A joint resolution providing for congressional disapproval under chapter 8 of title 5, United States Code, of the rule submitted by the United States Fish and Wildlife Service relating to "Record of Decision for the Barred Owl Management Strategy; Washington, Oregon, and California".

## Summary of the Joint Resolution

This joint resolution attempted to overturn a decision made by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service regarding a plan to manage barred owl populations in Washington, Oregon, and California. The Fish and Wildlife Service had adopted a strategy that involves removing barred owls from certain areas in these three states, primarily to protect the threatened northern spotted owl, which has been losing habitat and population due to competition from the more aggressive barred owl species. If this resolution had passed, it would have nullified that management plan entirely.

The resolution used a process known as the Congressional Review Act, which allows Congress to vote to reject specific federal agency rules or decisions. Under this process, if both chambers of Congress pass the resolution and the president signs it (or Congress overrides a veto), the agency's rule is struck down and the agency is restricted from issuing a substantially similar rule in the future.

This resolution would primarily affect wildlife conservation efforts in the Pacific Northwest and California, as well as the communities and industries in those regions. Supporters of the Fish and Wildlife Service's plan argue that removing barred owls is necessary to save the northern spotted owl from extinction, while opponents of the plan have raised concerns about the large-scale lethal removal of barred owls. The resolution was ultimately defeated in the Senate, failing by a vote of 25 to 72, meaning the Fish and Wildlife Service's barred owl management strategy remains in effect.