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United States Department of the Interior

 
 
Columbia Encyclopedia: United States Department of the Interior
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Interior, United States Department of the, federal executive department established in 1849, delegated custodian of U.S. natural resources, and whose head, the Secretary of the Interior, has cabinet rank. Bureaus dealing with the department's responsibility for mineral resources include: the Geological Survey, the Bureau of Mines, the Minerals Management Service, and the Office of Surface Mining Reclamation and Enforcement. The Bureau of Mines was established in 1910 to oversee mineral use and to promote safety in the mining industry. The department's responsibility for water and power resources is handled primarily by the Bureau of Reclamation and various specific power administrations that operate projects generating electrical power. The divisions of the department concerned with public land management include the bureaus of Indian Affairs and Land Management. The Bureau of Land Management was formed in 1946 by merging the General Land Office with the Grazing Service. It manages and disposes of public land under programs designed to produce multiple use and sustained yield of resources while maintaining a quality environment. The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, reorganized in 1970, is responsible for planning for the use and enjoyment of sport fishing and wildlife resources. It runs fish hatcheries and wildlife refuges, manages animal populations, and regulates the natural environment. The National Park Service, established in 1916, acts as trustee for the areas designated as national parks and monuments. It is charged with maintaining and preserving them for present and future enjoyment.

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Law Encyclopedia: Interior Department
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This entry contains information applicable to United States law only.

The Interior Department is a federal department responsible for the United States' natural resources and for land owned by the federal government. The department fulfills this responsibility by promulgating and enforcing numerous regulations concerning natural resources and public lands. The head of the Interior Department is the secretary of the interior, who sits on the president's cabinet and reports directly to the president.

The Department of the Interior was created by Congress in 1849 (9 Stat. 395 [43 U.S.C.A. § 1451]). The original duties of the Interior Department included supervision of all mining in the United States, the General Land Office, the Office of Indian Affairs, the Pension Office, the Patent Office, the District of Columbia penitentiary, the U.S. census, and accounts for federal court officers. These agencies and duties had little in common except that their focus was within U.S. borders, and they were out of place in other departments.

As a result of the continuing search for streamlined organization in government, the Interior Department eventually dropped a number of its original duties and developed an emphasis on natural resources. The department has retained responsibility for mining, federal lands, and American Indian issues. Over the years, it has added several offices and bureaus to help fulfill its responsibilities.

The chief functions of the Interior Department include efforts to conserve and develop mineral and water resources; conserve, develop, and utilize fish and wildlife resources; coordinate federal and state recreation programs; preserve and administer scenic and historic areas; operate the Job Corps Conservation Centers and Youth and Young Adult Conservation Corps Camps, and other youth training programs; irrigate arid lands; manage hydroelectric systems; provide social and economic services to U.S. territories; and provide programs and services to Native Americans and native Alaskans.

The Interior Department contains several different offices, departments, and bureaus. The Office of the Secretary includes the Offices of the Deputy Secretary, Assistant Secretaries, and Inspector General. The inspector general is charged with coordinating and supervising interior audits and with performing inspections to detect fraud and abuse. In addition, the inspector general is responsible for supervising the financial activities of U.S. territories such as Guam, American Samoa, and the Virgin Islands. The Office of Hearings and Appeals is also contained within the Office of the Secretary. Persons involved in disputes with the Interior Department may have their case heard at this office.

The hands-on work of the department is performed by several bureaus and services. The Bureau of Reclamation is devoted to the management of water resources. The Bureau of Land Management is in charge of public lands and resources. The U.S. Geological Survey exists to draw a wide variety of maps and to examine and classify public land structures and mineral resources. The Minerals Management Service assesses the value of minerals and supervises mineral recovery. The Office of Surface Mining Reclamation and Enforcement is charged mainly with the operation of a nationwide program on coal mining. The U.S. Bureau of Mines researches mining issues to find the best technology for extracting, processing, using, and recycling nonfuel mineral resources. The National Biological Survey conducts research to promote the sound management of plant and animal life. The National Park Service is dedicated to the preservation of national parks, monuments, scenic parkways, preserves, trails, riverways, seashores, lakeshores, and recreation areas. The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service is devoted primarily to the conservation and enhancement of the nation's fish and wildlife resources.

