Congress will once again consider a bill to help prevent extinction of many species of wildlife. There’s been bi-partisan support for the Recovering America’s Wildlife Act in past sessions. Now, a Republican and a Democrat have re-introduced the bill in the U-S Senate.
“Fully one-third of species in the country are at risk or some degree of elevated risk extinction. So, there’s a real urgency here to address this problem,” said Lacey McCormick, senior communications manager with the National Wildlife Federation, which supports the bill.
In Michigan, the species at risk includes wildlife such as common loons, monarch butterflies, and snowshoe hares.
Michigan’s share of the $1.4 billion each year would be about $26 million. These would be dedicated funds rather than requiring ongoing legislative action to keep funding the effort. And unlike many federal programs, most of the money would not be doled out by a federal agency.
“The Recovering America’s Wildlife Act will fund the states and tribes to do on the ground, collaborative conservation. It’s a common sense cost effective approach for addressing this problem,” McCormick said.
Michigan Democratic Representative Debbie Dingell has introduced the legislation in the House every session since she was elected. She told Michigan Radio said she would again this session.
