mr. chairman , i rise in support of the legislation offered by the gentleman from california ( mr. pombo ) and would like to give you an example of why this bill is needed . 
seven years ago , the fish and wildlife service contacted my office to state they were going to list the preble 's meadow jumping mouse as a threatened species . 
it was n't even a surprise . 
state and local authorities had known the mouse might be listed for years . 
and , at first , it did n't even seem like it would be that much of a problem . 
the mouse was a nocturnal animal that dwelt within a hundred feet of either side of streambeds . 
the front range of the rockies could also claim at least three government reservations -- the u.s. air force academy , rocky flats and warren afb in wyoming -- which offered the mouse almost untrammeled range in which to roam . 
but over the course of the next seven years , the lines moved . 
now the mouse 's range extended beyond the stream beds , sometimes by miles . 
habitat had to be protected , not only where the mouse had been found but also where it might be found if indeed a three-inch-long rodent could travel several miles to get there . 
over the past seven years , the state of colorado spent approximately $ 8 million to preserve the mouse . 
counties up and down the front range spent even more money to acquire open space and to develop habitat conservation plans , few of which , to my knowledge , were ever completed or even begun . 
this is not even counting the impact to private property owners , not knowing whether they could use or develop their property . 
and after all this , all the money spent , all the needless planning and contention , it turned out the fish and wildlife service was wrong . 
the preble 's meadow jumping mouse was not threatened . 
it was n't even a separate subspecies . 
a scientist at the denver museum of nature and science stated this and the scientist whose 1954 work led to the original listing , agreed with the new data . 
and so the delisting process started . 
hopefully , we 'll see it completed sometime in the near future though there is some evidence that fish and wildlife is taking its time in doing so . 
but meanwhile , the states of wyoming and colorado and its front range counties and cities and residents are out at least $ 8 million and probably more for no good reason . 
after all this time and expense , nothing has been produced . 
that is why this bill is needed . 
if we are going to undertake these massive land-planning schemes , then the feds ought to be sure of their facts . 
if they are going to mandate conservation planning and land set-asides , then maybe they ought to send the money along to do that . 
the states , counties and cities have other things they could spend their tax dollars on . 
the esa , as it currently stands , does nothing but keep attorneys and interest groups busy and needs reformed . 
so i say , let 's try this approach . 
i urge your support of h.r. 3824 . 
