Navajo Nation plans to sue over massive mine waste spill
ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. (AP) — One of the nation's largest American Indian tribes is planning to sue over damages caused by a massive mine waste spill in southwestern Colorado.
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Bullies Try to Derail Local Control of Public Lands
This week we wish to share with you a very well-written Op-ed written by Montana Senator Jennifer Fielder, written in response to dirty politics being played by those who oppose the Transfer of Public Lands. Please look into the details for yourself and discover the revealing truth behind the actions of these political bullies.
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Offical ALC Press Release
You've likely seen the outrageous "fraud" allegation in the Salt Lake Tribune Headline yesterday. Now you can hear both sides from the Trib Talk interview today.
Read moreReps. Stewart and Bishop Launch New Federal Land Action Group
We want to make you aware of an effort by Utah Reps. Stewart and Bishop to help further the Transfer of Public Lands. We will keep you informed as to the progress of this group and their efforts.
Read moreMike Lee explains why excessive federal land ownership is a bad idea for ALL Americans.
Recently, Utah Senator Mike Lee uploaded a video that explains why excessive federal land ownership is a bad idea for ALL Americans, not just those in the West.
Read more3 Minute Message - 04/09/2015
In the battle to transfer the public lands to all willing western states, there are many battles to be fought and sometimes it can feel like an uphill battle in the pouring rain. But this week, there is good news to be had and a list of elected officials who deserve our thanks!
Read moreIn The News, April 6, 2015
Today's Headlines:
The U.S. Department of Land-Hogging; Rep. Rob Bishop Plans Public Lands Hearings on Federal Ownership; Visiting State Rep. Speaks at GOP Dinner; Amodei Introduces Large-Scale Land Transfer Bill; Letter: Stewards of Our Forests; Public Lands Debate Marred by Camouflaged Activists; Nevadans Should Have Say on Land Management Policy; Letter: Forest Service Missteps Erode Confidence in Organization;
Read moreIn The News, March 31, 2015
Today's Headlines:
Public Lands Debate Marred by Camouflaged Activists; Nevadans Should Have a Say on Land Management Policy; Federal Land Management Not a Good Deal for Americans; Idaho House OKs Interstate Federal Lands Transfer Compact; Forest Service to Hold Open House On Off-Highway Vehicle Use for Lake Tahoe; Federal Public Land Transfers Get a Congressional Boost; County Joins Lands Council; Despite Dems' Misdirection, House Approves Entry Into Federal Lands Group.
Read moreEducation Funding for Western States is Elementary
Education Funding for Western States is Elementary
By David Lifferth
How do you fund the education of your children with nearly 70 percent of your revenue-generating lands and resources tied behind your back?
Read moreIn The News, March 17, 2015
Today's Headlines:
Op-Ed: Recreation on Public Lands Drives Grand County Economy; Senate Committee Approves Proposals to Transfer Arizona's Federal Lands to State by 2020; Senators Try to Open Sportsmen's Access to Public Lands; Lincoln Day Dinner Presents Ken Ivory.
Read moreIn The News, March 9, 2015
Today's Headlines:
Burkett: Land Transfer Makes Sense; Map: Forest-Heavy Idaho Counties Take $26 Million Hit Without SRS; Committee Hears Bill on State Control of Federal Land; Commentary: Studies Contradict Opponents of Land Transfer; Who Will Control Utah's Public Lands?; Whose Forest is it? Bills Seek to Promote State Sovereignty Over Land; Commissioners Urge Land Management Study; Bill to Study Federal Land Management Passes Wyoming House.
Read more3 Minute Message - 03/04/2015
This week, a rally was held in the Utah State Rotunda, attended mostly by members of so-called environmental groups who make their living by suing the federal government over mismanagement of public lands.
The County Seat TV took their crew to the capitol and interviews many attendees, asking the simple question, "what is your definition of, or understanding of the Transfer of Public Lands?" Listening to the answers of attendees reveals the rhetoric of fear that has been promoted by opponents to the Transfer of Public Lands, rather than giving people the facts so that they can make informed decisions.
Read moreDixie Chapter of Sportsmen for Fish and Wildlife passed Resolution of Support
We are excited to announce that the Dixie chapter of Sportsmen for Fish and wildlife has passed a resolution in support of the transfer of public lands! This resolution officially sets out the negative impacts to access, health, and productivity from one size fails all federal policies and management.
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In The News, February 24, 2015
Today's Headlines:
Monument or Wilderness? It Makes a Difference to Bikers; State Moves Forward on federal Public Lands Bid; For Pollution's Sake; Study of Federal Lands Proceeds through Wyoming House.
Read more3 Minute Message - 02/18/2015
Throughout the United States, several states are working simultaneously on bills to help improve the health, access, and productivity of our public lands. These bills are helping to look towards the transfer of those public lands to the states wherein they lie, as a means to help preserve them for generations to come, while still providing for the access we all cherish and the productivity we rely on.
