Bill Text: MI SCR0047 | 2009-2010 | 95th Legislature | Engrossed
Bill Title: A concurrent resolution to call the Obama Administration to task for its failed leadership on preventing Asian carp from invading the Great Lakes and call again for immediate actions to prevent further carp movement into the Great Lakes.
Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Republican 19-0)
Status: (Passed) 2010-06-29 - Referred To Committee On Great Lakes And Environment [SCR0047 Detail]
Download: Michigan-2009-SCR0047-Engrossed.html
SCR47, As Adopted by Senate, June 24, 2010
Senators Birkholz, McManus, Allen, Van Woerkom and Brown offered the following concurrent resolution:
Senate Concurrent Resolution No. 47.
A concurrent resolution to call the Obama Administration to task for its failed leadership on preventing Asian carp from invading the Great Lakes and call again for immediate actions to prevent further carp movement into the Great Lakes.
Whereas, A live Asian carp has been found beyond the electrical barrier on the Chicago Sanitary and Ship Canal and beyond any existing locks separating Lake Michigan from carp-infested waters. The live carp, mature enough to reproduce, vindicates earlier DNA detections of Asian carp in these waters and confirms the fears of Michigan and other Great Lakes states and provinces; and
Whereas, Since the first detection of Asian carp beyond the electrical barrier over seven months ago, the Obama Administration has continually sided with special interests in delaying decisive action at the expense of the entire Great Lakes region; and
Whereas, The Obama Administration successfully fought Michigan's lawsuit to immediately shut down canals and waterways connecting the Great Lakes basin to the Mississippi River basin and move forward with permanent separation of the two basins; and
Whereas, The Obama Administration ignored repeated resolutions from the Michigan Legislature and other parties warning of the imminent threat and calling for immediate action to protect the Great Lakes from Asian carp. Instead, the administration has wasted valuable time, effort, and money attempting to further corroborate earlier evidence of Asian carp in the Great Lakes; and
Whereas, Early indications are that the Obama Administration will continue to question, minimize, and fight any evidence that would support immediate closure of the locks in the Chicago area and permanent separation of the Great Lakes from the Mississippi River basin. The longer that the administration delays on these actions, the more likely it is that Asian carp will become established in the Great Lakes; and
Whereas, The Obama Administration already has one ecological disaster on its watch. The administration should not allow another disaster with longer-term consequences and within its power to prevent from coming to fruition; now, therefore, be it
Resolved by the Senate (the House of Representative concurring), That we call the Obama Administration to task for its failed leadership on preventing Asian carp from invading the Great Lakes and call again for immediate actions to prevent further carp movement into the Great Lakes; and be it further
Resolved, That we encourage and support the Michigan Attorney General's efforts to pursue further legal action demanding immediate closure of the canals and waterways connecting the Great Lakes basin to carp-infested waters; and be it further
Resolved, That copies of this resolution be transmitted to the President of the United States, the President of the United States Senate, the Speaker of the United States House of Representatives, the members of the Michigan congressional delegation, and the Michigan Attorney General.
