Federalism, Preemption, and the Nationalization of American Wildlife Management

Lowell E. Baier is an attorney and a legal and environmental historian and author. Baier holds a B.A. from Valparaiso University, a J.D. from Indiana University and has received two honorary doctorates. He’s worked in Washington, D.C. throughout his 56-year career as a tireless advocate for natural resources and wildlife conservation. Throughout his career, he has observed and documented wildlife and its habitats on extensive treks and expeditions in the mountains and wilderness regions across the North American Continent, the Pamirs and Caucasus of Russia, and Mongolia’s Gobi Desert and Altai Mountains, providing him with first hand observations of wildlife and man’s interactions across the globe. He was recognized as the Conservationist of the Year by the National Fish and Wildlife Foundation in 2008, and again in 2010 and 2013 by two different national organizations.

In this informative, highly readable book, Lowell Baier traces the trajectory of the federalism doctrine from its pre-founding origins to the present day. Having provided that broad context, the author ably chronicles federalism’s evolution in the area wildlife management, from the 19th century public trust doctrine through landmark enactments, such as the Migratory Bird Treaty Act and the Endangered Species Act, and important Supreme Court precedents. The basic story is one of increased centralization and federal preemption, largely driven—the author shows—by an abiding and perhaps excessive faith in ‘scientific management’ and ‘expertise.’ Baier’s engaged, yet judicious and commendably non-polemical discussion should be of value and interest to a broad audience.

• List of Illustrations xi Guide to Acronyms, Constitutional Provisions, and Terms xiii Foreword xvii Preface xxi 1 From the Mayflower Compact to the US Constitution, 1620–1789 1 2 Defining the New Government and the Separation of Powers, 1789–1835 10 3 Westward Expansion, the First Industrial Revolution, Dual Sovereignty, and the Public Trust Doctrine, 1835–1861 16 4 The Civil War, Reconstruction, the Advent of the Second Industrial Revolution, the Enduring Public Trust Doctrine, and State Ownership of Wildlife, 1861–1896 245 America’s Changing Culture: Market Hunting, the Lacey Act, the Migratory Bird Treaty Act, and the Beginning of the Progressive Era, 1896–1910 326 The Ethos of the Industrial Revolution Drives the Progressive Movement into America’s Social Fabric and Laws, 1910–1919 427 Prohibition and Reform: The Emergence of the Administrative State, 1919–1933 558 The Great Depression, FDR’s New Deal, and a “New” Supreme Court Overwhelms States’ Rights, 1933–1941 659 The Competi