Late-Night Maneuver to Sell Public Lands a Lose-Lose Proposition for Wildlife, Taxpayers, Rural Communities

DENVER - Selling off our public lands to balance the federal budget is a lose-lose proposition for wildlife, clean air and water, outdoor recreation, rural communities, and taxpayers. The late-night maneuver in the House Natural Resources Committee to mandate the sale or transfer of hundreds of thousands of acres of public lands is a misguided effort that will irreversibly revoke hunting, fishing, and recreation access to public lands and waters; divert money away from improving public lands; and exclude the public from land management decisions. Once these lands are sold, the public can never use them again.

"Blindsiding the public with a late-night vote to mandate selling or transferring hundreds of thousands of acres of public lands is just plain wrong," said David Willms, associate vice president of public lands at the National Wildlife Federation. "Decades ago, Congress established reasonable procedures to facilitate appropriate land sales that involve local and national stakeholders in the process. This sell-off amendment breaks three social contracts Congress made with the public: that public lands should remain in public hands, with very few exceptions; that when one of those exceptions does apply, the government needs to do so with a process that includes ample public input; and that if land is sold, proceeds should be reinvested in improving public lands and public access."