One controversial function of the Interior Department is the oversight of Native American affairs. The Bureau of Indian Affairs performs a number of functions having to do with Native American issues. The Interior Department played a dominant role in the drafting of tribal constitutions during the nineteenth century. In the twentieth century, the Bureau of Indian Affairs continued its control over Native American tribes by insisting on review and approval powers over amendments to tribal constitutions.

Like most other federal administrative agencies, the Interior Department is controlled by both Congress and the president. Congress created the Interior Department, and Congress could decide to reduce or eliminate it. However, also like most other administrative agencies, the Interior Department is a political necessity. Lawmakers are generally well versed in a broad range of topics, but few have the knowledge required to craft the best rules and regulations on, for example, mining or land management. The Interior Department possesses such expertise.

On the executive level, the Interior Department reports directly to the president, so the president also exerts control over it. The president has the power to remove and replace department personnel, to propose increases or reductions in responsibilities, and to redirect the department's goals. All these changes must be approved by Congress.

This dual control over the Interior Department makes it subject to political influence. For example, when a new president takes office, he or she will likely make personnel changes in the Interior Department to initiate new programs and directions promised in the campaign. Any high-level appointments to administrative agencies will be reviewed by Congress. If a nominee holds views contrary to the majority in Congress, Congress may reject the nominee, and the president may have to choose one more acceptable to Congress. On the other hand, senators and representatives may be reluctant to resist the actions of a newly elected president for fear of alienating the voting public.

The Interior Department has historically been less concerned with conservation than with development. Interior Secretary Roy O. West commented in 1928 that the Interior Department should have been named the Department of Western Development. In the early twentieth century, U.S. citizens became aware that the resources needed for modern life were not inexhaustible, and the Interior Department gradually recognized the need for conservation. However, the Interior Department's original mission of managing development was at odds with conservation, and the department was incapable of concentrating exclusively on conservation. To fill the void created by this situation, Congress created the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) in 1970.

Although the EPA has taken over the goals of conservation and pollution control, the Interior Department is still concerned with environmental matters. In 1987, the department reorganized the Bureau of Reclamation to reflect the bureau's new emphasis on management and conservation instead of construction. In the 1990s, Bruce Babbitt, the secretary of the interior under President Bill Clinton, made several changes in the Interior Department to strengthen its environmental protection efforts. For example, in 1993, Babbitt arranged for several hundred scientists from agencies within the department to conduct the National Biological Survey. The purpose of the survey was to study ways to protect the natural habitats of endangered species.

See: Environmental Law; Fish and Fishing; Game; Mine and Mineral Law; Native American Rights.

Wikipedia: United States Department of the Interior
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United States
Department of the Interior
US-DeptOfTheInterior-Seal.svg
Seal
Agency overview
Headquarters 1849 C Street, NW Washington, DC
38°53′37.11″N 77°2′33.33″W / 38.8936417°N 77.0425917°W / 38.8936417; -77.0425917
Employees 71,436 (2004)
Annual budget $10.7 billion (2009)
Agency executives Ken Salazar, Secretary
David J. Hayes, Deputy Secretary
Website
www.doi.gov

The United States Department of the Interior (DOI) is the United States federal executive department of the U.S. government responsible for the management and conservation of most federal land and the administration of programs relating to Native Americans, Alaska Natives, and Native Hawaiians, and to insular areas of the United States.

The Department is administered by the United States Secretary of the Interior, who is a member of the Cabinet of the President. The current Secretary is Ken Salazar of Colorado.

