States findings of the Legislature and calls on Congress to amend the Equal Access to Justice Act.

The Equal Access to Justice Act (EAJA) was enacted by the Congress in 1981. The purpose of the EAJA is to provide plaintiffs (citizens) an opportunity to collect legal fees when certain departments of the federal government have violated or interpreted laws or regulations of the United States. Since the inception of the EAJA, most of the awards for legal fees have been awarded to cases involving Social Security and Veterans services. However, natural resource and environmental issues are often tied-up in court for extended periods of time because of the EAJA as well. One reason for this is the current option to file suit against a project knowing that there is a good chance for the reimbursement of legal fees even though a plaintiff may not prevail in the case. This Joint Memorial calls on the US House of Representatives and the US Senate to re-evaluate the effectiveness of the Equal Access to Justice Act (EAJA) for environmental and natural resource matters.