Read moreIn The News, February 17, 2015
Today's Headlines:
Missouri: Transfer of Public Lands Champion; Op-ed: Despite Rhetoric, Utah is Quite Capable of Managing Federal Lands; Public Safety Concerns Prompt Emergency Wild Horse Roundup; Rural Lawmakers Back Federal Land Transfer Report; Debate Over Idaho Public Lands Management Sees Shift; Policy Not Politics Should Fuel Public Land Debate; Bills Call for Task Force to Study Federal Land Transfer; Public Lands Issue Debated in Montana Legislature.
Read moreMy View: Public Lands in the East and West - Why the Difference?
By Ken Ivory
You have likely seen the red and white map - the federal government controls more than 50 percent of all land in the western states, but less than 5 percent of lands in states east of Colorado. Why the difference?
Several have asserted it is because western lands are arid; therefore, the federal government keeps them forever. Oregon, Washington, and Alaska are the states with the most precipitation, and yet they have 53 percent, 45 percent, and 62 percent federally controlled lands respectively. So much for "arid."
Read moreIn the News, February 10, 2015
Today's Headlines:
Stop Public Land Sales, Start Studying Transfer; Letter: What are Public Lands?; Battle Brewing Over Changes to Public Land Rules; Thompson Falls Lawmaker Presents Bill Transferring Federal Land Management to State; Editorial Board: Discussion Needed on State Land Use; Bedke Says Law to Extend Federal Lands Committee Coming.
Read moreEnvironmentalists and Public Lands
By: Darin Bushman, Piute County, Utah Commissioner
Environmental organizations have made a business of suing the Federal Government over its mismanagement of public lands. A simple Google search will reveal pages of litigation. However, a strange turn of events has unfolded in the last 12 months as the Transfer of Public Lands movement has gain traction in the west.
Read moreIn The News, January 30, 2015
Today's Headlines:
Federal Lands Fight Continues as Session Starts; Bills in Play to Improve Access to Public Lands; Bushman: Environmentalists and Public Lands.
Read moreFight is On: Utah Issues Dec. 31 Deadline to Feds
The fight over land ownership between states and the federal government in the US has been brewing for over a century now, as the feds own much of the land in this country. Originally, the feds took much land with the supposed intention of giving it back to the states, but they've failed to do that over the past 100 years. Now, Utah wants its land back, as the feds own about 65% of the state. They've given the feds until Dec 31 to give them back their land, and the feds show no interest in complying. Get the popcorn ready - it's time to fight over land rights in the US. The Resident discusses.
Read moreFight Is ON: Utah Issues Dec 31 Deadline to Feds Over Lands
The national government of Canada is cooperating in good faith and has transferred lands, water and resources to its provinces and territories -- but NOT the United States. With all that's going on in the world and the economy, shouldn't the federal government focus on doing well those things that only it can do -- like world peace and a sound monetary system? Why won't the federal government honor the very same statehood terms to Utah and the Western states to transfer the public lands that it already honored with all States east of Colorado so that these lands can be managed by those whose lives and livelihoods most depend upon the wise stewardship of the lands?
Word of our federal government's blatantly unequal, discriminatory treatment of the western states is getting out internationally. Watch and share this RT News Report and, if you are ready to take a stand, Sign & Share this Petition.
Why Utah’s Federal Lands Fight Matters in Oklahoma [and all points East] - Part 5 of 5
This is the fifth in five-part series about federal lands by Trent England of the Oklahoma Council for Public Affairs - www.OCPAThink.org.
Legislation adopted in Utah calls on the federal government to transfer certain of these lands to the state. It set a deadline of December 31, 2014.
Just 1.6% of the land that comprises Oklahoma is owned by the federal government. In Utah, where state officials are leading an effort to reduce federal land ownership, that number is 66.5%. Yet there are good reasons why Oklahomans and all Americans should support Utah’s legal and political challenge to Washington, D.C.’s power.
States Can Manage Public Lands - Part 4 of 5
This is the fourth in five-part series about federal lands by Trent England of the Oklahoma Council for Public Affairs - www.OCPAThink.org.
Legislation adopted in Utah calls on the federal government to transfer certain of these lands to the state. It set a deadline of December 31, 2014.
A division cuts across the continental United States. In the 11 western states, the federal government owns nearly half the land (47.3%). In the 37 states to their east, just 4% of the land is federal. In five states, including New York, the federal government owns less than 1% of the land.
Given these numbers, Utah’s insistence that the federal government turn over resource lands in that state is hardly radical. All Utah wants is to be treated like every other state east of Colorado.
