Wednesday, March 11th got off to an early start for Wyoming’s only U.S. House Representative, Harriet Hageman. She met with Crook County constituents at the courthouse in Sundance at 7:30 am, an unusual time for a town hall, to be sure, but all in a day’s work for the woman who makes it her mission to meet with people in every Wyoming county every year.
Rep. Hageman spoke about some of the things happening in Congress, including her bill to foster greater economic development in tribal communities which passed the House last week by unanimous consent. As the chairman of the subcommittee on Indian and Insular Affairs during her first two years in Congress, Rep. Hageman learned about different impediments to the economic growth of tribes, including the Long-Term Leasing Act of 1955.
This act currently limits the leasing of tribal trust lands to 25-year terms, with one 25-year renewal option. The only way to extend the lease term is to petition Congress. One petition has been before Congress for 24 years and another for 27 years. Her bill (HR5910) would allow the tribes to enter into land leases for up to 99 years.
“By creating optionality for tribes to extend land leasing up to 99 years, we will open greater economic potential and streamline development opportunities. As a result, tribes will have new capabilities to prosper and become more empowered to chart their own course.”
Rep. Hageman said that she voted again last Thursday to end the shutdown of the Department of Homeland Security. The democrats are refusing to cooperate in funding the department over their unhappiness with Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE). It is funded for the next four years through the Big Beautiful Bill Act (HR1), along with Customs and Border Protection (CBP). What isn’t being funded is TSA, FEMA, and the Coast Guard, which Rep. Hageman described as being “incredibly significant right now with what is going on in the middle east.”
The next topic was the continuing repercussions of the Biden Administration’s open border policy, specifically illegal-immigrant truck drivers who don’t speak or read English. This is a particular problem here in Wyoming, where we already have one of the most dangerous roadways, I-80.
According to Rep. Hageman, 13,000 vehicles travel across I-80 every day, with about half of those being trucks. We have the highest truck fatality rate in the United States. This problem is intensified by non-English-speaking illegal aliens.
Right now, there is a regulatory requirement for English language proficiency for truck drivers, and a bill (HR3608 – Conner’s Law) has been introduced to make it a statutory requirement. Another bill (HR7539 – The SAFE Act), introduced by Rep. Hageman, will give the Department of Transportation substantially more tools to deal with “chameleon” trucking companies.
“Chameleon” trucking companies are companies that are often owned by foreign nationals who, once their traffic infractions pile up, change DOT numbers on their trucks. Drivers try to avoid interstates and ports of entry by staying on the 2-lane roads, a practice that often leads to more accidents, injuries and deaths. Rep. Hageman commended the Laramie County sheriff for his work in trying to get these truckers off the roads.
In the last couple of weeks, Rep. Hageman introduced legislation to repeal the Clinton Roadless Rule, which the Clinton Administration issued in January 2001. It was designed to deny access, management and use to 58.5 million acres of National Forest Service (NFS) land.
When the NFS lands were created in 1897, they were put under the jurisdiction of the USDA (Department of Agriculture) because they were looked at as commodities. They were not meant to be managed as national parks but to supply a continuous supply of timber and water. Over the years and through various mechanisms, including the Roadless Rule, well over 50% of our national forests are now managed as national parks.
Nine of the 10 most catastrophic forest fires in national forests have taken place since the implementation of the Roadless Rule. There have also been major insect infestations since January 2001.
The administration, through EO14192, and the USDA and the Forest Service, through the USDA Initiative, are seeking to repeal the Roadless Rule by regulation, since Congress never voted on it. It was done by an administrative agency. But Rep. Hageman wants to do it statutorily as well.
She briefly touched on the Farm Bill: various provisions of the bill were passed in the reconciliation package in July, but other programs still need to be passed. It came out of committee last week, two and a half years overdue. Approximately 80% of the Farm Bill is various welfare programs, including SNAP. She is hoping that the bill will come to the floor before too long.
