** Top Interior official violated federal ethics regulations
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Wednesday, December 11, 2019
Interior Department ([link removed])
Doug Domenech, the Interior Department's Assistant Secretary for Insular Affairs, violated federal ethics regulations ([link removed]) when he met with representatives from his former employer, the Texas Public Policy Foundation. Interior's Inspector General released a report ([link removed]) detailing how Domenech, who was at the time a special government employee as part of the Trump administration's "landing team," twice met with the organization. The TPPF had filed two lawsuits against the Interior Department over endangered species listings and discussed the suits with Domenech during the meeting. Shortly thereafter, Interior settled the lawsuit—an outcome TPPF celebrated
([link removed]) as a “major win for private property rights.”
“This is now a familiar pattern: time and again, Trump appointees at the Department of the Interior think the rules don’t apply to them, and they act accordingly,” said ([link removed]) Senator Tom Udall. At least five other political appointees ([link removed]) at Interior remain under investigation by the Inspector General, including Interior Solicitor Daniel Jorjani, who oversees the Interior ethics office.
Quick hits
** Tomorrow is the deadline for federal employees to tell BLM if they will relocate to the West, as part of HQ dismantling
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Colorado Public Radio ([link removed])
** Retired BLM leaders head to Capitol Hill to block HQ move
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E&E News ([link removed])
** Push to reintroduce wolves in Colorado gains momentum with delivery of 211,000 signatures for ballot initiative
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Colorado Sun ([link removed]) | Denver Post ([link removed])
** Interior Inspector General determines top official broke federal ethics rules
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New York Times ([link removed]) | E&E News ([link removed])
** Conservation groups slam lawmakers for slow progress on full funding for Land and Water Conservation Fund
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E&E News ([link removed])
** Officials to review grizzly bear reintroduction in Colorado as part of broad recovery effort
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Associated Press ([link removed])
** Oil and gas leases for auction could impact Yellowstone elk migration
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Jackson Hole News & Guide ([link removed])
** Senator Heinrich announces provision to designate White Sands National Monument as national park
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KRWG ([link removed])
Quote of the day
Interior Secretary Bernhardt has known about Domenech’s ethics violations for months, but Domenech is still on the job. Clearly there are no consequences for helping former employers get what they want, because that is the example Bernhardt sets across the entire agency.”
—Center for Western Priorities Executive Director Jennifer Rokala ([link removed])
Picture this
** @CanyonlandsNPS ([link removed])
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Desert plants and animals are adapted to extremes. From baking and freezing temperatures, to sudden downpours after months of drought. Potholes catch water and slowly accumulate a layer of soil, creating important but delicate ecosystems that can support an abundance of life.
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