Senate Proposal Set to Sell Upwards of 3 Million Acres of Public Land

Late Wednesday evening, a Senate proposal to sell or transfer 2 to 3 million acres of public land across 11 Western states ignited a firestorm of opposition from hunters, anglers, and conservationists. Introduced by Sen. Mike Lee (R-UT), chair of the Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee, the plan is tucked into the federal budget reconciliation bill, dubbed the “One Big Beautiful Bill Act.” If passed, it would mark the largest federal land sale in modern U.S. history.

If you feel like you might be having a moment of deja vu, it’s because you are. If you’ll recall, at the beginning of May, the House made some late night moves of a similar fashion in an effort to sell off a bunch of public land in Nevada and Utah - a move that was swiftly (and thankfully) defeated.

And just as we were all cleaning up the celebratory champagne bottles, a new Senate proposal was dropped in our laps. In a sobering move, Wednesday’s draft bill is targeting Bureau of Land Management (BLM) and U.S. Forest Service lands in Alaska, Arizona, California, Colorado, Idaho, Nevada, New Mexico, Oregon, Utah, Washington, and Wyoming. 

The details of the bill include mandating the sale of 0.5 to 0.75% of these agencies’ holdings after consulting state governors, with proceeds funneled to the U.S. Treasury rather than reinvested in public lands. Unlike national parks or wildlife refuges, which are spared, these BLM and Forest Service lands are prime for hunting, fishing, and outdoor activities that help fuel an $887 billion recreation economy.

Sen. Lee, a long-time advocate for reducing federal land ownership, argues that the government’s control of one-third of U.S. real estate - or 70% in his home state of Utah - is unsustainable. He frames the sales as a solution to housing shortages, promising economic growth and community development. The proposal revives Lee’s HOUSES Act, which has stalled in prior years, and escalates the aforementioned House amendment to sell 500,000 acres in Utah and Nevada, which as we said, was struck down after public outcry.

You likely noticed that the state of Montana was left off of Sen. Lee’s public land hitlist. While the sentiment around this decision varies, it’s likely some sort of token of goodwill given that both Montana Senators Steve Daines and Tim Sheehy have publicly opposed public land sales in the past. When it comes to collecting signatures, Lee needs both Daines and Sheehy to pick up a pen, so it’s likely that Lee is attempting to give their shoulders a rub in hopes of securing some support.

But even with some shiatsu massage sprinkled in, it’s going to be an uphill battle for Lee. If, in the event, he is able to punch this through the Senate, he’ll need the Public Land Caucus, which consists of 16 members from both parties, to sign off on it. 

At this point, there is still time before this thing gets past the Senate and it remains incredibly likely that some sort of amendment is coming. Anyone wishing to make their voices heard should be harassing their senators right about now.