Assemblyman Curt Hagman (R-Chino Hills) today joined the growing chorus of opposition to President Obama’s planned designation of a San Gabriel Mountains National Monument as a naked land grab that would hurt all residents in the affected area and provide no more protections that exist now.
“Such a unilateral action would completely bypass Congress with the stroke of a pen, and constitute a deliberate misuse of the Antiquities Act of 1906. The land is already protected as a national forest. It would restrict the public from enjoying its own land and threaten the water rights of millions of southern Californians in San Bernardino and Los Angeles counties “said Hagman. This is the sort of arrogance on the part of President Obama and his followers in Congress, like former House Speaker Nancy Pelosi and Congresswoman Gloria Negrete-McLeod, who large majorities of Americans oppose. We don’t want the government further restricting our rights – especially without our input and over our objections.”
Hagman noted that the consequences of this action could include less access to forest lands for those who can least afford the loss, pushing out U.S. Forest Service special use permit holders, utilizing eminent domain to seize private property and taking away water rights with new federal regulations.
“Southern California is suffering through a serious drought and residents rely on groundwater from the San Gabriel Mountains to give their kids a drink and wash their clothes. Obama’s planned undemocratic and reckless action would put our water under the control of federal government bureaucrats and threaten the property rights of the people. This has got to stop and stop now!” exclaimed Hagman.
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