Despite its name, the Department of the Interior has a different role from that of the interior ministries of other nations, which are usually responsible for functions performed in the U.S. by the Department of Homeland Security primarily and the Department of Justice secondarily.

Contents

History

A department for domestic concern was first considered by the 1st United States Congress in 1789, but those duties were placed in the Department of State. The idea of a separate domestic department continued to percolate for a half-century and was supported by Presidents from James Madison to James Polk. The 1846-48 Mexican-American War gave the proposal new steam as the responsibilities of the federal government grew. Polk's Secretary of the Treasury, Robert J. Walker, became a vocal champion of creating the new department.

In 1849, Walker stated in his annual report that several federal offices were placed in departments which they had little to do with. He noted that the General Land Office had little to do with the Treasury and also highlighted the Indian Affairs office, part of the Department of War, and the Patent Office, part of the Department of State. Walker argued that these and other bureaus should be brought together in a new Department of the Interior.

A bill authorizing its creation of the Department passed the House of Representatives on February 15, 1849, and spent just over two weeks in the Senate. The Department was established on March 3, 1849, the eve of President Zachary Taylor's inauguration, when the Senate voted 31 to 25 to create the Department. Its passage was delayed by Democrats in Congress who were reluctant to create more patronage posts for the incoming Whig administration to fill. The first Secretary of the Interior was Thomas Ewing.

Many of the domestic concerns the Department originally dealt with were gradually transferred to other Departments. Other agencies became separate Departments, such as the Bureau of Agriculture, which later became the Department of Agriculture. However, land and natural resource management, Native American affairs, wildlife conservation, and territorial affairs remain the responsibilities of the Department of the Interior.

As of mid-2004, the Department managed 507 million acres (2,050,000 km²) of surface land, or about one-fifth of the land in the United States. It manages 476 dams and 348 reservoirs through the Bureau of Reclamation, 388 national parks, monuments, seashore sites, etc. through the National Park Service, and 544 national wildlife refuges through the Fish and Wildlife Service. Energy projects on federally managed lands and offshore areas supply about 28 percent of the nation's energy production.

Native Americans

Within the Interior Department, the Bureau of Indian Affairs handles some federal relations with Native Americans, while others are handled by the Office of Special Trustee. The current acting Assistant Secretary for Indian Affairs is George Skibine. The Department has been the subject of disputes over proper accounting for Indian Trusts set up to track the income and pay-out of monies that are generated by trust and restricted Native American lands. Currently there are several cases that seek accountings of such funds from the Departments of Interior and Treasury.

Operating units

The hierarchy of the U.S. Department of the Interior.

Controversy

Secretary of the Interior Albert B. Fall was implicated in the Teapot Dome scandal of the 1921. He was convicted of bribery in 1929, and served one year in prison, for his part in the controversy. A major factor in the scandal was a transfer of certain oil leases from the jurisdiction of the Department of the Navy to that of the Department of the Interior, at Fall's behest.

Secretary of the Interior James G. Watt — already facing criticism related to his alleged hostility to environmentalism and his support of the development and use of federal lands by foresting, ranching, and other commercial interests, and for banning The Beach Boys from playing a 1983 Independence Day concert on the National Mall out of concerns of attracting "an undesirable element" — resigned abruptly after a September 21, 1983, speech in which he said about his staff: "I have a black, a woman, two Jews and a cripple. And we have talent."[1] Within weeks of making this statement, Watt submitted his resignation letter.[1][2]

Under the Administration of U.S. President George W. Bush, the Interior Department's maintenance backlog climbed from $5 billion to $8.7 billion, despite Bush's campaign pledges to eliminate it completely. Of the agency under Bush's leadership, Interior Department Inspector General Earl Devaney has cited a "culture of fear" and of "ethical failure." Devaney has also said, "Simply stated, short of a crime, anything goes at the highest levels of the Department of Interior."[3]

