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1 (August 17, 2007)

handle is hein.crs/crsmthabdik0001 and id is 1 raw text is: Order Code RS22149 Updated August 17, 2007 SCRS Report for Congress Exemptions from Environmental Law for the Department of Defense: Background and Issues for Congress David M. Bearden Specialist in Environmental Policy Resources, Science, and Industry Division Summary Since FY2003, DOD has sought broader exemptions from environmental laws that it argues are needed to preserve training flexibility and ensure military readiness. There has been disagreement in Congress over the need for broader exemptions in the absence of data on the cumulative impact of environmental requirements on readiness. There also has been disagreement over the impacts that broader exemptions would have on environmental quality. Although certain exemptions DOD has requested have been enacted into law, Congress has opposed others. After considerable debate, the 107th Congress enacted a temporary exemption from the Migratory Bird Treaty Act, and the 108th Congress enacted exemptions from the Marine Mammal Protection Act and certain parts of the Endangered Species Act. As in each year since FY2003, DOD again has requested exemptions from the Clean Air Act, Solid Waste Disposal Act, and Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation, and Liability Act (CERCLA). These exemptions are included in the Administration's FY2008 defense authorization bill (S. 567), but Congress has not included them in the FY2008 defense authorization bills (H.R. 1585 and S. 1547), nor the FY2008 defense appropriations bills (H.R. 2642, H.R. 3222, and S. 1645), on which it has acted so far. Apart from these bills, stand- alone legislation (H.R. 3366) would seek to clarify the compliance of military activities with environmental laws. Introduction Over time, Congress has included exemptions in several environmental statutes to ensure that requirements of those statutes would not restrict military training needs to the extent that national security would be compromised. These exemptions provide authority for suspending compliance requirements for actions at federal facilities, including military installations, on a case-by-case basis. Most of these exemptions may be granted for activities that would be in the paramount interest of the United States, whereas others Congressional Research Service ' The Library of Congress Prepared for Members and Committees of Congress

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