WASHINGTON – U.S. Rep. Lamar Smith (R-Texas), chairman of the U.S. House Science, Space, and Technology Committee, today released the following statement on the Bureau of Land Management’s (BLM) final methane rule.

Chairman Lamar Smith (R-Texas): “The announcement of the Bureau of Land Management’s methane rule is disappointing. This rule is yet another example of a long list of unnecessary and duplicative regulations finalized by the Obama administration. Despite growing public opposition, President Obama and environmental alarmists are actively willing to commit the United States to costly, new regulations that will have no meaningful impact on the environment, but will negatively impact economic growth.  Instead of allowing the technical merits to be carefully reviewed, the BLM has failed to address the concerns of stakeholders and has decided to hastily issue this rule. This past February, the Science Committee held a hearing to warn the public about the dangers of finalizing midnight regulations in the waning days of a presidential administration. Instead, the next administration should be allowed to decide the next appropriate steps for this rule.”