Gale Norton, Interior Secretary under George W. Bush from 2001-2006, resigned due to connections with the Jack Abramoff lobbying scandal. Julie A. MacDonald, deputy assistant secretary at the Interior Department appointed by Norton in 2002, also resigned after an internal review found that she had violated federal rules by giving government documents to lobbyists for industry.[4][5] On July 20, 2007, MacDonald's "inappropriate influence" led H. Dale Hall, director of the US Fish and Wildlife Service, to order a review of eight endangered species decisions in which the former deputy assistant secretary was involved. Hall has called MacDonald's disputed decisions "a blemish on the scientific integrity of the Fish and Wildlife Service and the Department of the Interior."[6] On 17 September 2008, the US Fish and Wildlife Service proposed to more than triple the habitat of the California red-legged frog, citing political manipulation by Julie MacDonald.[7] In a government report released in December 2008,[8] Inspector General Devaney called MacDonald's management "abrupt and abrasive, if not abusive,"[9] and U.S. Senator Ron Wyden, who commissioned the report, attributed the "untold waste of hundreds of thousands of taxpayers' dollars" to MacDonald's actions.[10]

On September 10, 2008, Inspector General Devaney found wrongdoing by a dozen current and former employees of the Minerals Management Service. In a cover memo, Devaney wrote “A culture of ethical failure” pervades the agency. According to the report, eight officials accepted gifts from energy companies whose value exceeded limits set by ethics rules — including golf, ski, and paintball outings; meals; drinks; and tickets to a Toby Keith concert, a Houston Texans football game, and a Colorado Rockies baseball game. The investigation also concluded that several of the officials “frequently consumed alcohol at industry functions, had used cocaine and marijuana, and had sexual relationships with oil and gas company representatives.” According to the New York Times, "The reports portray a dysfunctional organization that has been riddled with conflicts of interest, unprofessional behavior and a free-for-all atmosphere for much of the Bush administration’s watch."[11][12][13][14][15][16][17][18][19][20]

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The previous Secretary of the Interior Dirk Kempthorne is criticized for not placing any plants or animals on the federal endangered species list since his confirmation on May 26, 2006, until September 2007. As of that date, Kempthorne held the record for protecting fewer species over his tenure than any Interior Secretary in United States history, a record previously held by James G. Watt for over 20 years.[21]

On December 16, 2008, the Center for Biological Diversity announced intent to sue the Interior Department under Kempthorne for introducing "regulations...that would eviscerate our nation’s most successful wildlife law by exempting thousands of federal activities, including those that generate greenhouse gases, from review under the Endangered Species Act." The lawsuit, which is critical of policy advocated by Kempthorne and President George W. Bush, was filed in the Northern District of California by the CBD, Greenpeace and Defenders of Wildlife. According to the CBD, "The lawsuit argues that the regulations violate the Endangered Species Act and did not go through the required public review process. The regulations, first proposed on August 11th, were rushed by the Bush administration through an abbreviated process in which more than 300,000 comments from the public were reviewed in 2-3 weeks, and environmental impacts were analyzed in a short and cursory environmental assessment, rather than a fuller environmental impact statement."[22]

