Amendment could set a dangerous precedent for our nation’s public lands
Late last night, the U.S. House Natural Resources Committee approved a last-minute change to their budget reconciliation bill, directing the Department of the Interior to sell thousands of acres of public lands in Utah and Nevada. This amendment could set a dangerous precedent for the nation’s public lands and was made without time for public review and comment.
Additionally, revenue from the sale of these lands would be diverted into the general fund of the federal Treasury, rather than through the Federal Land Disposal Account. Pheasants Forever and Quail Forever believe this is a significant departure from the process to sell public lands, as this account was created by Congress to reinvest revenue from asset sales into other high-value conservation and recreation projects on federal public lands.
“With the approval of this amendment, the months-long speculation concerning the sale of public lands is no longer hypothetical,” said Ariel Wiegard, Pheasants Forever and Quail Forever’s vice president of government affairs. “The House Committee on Natural Resources added this to their reconciliation bill at the 11th hour with no opportunity for the American people – who own these properties – to offer input. These elected officials also chose not to follow long-standing processes and criteria that would ensure these sales are done in the public interest and which would keep the revenue of public land sales in the conservation realm. This process exists for a reason, and Pheasants Forever and Quail Forever believe that process needs to be followed.”
The timing of the amendment coincides with the launch of the Public Lands Caucus, a bi-partisan effort focused on protecting the nation’s publicly owned land. Founded by Representative Gabe Vasquez (D-N.M.) and Representative Ryan Zinke (R-Mont.), Pheasants Forever and Quail Forever fully support this new endeavor and look forward to working with our elected officials of both parties to secure the future of our public lands.
"America's upland hunters and grassland advocates applaud today's launch of the bipartisan Public Lands Caucus, and we stand ready to work with Reps. Vasquez, Zinke, and the other Caucus members to advance public land conservation policies, increase and improve habitat and access, and energize and engage the upland conservation community,” said Wiegard. “America’s grassland and sagebrush shrub-steppe ecosystems are among the most at-risk environments in the world, resulting in the decline of our most cherished grassland species and fewer places to hunt on high-quality habitat—we are confident this Caucus will help ensure our treasured public lands deliver the promise of more wildlife and more hunters, alongside other natural resource and quality of life benefits, to the American people.”