US EditionUtah Republican Proposes Sale of More than 2 Million Acres of US Lands
- Utah Republican Senator Mike Lee introduced a budget amendment on June 18, 2025, proposing to sell 2.2 to 3.3 million acres of federal lands managed by the BLM and Forest Service across 11 Western states except Montana.
- Lee defended the sales by emphasizing the release of underutilized federal lands adjacent to developed regions to facilitate residential development and aid community growth, while critics challenged the lack of transparency in the planning process and the absence of detailed information on the specific properties involved.
- The amendment mandates that the Interior and Agriculture departments nominate 0.5% to 0.75% of their holdings for disposal, excluding national parks, monuments, wilderness, and lands with existing rights, aiming to reduce checkerboard land patterns from historic railroad grants.
- Conservation groups and some politicians called the proposal a 'Fire sale' and a ploy to fund tax cuts for the wealthy, warning it threatens public land access, outdoor recreation economies, and could provoke political backlash across party lines.
- Sales could shift millions of acres into private hands, raising uncertainty over land use, while supporters argue the transfer allows better local management and economic development amid continued Western population growth.
97 Articles
97 Articles
Proposed sale of millions of acres of public land under GOP budget bill prompts backlash
Related video above: Trump and Musk feud continues over 'Big, Beautiful bill' (NEXSTAR) – Over 2 million acres of public land would go up for sale across 11 states under the current version of the Republican budget bill – a proposal that has met criticism from conservationists, hunting groups, local politicians and even some conservatives. Utah Republican Sen. Mike Lee, who chairs the Energy and Natural Resources Committee, included the sale of …
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Salt Lake TribuneFrom ski resorts to popular trails, see the public land Mike Lee proposes selling across the West
Over 18 million acres of Utahs public land are eligible to be put up for sale under legislation proposed by Sen. Mike Lee.The eligible land features trails, grazing areas and even some of the states most popular ski areas.Lee, the chairman of the U.S. Senate Committee on Energy and Natural Resources, released an updated draft of the bill over the weekend that calls for the mandatory sale of Bureau of Land Management and U.S. Forest Service Land.…
Wednesday letters: Land grabs, executive orders and viral politics
Public lands at risk in budget amendment A Senate amendment buried in the latest budget reconciliation bill threatens to sell off vast tracts of our public lands — including in Garfield County — under the banner of affordable housing and energy development. You can see what’s at risk on this map: https://wilderness.maps.arcgis.com/apps/instant/basic/index.html?appid=821970f0212d46d7aa854718aac42310 Let’s get real: This isn’t about helping workin…
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