WATCH: Hickenlooper Presses Trump’s BLM Nominee in Senate ENR Hearing on Anti-Public Lands Sentiment, Effort to Rollback Methane Regulations

Hickenlooper was the first Senator to publicly oppose Steve Pearce's nomination to lead BLM

Hickenlooper: "…When someone reveals themself to you, believe them. I think that there's a lot of distrust that you will have to work very hard to dispel."

WASHINGTON - Today, U.S. Senator John Hickenlooper, member of the Senate Energy and Natural Resources (ENR) Committee, questioned former U.S. Representative Steve Pearce, President Trump's latest nominee to be Director of the Bureau of Land Management (BLM), over his previous anti-public lands stances and the Trump administration's efforts to roll back methane emissions regulations during his confirmation hearing.

"When there were talks of selling off large amounts of public lands recently, we had over 80,000 Coloradans reach out to say that they were against any large-scale selling of public lands…" pressed Hickenlooper. "There has been huge upwellings of people concerned about your nomination over the many things you've said around selling public lands… the question is whether you are free of those past comments… Is that really something you can renounce? If you were being asked by Congress to provide input, what would you say?"

Watch his full questions HERE.

In December, Hickenlooper became the first Senator to publicly oppose Pearce's nomination to lead BLM, the largest land management agency and has consistently pushed back on his nomination. Pearce marked his time in Congress working to undermine environmental protections, open public lands for oil and gas operations, and sell public lands.

HICKENLOOPER PRESSED PEARCE ON IF HE WOULD ABANDON PAST STATEMENTS SUPPORTING THE SALE OF PUBLIC LANDS

Hickenlooper: "Colorado is deeply invested, emotionally, in our public lands. It is not just the $17 billion recreation industry but it's a sense of connection to our history, to our identity.

"When there were talks of selling off large amounts of public lands recently, we had over 80,000 Coloradans reach out to say that they were against any large-scale selling of public lands… but there has been huge upwellings of people concerned about your nomination over the many things you've said around selling public lands… The question is: are you free of those past comments - and I can read back several where you have supported the widespread sale of public lands either to pay down the deficit to get money for education or for whichever reason - is that really something you can renounce? And feel that if you were being asked by Congress to provide input, what would you say?

Pearce: "… I think that the Secretary has been clear: FLPMA (Federal Land Policy and Management Act) prohibits any large-scale sale by the Director, so it would be at the Secretary level…"

Hickenlooper: "Well but if YOU were asked by Congress for your opinion, do you still feel it will be your own personal opinion and it would be an efficient, useful process to be able to sell off more of that land if Congress was asking and that they might change that statute?"

Pearce: "…sometimes the Eastern states don't understand the role of PILT (Payments in Lieu of Taxes), and they begin to suggest that PILT should be taken away and that it is welfare for the West. And, then those conversations then take a whole different tact on the issue…"

Hickenlooper: "But if you were asked to pay PILT to sell public lands, I don't think that there would be any question. The people that are calling us and are so concerned about your nomination, that would not be a reason to begin selling public land."

Hickenlooper: "You know, one of the people calling into my office reminded me of something I had said… When someone reveals themself to you, believe them. I think that there's a lot of distrust that you will have to work very hard to dispel."

HICKENLOOPER CRITICIZED EFFORTS TO ROLL BACK METHANE REGULATIONS

Hickenlooper: "The BLM's Methane Waste Prevention Rule back in 2017 allowed us to conserve gas that would otherwise be vented or flared. It made common sense. When I was governor of Colorado, we actually sat down with the oil industry and environmental community, and we spent a year and a half creating concise, efficient regulations that did everything possible to make sure that we didn't put those harmful pollutants in the air and that we were able to get max benefit from them. And, yet now we see that the administration is trying to roll back the current rule that prevents methane waste on public lands. I think we've already proven that the energy sector can get behind dealing with this, why are we trying to pull that back?"

Pearce: "I am not familiar with the discussions that have been going on. I've had very limited contacts -"

Hickenlooper:"Let's say, would you support high standards in terms of methane waste prevention - would you support that kind of public operation on public lands?"

Pearce: "… there's a very large attempt to gather methane in particular fields and use it to generate data centers. In other words, use that methane in productive manners…"

Hickenlooper: "Well of course, but I am talking about rolling back existing regulations."

Pearce: "I am not familiar with the reasons the administration is suggesting… I don't know that I could comment on that right now."

Hickenlooper is a former geologist and one of the only scientists in the Senate. He has been outspoken against Trump administration cuts to public lands and led an effort against the admin's plans to overturn the Bureau of Land Management's (BLM) Public Lands Rule. Last March, he introduced legislation to reinstate the thousands of National Park Service and Forest Service workers the Trump administration illegally fired.

Hickenlooper also helped lead the fight against Senator Mike Lee's proposal to sell off more than three million acres of public lands. Hickenlooper first sounded the alarm back in April when he voted against the Republican budget resolution and introduced an amendment with colleagues to protect public lands from being sold to pay for Republicans' tax cuts for the ultra-wealthy.

Last May, Hickenlooper held a press conference in Estes Park with Congressman Neguse, public lands advocates, and local elected officials to call out the Trump administration's threats to Colorado's national parks and public lands, including Rocky Mountain National Park.

###