Endangered Species Transparency and Reasonableness Act
Latest action. Received in the Senate and Read twice and referred to the Committee on Environment and Public Works.
Endangered Species Transparency and Reasonableness Act - (Sec. 2) Amends the Endangered Species Act of 1973 to require the Secretary of the Interior or the Secretary of Commerce, as appropriate, to make publicly available on the Internet the best scientific and commercial data available that are the basis for the determination of whether a species is an endangered species or a threatened species, including each proposed regulation for the listing of a species.
Prohibits the appropriate Secretary from making the information publicly available when: (1) the public disclosure of the information is prohibited by a state law requiring the protection of personal information, and (2) the state requests that the information be withheld.
Requires the appropriate Secretary to execute an agreement with the Department of Defense (DOD) that prevents the disclosure of classified information pertaining to DOD personnel, facilities, lands, or waters.
(Sec. 3) Requires the appropriate Secretary to: (1) provide to affected states all data that is used as the basis of a determination on whether a species is an endangered species or a threatened species before making a determination; and (2) use data submitted by a state, tribal, or county government in making such a determination.
(Sec. 4) Requires the Secretary of the Interior to submit an annual report detailing federal expenditures for civil actions brought under the ESA containing claims that are based on the actions of the Department of the Interior, the Forest Service, the National Marine Fisheries Service, the Bonneville Power Administration, the Western Area Power Administration, the Southwestern Power Administration, or the Southeastern Power Administration. Requires Interior to make the information available online in a searchable database.
Requires the report to include the total funds expended to respond to ESA lawsuits, the number of full-time federal employees dedicated to ESA lawsuits, attorneys' fees awarded in the course of ESA lawsuits and settlements, and any federal funding used in bringing a claim under the ESA.
The summary continues for 1 more paragraph. Read it in full on Congress.gov
Written by analysts at the Congressional Research Service and published on Congress.gov, not by Civibrief. Summarized at the "Passed House amended" stage on July 29, 2014. It describes the bill, it is not the legal text.
Where is it in the process, and what happens next?
4 steps remain before this bill could become law.
The record's latest action, on July 30, 2014: Received in the Senate and Read twice and referred to the Committee on Environment and Public Works.
- Clearing the committees it was referred to, and being scheduled for a floor vote
- Passage by the House
- Passage by the Senate
- The President's signature. If the President vetoes it, two-thirds of both chambers must vote to override.
How likely is it to become law?
Civibrief does not forecast outcomes and this page has no opinion about this one. What the record supports is a base rate, which is a fact about the whole pile, not a prediction about this measure.
In the 113th Congress (2013-14), 296 of the 9,091 bills and joint resolutions introduced became law, about 3.3 percent. That count covers every measure at every stage, including the many that never left committee.
This one is not there yet: 4 steps are still outstanding, listed above.
Has anyone actually voted on it?
No. No roll call in this Congress cites this measure. That is the ordinary outcome: most measures never reach a recorded floor vote, and a committee ends most of them simply by not acting.
A vote is not the only thing that happens to a measure. Hearings, markups, and referrals are all recorded actions, and none of them is a vote of the full chamber.
Who is behind it?
DOC HASTINGS (R-WA) introduced it on March 27, 2014, and 28 members have since signed on as cosponsors.
They are 28 Republicans.
Cosponsoring is a formal signature on the text. It is not a commitment to vote for the measure, it does not bind anyone's party, and a long list of cosponsors is a measure of attention rather than of prospects.
How long has it been in play?
It was introduced on March 27, 2014, 4550 days ago. The most recent recorded action was 4425 days ago, on July 30, 2014.
Measures do not carry over. Anything the 113th Congress has not finished by January 3, 2015 dies when the term ends, and has to be introduced again from the start in the next Congress.
Every answer above is assembled from this measure's own record on Congress.gov and from published counts of what Congress has passed before. Civibrief does not predict outcomes and takes no position on any measure.
Vote history
- HouseIn committee, no floor vote yet
- SenateAwaits House passage
- PresidentAwaits both chambers