridor and the Mississippi River Valley Heritage Corridor, demonstrates an inexcusable federal arrogance; and

WHEREAS, actions already taken by the President of the United States diminish the authority of Congress and of the states to make rules and regulations respecting the use of public and private lands.



NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED BY THE SENATE AND THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES OF THE STATE OF MONTANA:

That this body request our Congressional Delegation to aggressively work to reaffirm the power of Congress under Article IV of the United States Constitution over international agreements that concern the use and management of land and resources belonging to the United States, the individual states, and the people.

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED, that we oppose all programs, such as world heritage areas, biosphere reserves, and the American heritage areas, that usurp the sovereign rights of the people of the United States and the State of Montana.

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED, that we request Congress to move to prevent the President, the Secretary of the Interior, or federal agencies from changing the use of any land owned by the United States without approval of the full Congress.

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