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W.J. McCabe Chapter Izaak Walton League of America

PEER Press Release
September 2, 1999

Agencies "In Denial" About Growing Problem

Washington, D.C.... Beatings, bombings, death threats and other incidents against federal resource managers, largely in the West, have been steadily rising since the Oklahoma City bombing in 1995, according to documents released today by Public Employees for Environmental Responsibility (PEER), an organization dedicated to protecting public employee who protect our environment.

Documents obtained by PEER through the Freedom of Information Act show that in 1998 alone there were nearly 100 incidents in which agency employees or buildings were the subject of physical attack, destruction or a direct threat:

In the Bureau of Land Management (BLM), the federal custodian of the vast public range lands-

> Reported incidents against employees and facilities have risen by three quarters (75%) from 1997 to 1998;

> Reported incidents have increased more than fivefold since 1995; and

> Many of the incidents, such as pipe bombings or threats, appear to involve access to rangeland and other resource management issues.

In the U.S. Forest Service -

> Reported incidents against employees and facilities have risen by more than a fifth (20%) from 1997 to 1998;

> Reported incidents have nearly doubled (an 85% increase) since 1995; and

> Many of the Forest Service incidents involved physical attacks on workers.

Don't Ask, Don't Tell

The Department of Justice has never implemented statutory requirements enacted in the aftermath of the Oklahoma City bombing to track attacks on government workers and, in fact, has sought to repeal the reporting requirement. "It is a sad commentary when the only entity tracking violence against federal workers is a small non-profit," added Perks whose organization has created a database on violence against federal environmental agency employees.

The 1996 Anti-Terrorism Act, passed in the wake of the Oklahoma City tragedy, mandates the U.S. Attorney General to collect data "relating to crimes and incidents of threats of violence and acts of violence" against government employees and their families in the performance of official duties. The Justice Department has not only failed to comply with the law but has also attempted to convince Congress to repeal the nationwide reporting requirement.

PEER believes a centralized government tracking system is needed, given the poor track record of federal agencies in maintaining reliable data on incidents against public employees.

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