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Show LAI Socking Comments n Advisory Boards tVederal regulations to .:uiiuu riiien commit- s whu'h advise the K.-retary of the Interior K the Bureau of Land i' Inurement ooneerniiVK ministration of the f tional resource lands -Ive been published by Interior Department. u-iblU' comment about 'o proposed rules are is, ited and should be i e-Hived e-Hived before February 0 by the Director (210), ireau of Land Manage- 1-tMit, Washington, D.C. i'-2IO. i-According to informa-ism informa-ism received by Paul L. Howard, BLM state dir-o. dir-o. tor for Utah, the promised pro-mised regulations would lormally authorize a a roe-level system of 'o.tional, state and dis-r dis-r ict multiple-use advi-nny advi-nny boards to replace is-esent boards. Under d rms of the Federal Ad--sory Committee Act, c 1 advisory boards for - e BLM expire January e 1975. h This act passed in 1972, 'Omits the duration of i-ivisory groups to two U;ars unless action is iliken by the Congress or 3. xecutive Branch to ex-:s;nd ex-:s;nd them. - Advisory boards of 'eLM date back to infor-e infor-e lal committees set up "d implement the Taylor t razing Actinl934. Over le years, these evolved Tito the current system .sf one national, 12 state, s nd 56 district advisory ' oards. , The Bureau also hares responsibility redth the Agriculture De-;eartment's De-;eartment's Forest Service Ser-vice and administrative-y administrative-y supports the nine-Siember nine-Siember National Advisory Advi-sory Board for Wild JYee-Roaming Horses nd Burros. J "Growing competition ' Vi the Western States for lorage, minerals, timber, tim-ber, wildlife, recreation nd other public land resources re-sources makes itimper-' itimper-' ktive that Interior and SLM continue to receive Sxpert advice on land use Manning and programs," According to BLM 'National 'Na-tional Director Curt Berklund. 1 I "The proposed amend- I ment," he said, "would Strengthen our advisory board system by re- ( structuring our State and district boards to ensure en-sure broader representation. represen-tation. At the same time, We could reduce costs knd avoid duplication of Efforts on the part of our advisors." I The proposed regula- lions do not prescribe (lie specific composition of State and district advisory ad-visory boards. Instead, composition would be determined de-termined on an individual indivi-dual basis, with appropriate appro-priate public participation participa-tion to assure balance and to reflect State and local program needs at the time boards are chartered or renewed. The proposal would: Continue the National Advisory Board essentially essen-tially as it was restructured restruc-tured on January 15, 1974 when its membership was reduced from 42 to 36 and representation broadened to add such categories as environmental environ-mental quality, State and local government, outdoor out-door recreation, and oth- f er public interests; Continue the Bureau's State multiple-use advisory ad-visory boards, plus the multiple-use board for the Oregon and Califor- ' nia Revested Lands (lands originally granted to the Oregon r.nd California Cali-fornia Railroad and later reclaimed by the Government), Govern-ment), with reduced membership mem-bership and with composition compo-sition "fairly balanced in terms of the points of view represented and the functions to be performed;" perform-ed;" Authorized establishment establish-ment of one balanced, multiple - use advisory board for each BLM administrative ad-ministrative district, with up to 10 members on a board. The National Advisory Board for Wild Free-Roaming Free-Roaming Horses and Burros will be the subject sub-ject of separate regulations. regula-tions. The Federal Advisory Committee Act demands more effective use of advisory bodies by the Executive Branch, and sets forth specific requirements re-quirements regarding filing fi-ling of charters, record keeping, Federal participation parti-cipation in meetings and approval of agendas, and public involvement. It also requires that advisory advi-sory board membership be fairly balanced. "Our proposed regulations," regu-lations," said Berklund, "would assure that the balance requirement is met and at the same time would follow the recommendation recom-mendation of the Public Land Law Review Commission Com-mission that members of advisory boards be chosen to represent a broad range of interests, and that flexibility be provided to change representation re-presentation as interest in and uses of the land change." He added, "To the extent ex-tent that boards increasingly increa-singly become involved in planning and program-l program-l ming matters on public lands, they can play an even more important, role than they have in the past. The system of smaller, better - balanced bal-anced multiple - use boards called for in the proposed regulations is essential if this goal is to be achieved." The proposed regulations regula-tions were published in the December 30, 1974, Federal Register, Mr. 1 Howard said. |