mr. speaker , house resolution 470 is a rule providing for consideration of h.r. 3824 , the threatened and endangered species recovery act of 2005 . 
the rule provides for 90 minutes of debate equally divided and controlled by the chairman and ranking minority member of the committee on resources and waives all points of order against consideration of the bill . 
house resolution 470 provides that , in lieu of the amendment recommended by the committee on resources now printed in the bill , the amendment in the nature of a substitute consisting of the text of the committee on resources print dated september 26 shall be considered as an original bill for the purpose of amendment and shall be considered as read . 
the rule waives all points of order against the committee amendment in the nature of a substitute . 
house resolution 470 makes in order only those amendments printed in the committee on rules report accompanying the resolution . 
the rule provides that amendments printed in the report may be offered only in the order printed in the report , may be offered only by a member designated in the report , shall be considered as read , shall be debatable for the time specified in the report equally divided and controlled by the proponent and opponent , shall not be subject to amendment , and shall not be subject to a demand for a division of the question in the house or in the committee of the whole . 
lastly , the resolution waives all points of order against amendments printed in the report and provides one motion to recommit , with or without instruction . 
mr. speaker , the threatened and endangered species recovery act is one of the most important bills we will consider on species recovery and property rights this year . 
i commend the gentleman from california ( chairman pombo ) and other members of the committee on resources and their staffs who have worked hard to bring this legislation to this point . 
the result of their efforts is a solid bipartisan bill that updates key parts of the endangered species act and provides enhanced protection for property owners . 
for people of the rural west where i live , there are few more important matters than modernization of the esa . 
unfortunately , some of the most well-known examples of the esa problems have occurred in my region of the country , the pacific northwest . 
for example , mr. speaker , the northwest timber industry was decimated by the listing of the spotted owl 15 years ago , only to discover that today , the spotted owls have actually been endangered and displaced by other owls . 
imagine if we had emphasized recovery then . 
how many family-wage jobs would have been saved and how many more spotted owls would we have today ? 
four years ago , water to family farms in the klamath basin in oregon was cut off in the name of the sucker fish , when everyone knew there were other measures that would truly help species recover without bankrupting businesses and families . 
every summer , in excess of $ 3 million is being spent per listed salmon . 
mr. speaker , let me repeat that . 
every summer in excess of $ 3 million per salmon is spent to spill water over dams , even though science and common sense tells us that there are better ways of species recovery . 
this is all the result of the endangered species act becoming too driven by litigation and conflict . 
simply put , this act is broken , and it is in need of updating . 
if we put off modernizing the esa , it is not just the people of my region that will suffer . 
it is also the animals and plants that the esa is supposed to protect that are the victims . 
esa 's record of recovery of listed species is abysmal . 
less than 1 percent of the species listed under the act have actually been recovered . 
according to the fish and wildlife service , only 6 percent of the species are categorized as recovering . 
each year , federal agencies are spending more on paperwork , process , court cases , and lawyers and less on real on-the-ground recovery efforts . 
we , frankly , must reverse this trend . 
the threatened and endangered species recovery act puts the priority where it should be , on recovery . 
this bill will require agencies to complete recovery plans within 2 years of listing . 
these plans will require the identification of lands important for species recovery , in lieu of the cumbersome and litigation-driven critical habitat process . 
in addition , the bill authorizes collaborative recovery teams made up of a diverse group of stakeholders , including people with conservation expertise as well as those whose livelihoods are affected by environmental policies . 
again , there is a fundamental shift here from confrontation and litigation to cooperation and recovery . 
it is long overdue . 
this legislation also offers important new tools for encouraging voluntary participation in species recovery efforts by private property owners . 
the esa is currently written with its emphasis on punitive measures and regulation serves as a disincentive for any private property owner to provide habitat for a listed species . 
this legislation provides `` no surprises '' protections for land holders entering into habitat conservation plans with the government . 
in addition , this bill offers financial aid to those whose property has been restricted for conservation purposes . 
after all , species recovery is a national goal that benefits all americans , and the cost of that effort should not fall solely on the shoulders of land holders . 
another important improvement in the esa that this bill would provide is strengthening the science and data used in decision-making . 
this legislation puts the emphasis on objectively quantifiable and peer-reviewed science . 
stronger science and esa information will result in our limited federal resources going to where they will do the most good , while reducing instances of drastic federal actions being taken on poor or limited data . 
these are the things that we should all be able to agree upon . 
h.r. 3824 is a solid bipartisan bill that will do much to bring this important law up to date . 
i again commend my colleagues for their hard work on this legislation , and i urge my colleagues to support both the rule , house resolution 470 , and the underlying bill . 
mr. speaker , i reserve the balance of my time . 
