Washington, D.C. — Colorado U.S. Senator Michael Bennet and Congressman Joe Neguse released the following statement after Senate Republicans added a provision to the budget reconciliation bill to mandate the sale of up to 3.3 million acres of public land in the West:
“Colorado, like so many Western states, is proud to be home to millions of acres of treasured public lands — places people from across the country and around the world flock to for outdoor recreation and to experience the natural beauty of the outdoors. Auctioning off these lands to pay for President Trump’s radical agenda, including the prioritization of tax cuts for billionaires and big corporations, is an affront to our core values. We must continue to stand in firm opposition to any provisions that would put a for sale sign on our nation’s treasured public lands.”
The updated budget bill text would require the Bureau of Land Management and the U.S. Forest Service to sell public lands under their jurisdiction in Colorado, Alaska, Arizona, California, Idaho, Nevada, New Mexico, Oregon, Utah, Washington, and Wyoming. In an effort to secure the votes of Senators Daines and Sheehy, Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee Chair Mike Lee exempted Montana from the provision.
Bennet has long championed efforts to protect Colorado’s public lands. Last month, Bennet joined Colorado U.S. Senator John Hickenlooper and Congressman Jeff Hurd to introduce the Gunnison Outdoor Resources Protection (GORP) Act to protect over 730,000 acres of public land in the greater Gunnison Basin. Also last month, Bennet and Hickenlooper reintroduced the Dolores River National Conservation Area and Special Management Area Act to protect over 68,000 acres in the southern portion of the Dolores River basin. In February of this year, Bennet, Neguse, and Hickenlooper reintroduced the Colorado Outdoor Recreation and Economy (CORE) Act to protect 420,000 acres of public land in Colorado, establish new wilderness areas, and safeguard existing outdoor recreation opportunities to boost the economy for future generations.
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