Republican bill would sell off 3.3 million acres of national land


A new piece of legislation introduced by Rep. Jason Chaffetz (R-Utah) would direct the secretary of the interior to sell off 3.3 million acres of federal land across 10 states.
Chaffetz claims the land, maintained by the Bureau of Land Management, serves "no purpose for taxpayers," and selling it would provide "much-needed opportunities for economic development in struggling rural communities." Conservationists and sportsmen disagree. "Last I checked, hunters and fishermen were taxpayers," Jason Amaro, a representative for the southwest chapter of Backcountry Hunters and Anglers, told The Guardian. Amaro lives in New Mexico, a state that brings in $650 million annually due to hunting and fishing and could lose 800,000 acres of BLM land. He also noted that turning even just a tiny parcel of federal land private can cut off access to thousands of acres of public land.
BLM land is leased for oil, gas, and timber, open to nature enthusiasts, and home to wolves, grizzly bears, and big game species. The acreage identified in the bill was marked in a 1997 survey by the Clinton administration, and many of the thousands of parcels have cultural significance or host endangered species, The Guardian reports. Experts say the bill, which was introduced at the same time as another piece of legislation that would take law enforcement capabilities away from the BLM and U.S. Forest Service, could also be in violation of the Public Trust Doctrine, which requires the federal government to keep and manage national resources for all Americans. "It's not only an assault on our traditions," John Gale, conservation director for Backcountry Hunters and Anglers in Montana, told The Guardian. "It's the idea that they're stealing that from our children."
Subscribe to The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.

Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
A free daily email with the biggest news stories of the day – and the best features from TheWeek.com
Catherine Garcia has worked as a senior writer at The Week since 2014. Her writing and reporting have appeared in Entertainment Weekly, The New York Times, Wirecutter, NBC News and "The Book of Jezebel," among others. She's a graduate of the University of Redlands and the Columbia University Graduate School of Journalism.
-
Controversial GOP plan to sell millions of federal acres hits major roadblock
IN THE SPOTLIGHT Republican Sen. Mike Lee says he'll revisit legislation to sell millions of acres of federally held land to create 'freedom zones' of single family homes
-
One year after mass protests, why are Kenyans taking to the streets again?
today's big question More than 60 protesters died during demonstrations in 2024
-
5 high-concept animated science fiction shows for grown-ups
The Week Recommends How filmmakers are using a different medium to bring visionary science fiction to life
-
Trump plans Iran talks, insists nuke threat gone
Speed Read 'The war is done' and 'we destroyed the nuclear,' said President Trump
-
Trump embraces NATO after budget vow, charm offensive
Speed Read The president reversed course on his longstanding skepticism of the trans-Atlantic military alliance
-
Trump judge pick told DOJ to defy courts, lawyer says
Speed Read Emil Bove, a top Justice Department official nominated by Trump for a lifetime seat, stands accused of encouraging government lawyers to mislead the courts and defy judicial orders
-
Mamdani upsets Cuomo in NYC mayoral primary
Speed Read Democratic socialist Zohran Mamdani beat out Andrew Cuomo in New York City's Democratic mayoral primary
-
Supreme Court clears third-country deportations
Speed Read The court allowed Trump to temporarily resume deporting migrants to countries they aren't from
-
Judges order release of 2 high-profile migrants
Speed Read Kilmar Ábrego García is back in the US and Mahmoud Khalil is allowed to go home — for now
-
US assessing bomb damage to Iran nuclear sites
Speed Read Trump claims this weekend's US bombing obliterated Tehran's nuclear program, while JD Vance insists the US is 'not at war with Iran'
-
Trump's LA deployment in limbo after court rulings
Speed Read Judge Breyer ruled that Trump's National Guard deployment to Los Angeles was an 'illegal' overreach. But a federal appellate court halted the ruling.