References

  1. ^ a b 556. James G Watt, US Secretary of the Interior. Simpson’s Contemporary Quotations. 1988
  2. ^ RMOA - Document
  3. ^ Bush legacy leaves uphill climb for U.S. parks
  4. ^ Matthew Daly (May 1, 2007). "Embattled Interior official resigns post". Associated Press. http://www.boston.com/news/nation/washington/articles/2007/05/01/interior_official_quits_ahead_of_hearing/. 
  5. ^ New York Times, "U.S. Agency May Reverse 8 Decisions on Wildlife", July 21, 2007.
  6. ^ Broder, John M (2007-07-21). "U.S. Agency May Reverse 8 Decisions on Wildlife". New York Times. http://www.nytimes.com/2007/07/21/washington/21interior.html?_r=1&ref=us&oref=slogin. 
  7. ^ A California frog may be about to get room to stretch its red legs
  8. ^ Report Finds Meddling in Interior Dept. Actions
  9. ^ Investigative Report of the Endangered Species Act and the Conflict Between Science and Policy Redacted
  10. ^ Wyden-Requested IG Report on Interior Corruption Uncovers "Contempt for the Public Trust" and "Untold Waste" - Senator praises Devaney's investigation into political interference in ESA decisions.
  11. ^ Sex, Drug Use and Graft Cited in Interior Department
  12. ^ "Report Says Oil Agency Ran Amok: Interior Dept. Inquiry Finds Sex, Corruption". The Washington Post. http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2008/09/10/AR2008091001829.html. Retrieved 2008-09-11. 
  13. ^ "Sex, Drug Use and Graft Cited in Interior Department". The New York Times. http://www.nytimes.com/2008/09/11/washington/11royalty.html. Retrieved 2008-09-11. 
  14. ^ "Oil companies gave sex, drinks, gifts to federal overseers". McClatchy Newspapers. http://www.mcclatchydc.com/226/story/52243.html. Retrieved 2008-09-11. 
  15. ^ "Memorandum [cover letter by inspector general]". http://media.mcclatchydc.com/smedia/2008/09/10/18/Gordon-OIG-Cover-Letter.source.prod_affiliate.91.pdf. Retrieved 2008-09-11. 
  16. ^ "Investigative Report of Gregory W. Smith (Redacted)". http://media.washingtonpost.com/wp-srv/investigative/documents/smith-080708.pdf. Retrieved 2008-09-11. 
  17. ^ "Investigative Report of MMS Oil Marketing Group - Lakewood (Redacted)". http://media.washingtonpost.com/wp-srv/investigative/documents/mmsoil-081908.pdf. Retrieved 2008-09-11. 
  18. ^ "Government Officials Tried To Rewrite Ethics Rules To Accommodate Their Partying". http://thinkprogress.org/2008/09/10/rik-ethics-rules. Retrieved 2008-09-11. 
  19. ^ "Official increased employee’s ‘performance award’ for providing him with cocaine". http://thinkprogress.org/2008/09/10/smith-cocaine. Retrieved 2008-09-11. 
  20. ^ Simon, Dan; David Fitzpatrick (October 14 2008). "Whistleblower: Oil watchdog agency 'cult of corruption'". CNN. http://www.cnn.com/2008/US/10/14/oil.whistleblower/index.html. 
  21. ^ Kempthorne Wins 2007 Rubber Dodo Award: Protects Fewer Species Than Any Interior Secretary in History
  22. ^ Bush Administration Regulations Gutting Protections for Nation's Endangered Species Published Today - Conservation Groups' Challenge to 11th Hour Reductions in Protections for Nation’s Wildlife Moves ForwarD

Further reading

  • Crimes Against Nature by Robert F. Kennedy, Jr. (2004)
  • Utley, Robert M. and Barry Mackintosh; The Department of Everything Else, Highlights of Interior History; Dept of the Interior, Washington, D.C.; 1989

External links

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United States federal executive departments
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Agencies of the United States Department of the Interior
Secretary of the Interior · Deputy Secretary of the Interior
United States Department of the Interior Seal
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United States government agencies involved in environmental science
United States Environmental Protection Agency
Department of the Interior
Department of Commerce
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Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy • Energy Information Administration • Federal Energy Regulatory Commission • Biological and Environmental Research • Office of Environmental Management
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Columbia Encyclopedia. The Columbia Electronic Encyclopedia, Sixth Edition Copyright © 2003, Columbia University Press. Licensed from Columbia University Press. All rights reserved. www.cc.columbia.edu/cu/cup/.  Read more
Law Encyclopedia. West's Encyclopedia of American Law. Copyright © 1998 by The Gale Group, Inc. All rights reserved.  Read more
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