This East-West division is the result of a history of federal foot-dragging and eventual reneging on a policy of treating states as equals by giving them control over their own lands (other than those retained by the federal government for a constitutionally enumerated purpose; more on the history is in parts two and three of this series).
Summary of Utah Economic Analysis Report
Summary of the Utah Economic Analysis on Public Lands released December 2014.
Read moreComplete Utah Economic Analysis, Dec. 2014
Complete report by Utah State University, University of Utah, and Weber State University proving that Utah CAN afford to manage it's own public lands.
Read moreIntertech Public Land Management Report Tables: Utah
Research tables providing statistics on Utah's Public Lands revenue by Intertech Research.
Sutherland's Legal Review of UT's HB 148
Becky Ivory introduces Sutherland's Legal Review of UT's HB148, the Transfer of Public Lands Act. This paper was released on 12-5-13.
Trib Talk: Does Public Land Transfer to Utah Pencil Out?
Debate hosted by The Salt Lake Tribune featuring SUWA Legal Counsel and UT Rep. Ken Ivory.
Read moreIn the News, Nobember 13, 2014
Today's Headlines: Tomorrow's listing decision for Gunnison grouse will ruffle feathers; New organization to help reduce wildfire threat; State, county leaders push for park expansion in San Rafael Swell; San Marcos Wilderness Park Growing; Video: Veterans Day tribute showcases America’s public lands; A perplexing direction taken on BLM lands; Idaho BLM's new artist-in-residence program shows off wildlands in a new way
Read moreIn the News, November 10, 2014
Today's Headlines: Gartersnake protection lawsuit to cite grazing; Cow Prices Jump Over the Moon; Top federal officials gathered in Boise say endangered listing for sage grouse can be avoided; Supervisors endorse making Lake Berryessa a national monument; Federal parks, monuments to waive fees; My Turn: Somerville's opinion hypocritical; A trail divided: Future of Mantua-area public lands stirs debate; Will Cell Phone Companies Ruin National Parks by Installing Wi-Fi in the Wilderness?; Commission asks for congressman to aid in ranching dispute
Read moreWhat is the Transfer of Public Lands Act
Ken Ivory explains Utah's House Bill 148, passed in 2012, The Transfer of Public Lands Act.
How will the transfer of public lands act affect the economy?
Ken Ivory explains why the Transfer of Public Lands Act is the only solution big enough to save our failing economy.
Complete Episode: The County Seat: TPLA, 2013
Complete Episode of The County Seat which aired in 2013
Read moreVideo: “Why TPLA? It’s About State Sovereignty”
TPL is all about giving states claim to their Constitutionally given sovereignty.
Read moreVideo: “What are the Constitutional Issues involved with TPLA?”
An overview of the constitutional arguments for and against TPLA.
Read moreVideo: “What Has Happened Since TPLA Was Signed Into Law?”
Alan Gardner and Ken Ivory give an update on the second anniversary of the signing of the Transfer of Public Lands Act.
Read moreWhat Will Happen to Public Lands After They are Transferred?
Ken Ivory and Alan Gardner explain what will happen to the lands once they are transferred to state control: Federal Public Lands become State Public Lands
Read moreWhat are the Biggest Myths about TPLA?
There are a lot of myths surrounding TPLA. Find the truth here.
Speech on Public Land Policies – UT Gov. George H. Dern, 1929
Former UT Governor Dern's Speech in reaction to the federal government offering only surface rights to western states
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UTAH HB 148 2012 – Transfer of Public Lands Act and Related Study
This bill addresses issues related to public lands, including the transfer of title to public lands to the state and requiring the Constitutional Defense Council to
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Summary of UT 2014 Transfer of Public Lands Legislation
A summary of all TPL related legislation that passed the Utah legislature during the 2014 session
Read moreVideo: Overview of Utah’s 2014 TPL Legislation with Chad Booth and Mark Ward
An overview of Transfer of Public Lands related legislation that passed the Utah Legislature in 2014
Read moreVideo: Overview of UT’s HB 158 (2014) with Chad Booth and Mark Ward
An overview of Utah's 2014 HB 158: "Grazing and Timber Agricultural Commodity Zones in Utah"
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Article: “Feds Need to Let Up, and Give To Utah What is Utah’s” – Forbes
Article That Appeared in Forbes Magazine in August of 2013. Feds Need to Let Up, and Give To Utah What is Utah's
Read moreArticle: “Reason Foundation Innovators in Action 2013: Pursuing Fiscal Self-Reliance in Utah”
Utah State Representative Ken Ivory has been a leader in the pursuit of fiscal self-reliance in Utah, with regard
Read moreArticle: “The Economic Value of Energy Resources on Federal Lands in Utah”
There is more than $150 Trillion in minerals in western states. That is nine times our national debt!
