Kempthorne determined to get changes done

BOISE -- A big change to some rules regarding the Endangered Species Act could be on the president's desk tonight.

It’s a change that Interior Secretary Dirk Kempthorne has been working for three months and now it's coming down to the wire under the national spotlight.

Despite objections by many Democrats and environmentalists, the Department of the Interior hopes to publish new environmental regulations by Friday before President-elect Obama can reverse them.

The rules must be published Friday to take effect before Obama is sworn in Jan. 20. Otherwise, he can undo them with the stroke of a pen.

The new rules would allow agencies that work on highways, dams or mines to determine for themselves if their specific project would harm animals and wildlife. Currently government wildlife experts make that judgment.

The Department of the Interior under the guidance of Secretary Kempthorne says federal agencies have developed expertise to review their own construction and development projects.

But some lawmakers and environmentalists argue that would weaken the system.

It’s a project Kempthorne has been trying to push through since August.

His office has received hundreds of thousands of comments - good and bad.

But now with only hours left -- Kempthorne wants to get it passed.

"Using the sports vernacular, there is still five minutes on this clock and if anybody thinks that a team is supposed to withdraw with five minutes remaining, uh...that's not correct. You are supposed to be fully engaged and get the job done, so this is one of the things that I had made clear from the very start that we want to get to the finish line and I intend to do it," said Kempthorne.

While getting the new regulation through before Obama takes office is a challenge, some members of Congress already have a plan to reverse the rules.

Congress has the power to do so through the congressional review act.

It has only been used once in the last 12 years and there are Democratic lawmakers who are hinting at using it again if Kempthorne's proposed change is signed by President Bush.