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 .  