The Bismarck Tribune from Bismarck, North Dakota • A7

Bismarck TriBune Friday, November 17, 2017 A7 1 AMY DALRYMPLE, TRIBUNE From left, Kenny Lyson, deputy director for mHa energy division, Sgt. brad Sage of Three affiliated Tribes Game and Fish and pilot Tracy from roosevelt County, review areas they searched Thursday for olivia Lone bear on the Fort berthold reservation. FROM THE FRONT PAGE MICHAEL BIESECKER Associated Press WASHINGTON The Trump ad- ministration said it will allow the im- portation of body parts from African elephants shot for sport, contending that encouraging wealthy big-game hunters to kill them will aid the vul- nerable species. The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service said in a written notice issued Thurs- day that permitting elephants from Zimbabwe and Zambia to be brought back as trophies will raise money for conservation programs.

A licensed two-week African elephant hunt can cost more than $50,000 per person, not including airfare, according to advertised rates. The change marks a shift in efforts to stop the importation of elephant tusks and hides, overriding a 2014 ban imposed by the Obama adminis- tration. The new policy applies to the remains of African elephants killed between January 2016 and Decem- ber 2018. well-regulated sport hunting as part of a sound man- agement program can benefit cer- tain species by providing incentives to local communities to conserve those species and by putting much- needed revenue back into conserva- the agency said in a statement. Animal rights activists and envi- ronmental groups expressed skep- ticism Thursday that killing ele- phants could help save them.

Wayne Pacelle, the president and CEO of The Humane Society of the United States, said the policy change sends the wrong signal amid international efforts to curb illegal poaching. kind of message does it send to say to the world that poor Af- ricans who are struggling to survive cannot kill elephants in order to use or sell their parts to make a living, but that just fine for rich Ameri- cans to slay the beasts for their tusks to keep as Pacelle asked. But the move was quickly praised by groups that champion big-game trophy hunting, including Safari Club International and the lobby- ing arm of the National Rifle Asso- ciation. The two groups had sued to challenge the ban in court. Chris Cox, executive director of the National Rifle In- stitute for Legislative Action, called the action significant step forward in having hunting receive the recog- nition it deserves as a tool of sound wildlife management, which had been all but buried in the previous lifting the import ban on el- ephant trophies in Zimbabwe and Zambia the Trump administration underscored, once again, the im- portance of sound scientific wildlife management and regulated hunting to the survival and enhancement of game species in this country and Cox said.

President Donald two adult sons are avid trophy hunters. A photo of Donald Trump Jr. holding a knife and the bloody severed tail of an elephant he reportedly killed in Zimbabwe in 2011 has sparked out- rage among animal rights activists. White House spokeswoman Sarah Huckabee Sanders on Thursday re- ferred questions about the policy change to the Fish and Wildlife Ser- vice, saying no announcement had yet been The agency said the formal announcement of the policy will be published today in the Federal Register. Interior Secretary Ryan Zinke, who oversees the Fish and Wildlife Service, recently installed the arcade game Buck Hunter in the employee cafeteria at the Washington headquarters, a move he said would promote wildlife and habitat conservation.

In June, the department removed longstanding protections for grizzly bears near Yellowstone National Park, a step to potentially allow them to be hunted. The largest land mam- mal, the African elephant has been classified as threatened under the U.S. Endangered Species Act since 1979. Illicit demand for elephant ivory has led to devastating losses from il- legal poaching as the natural habitat available for the animals to roam has also dwindled by more than half. As a result, the number of African ele- phants has shrunk from about 5 mil- lion a century ago to about 400,000 remaining.

And that number contin- ues to decline each year. Administration reverses ban on imports Fish and Wildlife Service to permit elephants killed as trophies A contingent from Roos- evelt County, has helped search for about a week, includ- ing several from the of- fice who searched rugged terrain on four-wheelers and a pilot who helped conduct aerial searches. Texx Lone Bear said the Roo- sevelt County representatives have brought a lot of expertise on searches, but he wishes had their guidance sooner. just so much we could have done earlier, and we because we he said. the frustrating part about it.

