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Policy archive

Conservation

This Thanksgiving, Let’s Remember the Wild Turkey

Most Americans only think about turkeys once a year, when Thanksgiving rolls around. We often take for granted that there will be a bird at the grocery store in exactly the size and weight we want. But what many don’t know is that wild turkeys, the domestic turkey’s ancestor, were once nearly wiped out across much of the United States due to overhunting and habitat loss.

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Policy

Taking the Politics Out of Permitting Reform

Efficient permitting isn’t a partisan luxury – it's a national imperative. As our nation confronts rising energy demand, aging infrastructure, and growing pressure on our natural lands, the question is not whether we should reform our permitting processes; it’s how quickly and boldly we will.

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Conservation

Reward Prevention, Not Inaction

Each year, Americans spend billions fighting fires that could have been prevented for much less. In 2023 alone, the government spent nearly $4.5 billion on wildfire suppression. Add in the destroyed homes, shut down businesses, and smoke-related health costs, and the total cost soars well into the tens of billions.

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Conservation

Let Conservation Compete

Last month, the Trump Administration’s Interior Department reignited this debate by proposing to rescind this rule, which would remove conservation as an eligible “use” for BLM land. What the rescission proposal gets wrong is the difference between conservation and preservation.

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Energy

The PERMIT Act Will Help Meet America’s Growing Energy Needs 

Introduced by Rep. Mike Collins (R-GA), the legislation offers targeted reforms to how we review and approve infrastructure and, in doing so, advances three vital goals simultaneously: helping to keep energy affordable, improving reliability, and protecting the environment.

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Policy

DOE’s Grant Terminations and the Role of the Government in Energy R&D

Washington’s latest energy-policy controversy centers on the Department of Energy’s (DOE) recent decision to cancel billions of dollars in grants, including subsidies for clean energy and greenhouse-gas-reduction projects. As companies appeal and policymakers debate the validity of these cancellations, it is worth considering the proper role of government in promoting energy innovation.

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Conservation

A Step Forward to Healthier Forests

After passing the House in January with overwhelming bipartisan support, the Fix Our Forests Act (FOFA) had been at a standstill for the past nine months– until yesterday.

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Policy

Why Are Electricity Rates Rising?

But 2025 is different. Utilities sought $29 billion in rate hikes so far this year—nearly double the 2024 pace—and average prices rose at about twice the rate of inflation in the first half of the year. Inflation accounts for a big part of the story, but not all of it.

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