Rep. Hageman talked about working with state agencies and communities, as well as the state itself, to do what’s called directed funding. Directed funding is an opportunity for representatives to work with the various appropriations committees to identify funding that we need for our communities. She was able to get about $14 million for Wyoming projects in her first year in office, including the Bitter Creek project in Rock Springs, and the Teton County airport.
There was no directed funding during her second year. Because this year Congress was able to pass 11 funding bills, we are no longer operating on a continuing resolution (CR), and she was able to get about $25 million dollars for various directed funding projects. Those projects include the Natrona County International Airport air traffic control tower, procuring police vehicles for Carbon County and the city of Casper, the North Platte tunnel project, and the Fort Laramie canal, among others.
Rep. Hageman did say that if city leaders know of projects in need of funding, they will start submitting those requests in the next six weeks. She wants to make sure people understand the opportunities available through directed funding.
In regard to the war with Iran, Rep. Hageman talked about remembering the Iranian Revolution in 1979, when life abruptly changed for the people of Iran, especially the women. She was a junior in high school at that time, thinking about going to college and already wanting to be an attorney. She remembers thinking about how drastically the lives of Iranian women changed, almost instantly. This led to her continued interest in the region.
Rep. Hageman has believed for decades that until Iran is dealt with, we will never see stability and security in the Middle East, and we have seen that play out. They are the biggest state sponsor of terrorism and carried out the bombing of our barracks in Beirut, among other things. She believes that this (the war) is something that needed to happen.
She acknowledged that there will be disruption and uncertainty until it is resolved. She doesn’t know why gas prices spiked as quickly as they did, since we don’t have a shortage of oil in this country. We have reserves, as well as the ability to produce and refine oil and gas. Venezuela is also producing more, so she’s not quite sure of the reason for the spike where, over time, it would have made sense.
Rep. Hageman advised patience and said she supports President Trump’s decision. She will continue to monitor the situation as closely as she can and get out information as needed. She does hope that in the coming months, perhaps a year, there will be an entirely different situation in the Middle East, and that maybe for the first time in almost 50 years we can have certainty and stability there.
Last week, Rep. Hageman voted against the War Powers resolution, which was brought to the floor to try to block President Trump from continuing to further the Iranian operation. While there are questions regarding the constitutionality of the War Powers Act, the act requires that the President notify and inform the Gang of Eight before any action starts, which he did. He has 60 days to continue the operation before coming to Congress. We are well within those 60 days. She doesn’t believe tying the President’s hands is the appropriate action, and she hopes this isn’t the beginning of a war, but the end of one.
At the half-hour mark, Rep. Hageman opened the town hall for questions. The first question was about filling truck driver positions as illegals are being taken off the road. Rep. Hageman responded that there is a discussion happening about the current restriction on 18–21-year-old CDL (Commercial Driver License) holders: they can get the CDL but are limited to only driving in the issuing state. She has a bill to allow young drivers to cross state lines and travel within 150 truck miles. This will allow them to get home at night, but will also allow them to deliver to South Dakota, Montana, and other border states. It will expand job opportunities for border communities like those in Crook County, Evanston, and Sheridan.
Increasing opportunities for American truck drivers should also address the issue of artificially depressed wages that came with the influx of illegal drivers, as well as improved safety on the roads.
The next question addressed the question of citizenship relating to the CDL issue. Rep. Hageman said Congress is working on legislation requiring U.S. citizenship for anyone seeking a CDL. She brought up a CDL operation in New York that only trains Chinese nationals.
During the Cold War, we did not bring Russian nationals into the country and train them to work, so why are we doing this with the largest geopolitical foe we have? The assumption is that the Chinese are mapping our highways.
Illegal drivers are being paid very low wages, which prices American workers out of the market. The illegals drive with four men in the truck, so they don’t have to stop, in violation of safety rules for truckers.
The town hall ended right on schedule because Rep. Hageman was expected in Hulett at 9:15, with another town hall in Upton at noon. She will be doing several town halls this week before heading back to D.C. for next week’s session.