H.R. No. 1955

	R E S O L U T I O N
	WHEREAS, The United States Fish and Wildlife Service has
	proposed granting endangered species status to the dunes sagebrush
	lizard, a measure that would have a significant negative impact on
	the Lone Star State; and
	WHEREAS, The business climate in Texas has been consistently
	ranked as the nation's best, and the oil and gas sector is crucial
	to its continued vitality; Texas is the nation's leading producer
	of oil and natural gas, and it holds 30 percent of the nation's
	natural gas reserves and almost a quarter of its oil reserves; the
	oil and gas industry contributes $30 billion annually to the Texas
	economy and employs more than 315,000 Texans at some of the highest
	salaries in the state; and
	WHEREAS, Despite its resilience, the Texas economy has not
	been immune to the global economic recession; there have been
	significant job losses over the past two years, and recently high
	gas prices have posed new challenges; the Fish and Wildlife Service
	failed to take these factors into account in its proposal to grant
	endangered species status to the dunes sagebrush lizard in
	southeastern New Mexico and adjacent oil-producing areas of West
	Texas; and
	WHEREAS, In addition, the service has failed to consider that
	approximately 75,000 acres identified as habitat for the lizard are
	owned and managed by The University of Texas for the benefit of
	higher education; university officials have estimated that the
	listing could stop the drilling of approximately 1,000 oil and gas
	wells and eliminate the production of seven million barrels of oil
	equivalent annually; and
	WHEREAS, The Texas Legislature and the Texas Parks and
	Wildlife Department have traditionally recognized the private
	landowner as the primary steward of our state's natural resources,
	but the Fish and Wildlife Service has not adequately consulted with
	the State of Texas, Texas landowners, or other stakeholders;
	moreover, the service has failed to fully consider issues unique to
	species protection and habitat conservation in Texas; and
	WHEREAS, Listing the dunes sagebrush lizard as an endangered
	species would inflict severe economic damage, harm property owners,
	and undermine higher education in the Lone Star State; now,
	therefore, be it
	RESOLVED, That the House of Representatives of the 82nd Texas
	Legislature hereby respectfully urge the United States Fish and
	Wildlife Service to withdraw its proposal to list the dunes
	sagebrush lizard under the Endangered Species Act of 1973; and, be
	it further
	RESOLVED, That the house of representatives direct the
	agencies of the State of Texas to cooperate with the efforts of the
	Texas Endangered Species Task Force to investigate the scientific
	basis of the proposed listing and the potential burdens on private
	property rights and economic development in the state; and, be it
	further
	RESOLVED, That the chief clerk of the Texas House of
	Representatives forward official copies of this resolution to the
	president of the United States, the acting director of the U.S. Fish
	and Wildlife Service, the president of the Senate and the speaker of
	the House of Representatives of the United States Congress, and all
	the members of the Texas delegation to Congress with the request
	that this resolution be entered in the Congressional Record as a
	memorial to the Congress of the United States of America.
	Chisum
	Craddick
	Lewis
	Gallego
	Perry
	Straus Gonzales of Williamson Morrison
	Aliseda Gonzalez Munoz, Jr.
	Allen Gooden Murphy
	Alonzo Guillen Naishtat
	Alvarado Gutierrez Nash
	Anchia Hamilton Oliveira
	Anderson of Dallas Hancock Orr
	Anderson of McLennan Hardcastle Otto
	Aycock Harless Parker
	Beck Harper-Brown Patrick
	Berman Hartnett Paxton
	Bohac Hernandez Luna Pena
	Bonnen Hilderbran Perry
	Branch Hochberg Phillips
	Brown Hopson Pickett
	Burkett Howard of Fort Bend Pitts
	Burnam Howard of Travis Price
	Button Huberty Quintanilla
	Cain Hughes Raymond
	Callegari Hunter Reynolds
	Carter Isaac Riddle
	Castro Jackson Ritter
	Chisum Johnson Rodriguez
	Christian Keffer Schwertner
	Coleman King of Parker Scott
	Cook King of Taylor Sheets
	Craddick King of Zavala Sheffield
	Creighton Kleinschmidt Shelton
	Crownover Kolkhorst Simpson
	Darby Kuempel Smith of Harris
	Davis of Dallas Landtroop Smith of Tarrant
	J. Davis of Harris Larson Smithee
	S. Davis of Harris Laubenberg Solomons
	Deshotel Lavender Strama
	Driver Legler Taylor of Collin
	Dukes Lewis Taylor of Galveston
	Dutton Lozano Thompson
	Eiland Lucio III Torres
	Eissler Lyne Truitt
	Elkins Madden Turner
	Farias Mallory Caraway Veasey
	Farrar Margo Villarreal
	Fletcher Marquez Vo
	Flynn Martinez Walle
	Frullo Martinez Fischer Weber
	Gallego McClendon White
	Garza Menendez Woolley
	Geren Miles Workman
	Giddings Miller of Comal Zedler
	Gonzales of Hidalgo Miller of Erath Zerwas
	______________________________
	Speaker of the House
	I certify that H.R. No. 1955 was adopted by the House on May 25,
	2011, by a non-record vote.
	______________________________
	Chief Clerk of the House