The current version of the Republican budget bill could potentially sell more than 2 million acres of public land in 11 states. The proposal has also attracted criticism from conservation groups, hunting organisations, local officials and conservative leaders.
what happened: Senator Mike Lee (R-Utah) heads the Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee and includes provisions in the draft budget bill that approves the sale of federal land. According to In The proposal reflects a longstanding goal among Western conservatives to establish more local control over federal lands.
While national parks and designated wilderness areas will be excluded, Lee said the targeted parcels are “isolated” and are suitable for housing and infrastructure. “Washington proves that it cannot be managed over and over again, and this bill places it on a better hand,” Lee argued in a video posted by his office.
Lee faces opposition from within his party, and similar provisions for sale of land have already been rejected by the House.
Ryan Zinke (R-Mont.) led the effort to remove the land sales provisions from the house version, declaring such a proposal as “hard no.”
See: Peter Schiff predicts a “greater financial crisis” than in 2008, as the Fed holds interest rates. “The solution includes much higher interest rates.”
Why is it important?: According to estimates from the Wilderness Society, this policy could potentially make more than 250 million acres vulnerable. Michael Carroll of the Wilderness Association was called “the betrayal of future generations.” Senator Martin Heinrich (D-NM) Ranking Democrats on the Senate Energy Committee warned that the outcome was a loss of public access to precious outdoor spaces, resulting in negligible benefits to housing supply.
Environmental advocate Benji Backer called the “loser issue” a “loser issue” in a social media post, adding that “I have never seen so many conservatives and liberals stand together, as I have seen in opposition to this proposed mass sales of public land.”
A recent YouGov poll showed that 71% of Americans do not agree to such land sales, including a majority of both Trump and Harris voters.
In March, the Trump administration reportedly established a task force to develop new homes to address the national shortage to identify the right sections from 650 million acres of federal land. In the same month, the president Donald Trump It also signed an executive order to expand logging on 280 million acres of federal land, aiming to avoid environmental protection measures and promote the sale of wood.
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