Every day I find out something new we should have done three days Sam Lincoln, lead detective for Three Affiliated Tribes law enforce- ment, said he has consulted with other agencies with experience in searches, including working closely with Roosevelt County. been reassured that our of- fice is doing everything possible in this Lincoln said. Fox said he thinks the investiga- tion and search effort took a while to ramp up, in part because there is no evidence of foul play that would have elevated the response. need to improve our pro- tocols and our procedures when somebody is Fox said. not going to diminish the ef- fort so far, but we do need to im- Lincoln said he agrees that new protocols should be developed to guide law enforcement on missing person cases.

lot of times, you do fly by the seat of your pants and you do what common sense would tell Lin- coln said. Despite what some consider a slow start, the search effort has had as many as 60 people in the field on some days, with between 15 and 30 more recently. Surrounding counties and other agencies have helped provide boats, K-9 units and aircraft, as well as personnel. The Standing Rock Sioux Tribe is planning to bring more people and equipment. been getting cooperation from just about every entity in the Lincoln said.

On Thursday, Fox met with North Dakota Indian Affairs Commis- sioner Scott Davis about additional state resources that can be deployed to help. governor is very concerned about Davis said. state is ready to provide Bureau of Indian Affairs repre- sentatives also met with Fox on Thursday but said they were not authorized to talk to the media. A BIA spokeswoman did not return an email seeking comment. The FBI has assisted with some interviews, but the role has been limited because no evidence that a crime has been committed, Lincoln said.

have no proof or probable cause that she was he said. we can prove a crime has been committed, then they would be in full Fox said while the tribe control how outside entities will respond, they can maximize their search efforts on the nearly 1 million acres of the reservation. Each day, the search begins with a meeting at 8:30 a.m. at the MHA Energy Division, in a room with a timeline and maps on the wall. Searchers then disperse through- out the reservation and return be- fore dark.

A key focus is trying to find the pickup Lone Bear was last seen driving, a blue Chevy Silverado 2500 HD LT crew cab with North Dakota license plate 839 BRC. The owner of the truck, James Hofhenke, has been interviewed twice by police and consented to have investigators look through his phone and search his property, Lincoln said. Hofhenke said, in an interview with the Bismarck Tribune, he and Lone Bear are friends and she often borrowed his truck. He said he tried to get OnStar to reactivate the sys- tem in the vehicle, but was told been inactive for too long. Hofhenke said he has not re- ported the vehicle stolen, but it is connected to the missing person report that has been distributed by law enforcement.

at the end of my rope, re- Texx Lone Bear said. ever anybody can do to help, we sure appreciate reach amy dalrymple at 701-250- 8267 or amy.dalrymple@bismarcktri- bune.com Search From A1 GOP controls by just 52-48. Even so, Republicans are hoping to send a compromise bill for Trump to sign by Christmas. is the time to the White House said in a written state- ment that underscored the ef- fort to maintain momentum and out- race critics. Those include the AARP lobby for older people, major medical organizations, Realtors and, in all likelihood, every Senate Democrat.

With this crash of the GOP effort to dismantle President Barack health care law, Re- publicans see a successful tax effort as the best way to avert major losses in next congressional elections. House Republicans conceded they are watching the Senate warily. survival depends on us doing said Rep. Kevin Cramer, of the things that scares me a little bit is that going to screw up the bill to the point we pass The House plan and a comparable proposal Republicans hoped to push through the Senate Finance Com- mittee by end would deliver the bulk of their tax reductions to businesses. Each would cut the 35 percent cor- porate tax rate to 20 percent, while reducing personal rates for many taxpayers and erasing or shrinking deductions.

Projected federal defi- cits would grow by $1.5 trillion over 10 years. As decades of Republicans have done before them, GOP lawmakers touted their tax cuts as a boon to families across all income lines and a boost for businesses and the entire country. Democrats said the measure would disproportionately help the wealthy and mean tax increases for millions. Among other things, the House leg- islation would reduce and ultimately repeal the tax Americans pay on the largest inheritances, while the Senate would limit that levy to fewer estates. Thirteen House Republicans all but one from high-tax California, New York and New Jersey voted because the plan would erase tax deductions for state and local income and sales taxes and limit property tax deductions to $10,000.

Defectors included House Appropri- ations Committee Chairman Rodney Frelinghuysen, who said the measure would New Jersey Trump traveled to the Capitol be- fore the vote to give House Republi- cans a pep talk. Taxes From A1 DAVE COLLINS Associated Press HARTFORD, Conn. For over a decade, Charles Crenshaw has been paying his ex-wife tens of thousands of dollars annually in alimony. The now-retired engineer is hoping to renegotiate the agree- ment for lower payments, but waiting first to see what comes of a tax reform proposal in Congress. Under a House Republican tax plan that would eliminate the de- duction for alimony payments, the 73-year-old resident of Bloomfield, says he could lose thousands of dollars.

