Grand Staircase-Escalante National Monument Management Plan Protected from Senator Lee’s Fast-Track Attempt to Revoke it

Salt Lake City - Efforts from Senator Mike Lee to fast-track an attack on the Grand Staircase-Escalante National Monument Management Plan using the Congressional Review Act (CRA) have failed. The CRA includes a provision that allows the Senate to pass a "joint resolution of disapproval" targeting an administrative action via a simple majority, but it must act within 60 Senate session days after that action is entered into the Congressional Record. Thursday, June 11, was day 60. If Senator Lee seeks to bring it up for consideration, the resolution is now subject to the 60-vote filibuster.

The Grand Staircase-Escalante National Monument Management Plan was carefully shaped after years of input from Tribes, local officials, and community members. Now, the existing plan that outlines how the lands will be managed for recreation, camping, and outdoor access, and collaboration with Tribal Nations, will remain upheld.

The resolution to use the CRA to undermine protections for the Monument was led by Senator Lee and Representative Celeste Maloy, who have notoriously acted against the Monument's protection and have failed in attempts to sell-off public lands.

Had the CRA resolution passed, the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) wouldn't have been able to reissue a plan "substantially the same" in nature to what was originally submitted for the Monument, undermining the progress made to safeguard the extraordinary landscape that is home to the towering stone arches, winding slot canyons, and culturally significant sites.

"Grand Staircase-Escalante National Monument is a defining landscape for our state," said Franque Bains, Chapter Director of the Sierra Club in Utah. "Utahns treasure public lands, and don't want to see them destroyed by extractive industry. Years of intersectional input and stewardship across local communities have gone into the Grand Staircase-Escalante's National Monument management plan, reflecting the collaborative and careful spirit that is necessary to safeguard the places we love and cherish. We want to see Grand Staircase-Escalante National Monument protected and safeguarded, not commodified."

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About the Sierra Club

The Sierra Club is America's largest and most influential grassroots environmental organization, with millions of members and supporters. In addition to protecting every person's right to get outdoors and access the healing power of nature, the Sierra Club works to promote clean energy, safeguard the health of our communities, protect wildlife, and preserve our remaining wild places through grassroots activism, public education, lobbying, and legal action. For more information, visit https://www.sierraclub.org.