Victories

We take on fights most people believe can’t be won, but we’ve proven them wrong time and again. How do we do it? With courageous Americans stepping forward wherever we go. They recognize that our unique and sophisticated strategies work and we give them hope for their future. We utilize existing laws in ways most have never known about or tried. It is because we believe in our nation and constitutional form of government that we have succeeded. And, it is precisely that which we want to preserve for future generations.

Following are a few of our victories …

  1. Pursuing a delisting program to remove species from the federal endangered species list that do not warrant protection. Radical environmentalists who seek to block any development or responsible use of land for their own extreme agenda are exploiting federal loopholes in the Endangered Species Act to get species classified as endangered unnecessarily. American Stewards of Liberty is leading a movement to spur federal reform on behalf of landowners throughout the United States. We are filing cases to delist species that do not warrant federal protection. Learn More
  1. Led the coordination effort that helped stop the endangered listing of the Dunes Sagebrush Lizard. Radical environmentalists had targeted this species for listing because doing so would have locked up the Permian Basin oil and gas fields, preventing the use of 20% of our nation’s oil and gas reserves. The lizard had been a candidate for listing since 1994, but by proving the science did not warrant listing, we forced the species off the candidate list as well. Learn More
  1. Through coordination we stopped the Trans-Texas Corridor. By preventing the selection of the preferred alternative on the I-35 Trans-Texas Corridor, we helped save thousands of Texas landowners from losing their land through condemnation and prevented hundreds of communities from being destroyed.  This forced an internationally-funded project to be canceled and the largest transportation agency in the nation to recommend, for the first time in their history, “no build” on this critical first leg of the NAFTA superhighway. Learn More
  1. Led the defeat of the Conservation and Reinvestment Act (CARA) and the National Heritage Rivers Act by educating our members and policymakers as to why the proposals would dramatically erode private property rights in America.  The bills gave even more regulatory power and condemnation money to federal agencies.  Even though we were told nothing could stop the passage of CARA, we prepared an in-depth white paper on the act that clearly set forth the problems with the proposal; then we distributed it nationwide.  This report is credited with changing the minds of many policymakers, which ultimately led to the bill’s defeat. Through a similar campaign, we stopped three grazing bills in the 1990s that would have dramatically restricted private ownership of water in the West.  Landowners would have seen their water rights confiscated by federal agencies through even more stringent environmental regulations than are authorized today.
  1. Helped the first Natural Resource Conservation District require coordination with a federal agency. The Winkelman Natural Resource Conservation District in Arizona was the first special district to use coordination; and they did so successfully, preventing the endangered listing of the Sonoran Desert Tortoise. Learn More
  1. Set forth the arguments our members used to convince policymakers to abandon plans that would have given Bureau of Land Management, a huge resource agency, independent law enforcement powers above that of the local sheriffs.  By supporting local sheriffs, we helped protect citizens from another layer of bureaucracy that threatened individual liberty in America.
  1. Helped citizens in central Texas stop a regional habitat conservation plan that would have allowed Bexar county to control the use of conservation lands in six surrounding counties. Learn More
  1. We also helped Mason County, Texas prevent a major CREZ Power Line from coming through their County, requiring the Utilities Commission to coordinate with the Mason County Sub-regional Planning Commission. Learn More
  1. We launched the coordination strategy nationwide in November 2006 when there were only two local governments using the approach.  Today there are over 100 entities asserting coordination.  Everywhere coordination is being used, landowners are staying in business, local economies are being protected, and our unique American way of life is continuing. Learn More
  1. On June 6, 2008, we won the most significant Fifth Amendment victory for property rights in recent history: Hage v. United States. As expected, the government did appeal the case and on July 26, 2012, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit in Washington D.C. overturned the landmark takings case of Hage v. United States. The Supreme Court refused to hear the case and in November of 2013, the decision became final. Regardless of the outcome for the Hages, many key precedents were set through the case and a path laid for future actions. Learn More
  1. And… during our 20+ years in operation we’ve had our hand in a number of key projects that have shaped the fight we wage today including …
    • Launched “Liberty Matters News Service” which, in its day, was the “go-to” service for news on our issues
    • Hosted a segment on NET cable TV, a national cable network
    • Funded two cases that went all the way to the Supreme Court
    • Merged two powerful organizations into one formidable force
    • Participated in 100+ coordination meetings helping local communities protect their way of life
    • Developed the One-Day Coordination Training Class that has fueled the Coordination Movement.

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