He is among many unhappy couples, divorce lawyers and oth- ers keeping a close eye on the pro- posal, which would also end tax- ation of alimony recipients on the payments. The House approved eliminating the deduction Thursday as part of a nearly $1.5 billion package to over- haul corporate and personal taxes. The proposal remains in limbo, however, because it is not included in the Senate tax plan that GOP leaders hope to pass early next month. Getting rid of the write-off is generating concerns about the pos- sibility of higher taxes for men, who make up the majority of those pay- ing alimony, and more acrimonious divorce negotiations. A national group of family law at- torneys, the American Academy of Matrimonial Lawyers, announced Thursday that it is against the pro- posal.

is an essential tool that has enabled countless spouses to adjust to a dramatically altered economic Madeline Mar- zano-Lesnevich, president of the academy, said in a statement. financial security provided to fami- lies by spousal support is a valuable resource that needs to be further strengthened and not diminished by our Toni Van Pelt, president of the National Organization for Women, said the tax change could make it more difficult for divorcees to get the support they need because their ex-husbands would have less money without the deduction. The changes would take effect Jan. 1 and apply to divorces final- ized after 2017. Some lawyers say unclear whether the proposal also would affect existing divorce and separation agreements that are modified on or after Jan.

1. In a hypothetical example, a man making $90,000 this year and pay- ing $20,000 in alimony would get to subtract the $20,000 from his income, lowering his tax bill by $5,000 to $13,245, according to the IRS draft tax table for 2017. His ex-wife would pay about $2,500 in taxes on the $20,000, but no taxes under the House GOP plan. GOP plan to cut alimony deduction raises concerns and Natural Resources, said the state has sent a staff member to the site of the leak in a rural area near the border with North Dakota about 250 miles west of Minneap- olis. the cleanup re- sponsibility lies with TransCan- ada, and have to clean it up in compliance with our state Walsh said.

TransCanada said in its state- ment that it expected the pipe- line to remain shut down as the company responds to the leak. It did not offer a time estimate, and a spokesman immediately return a telephone message from The Associated Press. The federal Pipeline and Haz- ardous Materials Safety Admin- istration immediately return an email requesting ad- ditional information from The AP. Since 2010, companies have reported 17 spills bigger than the leak announced Thursday, top- ping 210,000 gallons of crude oil or refined petroleum products, according to U.S. Department of Transportation records.

The existing Keystone pipeline transports crude from Canada to refineries in Illinois and Okla- homa, passing through the east- ern Dakotas, Nebraska, Kansas and Missouri. It can handle nearly 600,000 barrels daily, or about 23 million gallons. TransCanada says on its website that the company has safely transported more than 1.5 billion barrels of oil, or about 63 billion gallons, through the system since operations began in 2010. President Donald Trump is- sued a federal permit in March for the expansion project, which had been rejected by the Obama administration. The Keystone XL project would move crude oil from Alberta, Canada, across Montana and South Dakota to Nebraska, where it would connect with ex- isting pipelines feeding refineries along the Gulf Coast.

Kent Moeckly, a member of con- servation and family agriculture group Dakota Rural Action, who opposed the Keystone pipeline, said he drove to land he owns near the site of the spill Thursday. a heck of a south wind up here today, and man it just stunk of crude said Moeckly, whose property is crossed by the pipeline. mile away, but tell you it was like it was next A leak and spill in southeast- ern South Dakota in April 2016 prompted a weeklong shutdown of the pipeline. TransCanada esti- mated that just under 17,000 gal- lons of oil spilled onto private land during that leak. Federal regula- tors said an on a weld on the pipeline was to blame.

No waterways or aquifers were af- fected. TransCanada said at the time that the leak was the first detected on the pipeline since it began op- erating, though there had been leaks at pumping stations. One of those leaks happened in south- eastern North Dakota in May 2011, when 14,000 gallons spilled after a valve failed at a pumping station near the South Dakota border. Sierra Club Beyond Dirty Fuels campaign director Kelly Martin said in a statement that the only way to protect against leaks in the future is for Nebraska to reject the Keystone XL pipeline. always said not a question of whether a pipeline will spill, but when, and today TransCanada is making our case for Martin said.

Keystone From A1.