Texas Land Commissioner Jerry Patterson to Testify Before Congress on Dunes Sagebrush Lizard

One Texas officeholder plans to take the lizard fight to Congress.

Texas Land Commissioner Jerry Patterson will testify before the U.S. House Natural Resources Committee on Tuesday, regarding alleged abuse of the Endangered Species Act by lawyers funded with taxpayer dollars.

A press release says that Patterson plans to explain how taxpayers are being forced to fund lawsuits filed by radical environmental groups that result in more species being added to the endangered species list.

“Species – like the dunes sagebrush lizard in West Texas – are being proposed for listing as endangered simply to settle lawsuits filed by radical environmental groups that receive government funding,” Patterson said.

“These endangered species listings cause real harm to industries like oil and gas and, as a result, kill jobs when we need them the most. The worst part is the taxpayers are paying for it all.”

The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service gave more than $680,400 in tax money to the Wild Earth Guardians, according to congressional testimony. During that same time, according to the press release, the Wild Earth Guardians sued U.S. Fish and Wildlife 76 times, including the lawsuit that triggered the proposal to list the dunes sagebrush lizard.

Patterson continued, saying “The only thing endangered in this process is fiscal responsibility and American jobs.”

It was announced last week that the dunes sagebrush lizard would not be added to the endangered species list.