Read more1915 UT Senate Lands Resolution
"A Memorial asking for a More Liberal National Policy in the Disposition of the Public Domain and Urging that the Natural Resources of the State of Utah
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In the News, November 6, 2014
Today's Headlines: Forest Service Photo Rules Won't Apply to Media; Searching for clues in case of missing San Gabriels National Monument: Larry Wilson; Our federal landlord has done Colorado no favors; "Our Energy Policy is Insane: This is the Inconvenient Truth”; San Bernardino National Forest Signs Record of Decision for Land Management Plan Amendment; BLM plan would tag more of Southern Nevada for protection; Land users angry about land swap, county may consider alternatives; Guest Opinion: Forest Service filming rules need to go
Read moreReply to Heinrich - The only one “seizing” federal lands is Uncle Sam
In the News, November 3, 2014
Today's Headlines: Time for an Endangered Species Act makeover; The only one ‘seizing’ federal lands is Uncle Sam; Utah Governor Pushing For Regulatory Primacy on Federal Lands; Washington County condemns BLM for Recapture Canyon closure, Blanding; calls for reopening; ‘Grass March’ Turned Out to Be Final Ride for Original Sagebrush Rebel.
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In the News October 31, 2014
Today's Headlines: The celebration of the sesquicentennial of Nevada’s ‘statehood’ may be a bit premature; A Public Lands Controversy In The Great American West; Group wants environmental reviews ahead of grazing; The BLM fails to provide public records; Legal scholars challenge underpinnings of Utah’s public lands campaign
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In the News October 30, 2014
Today's Headlines: Washington v. the People: The Solution to Today's Land War; Land of the Free, or Land of the Federal?; No, The Transfer of Public Lands Does not Mean "Privatization"; Bureaucratic blunder of San Gabriel Mountains National Monument: Guest commentary; Opportunity Lost? I don't think so...;
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Feeling pushed by lands ‘poll’? Sutherland Soapbox, 10/21/14
This post is a transcript of a 4-minute weekly radio commentary aired on several Utah radio stations.
Read moreIn the News, October 29th 2014
Today's Headlines: Sen. Reid quietly moves to block development of 800,000 acres in central Nevada; Ranchers talk transferring fed's land to states; State Sovereignty at Its Most Basic: Control of Land; Feeling pushed by lands ‘poll’? Sutherland Soapbox, 10/21/14
Read moreState Sovereignty is, at its Most Basic, The Control of Land
by Karla Jones
State sovereignty at its most basic is the ability of a state to control its own land. Earlier this month, 95 state and locally elected officials joined a variety of experts from 14 states in Salt Lake City to draft and ratify a statement calling for land currently held by the federal government to be transferred to the states. Officials at the summit included Alaska’s Lieutenant Governor Mead Treadwell; Utah Speaker of the House Becky Lockhart and state Senator Jennifer Fielder of Montana.
Read moreCommission on the Stewardship of Public Lands - Utah Association of Counties Meeting_Sept 2014
These leaders and supporters of American Lands Council understand the need for the Transfer of Public lands--transferring the public lands held by the federal government in the Western states into state hands and local control (see our policy statement for full details). Watch the videos below to see what they all have to say and learn more.
Read moreIn the News October 16-21 2014
Today's Headlines: Commissioner pleads not guilty to charges stemming from ATV protest ride; Richard Leib: Just Leave Us Alone; Simpson Makes Another Run at Central Idaho Wilderness; Grazing Wars: Grass March Cowboys Ride to Capitol Hill; SAN GABRIELS: Locals have mountains of questions on new monument; Lawmakers vent to feds, assert forest fire inaction; The West’s Fight for Self-Government; BLM Employees Charged Taxpayers $799,000 for 'Gift Cards'; Commissioner Leads Charge For County to Jump in Water Lawsuit; Harvey attends American Lands Council conference
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Oct 2014 Press Conference
This 34 minute Press Conference answers many of the questions people have about the Transfer of Public Lands. Share this with your friends, family colleagues and elected officials and help dispel the myths.
Utah
Polls With Agendas: Don’t Trust Every Poll
Recently the Center for American Progress conducted a so-called bipartisan poll on whether the public thinks it is a good idea to transfer public lands to state control. The following are Carl Graham’s thoughts on this issue.
This is a silly poll designed by a left wing advocacy group and conducted by a Democratic polling firm to support a specific outcome by asking one-sided questions of very few people. If either the Center for American Progress or the polling company were capable of being embarrassed, there would be enough red on their faces to win a Raggedy Ann contest. But as their purpose was simply to advance a point of view, I’m sure they consider their effort a success.
Read moreUpdate from Sen. Fielder: No Losers in Public Land Transfer
“There are no losers to what we are going to propose,” said Kane County Commissioner Doug Heaton, a founding member of American Lands Council (ALC).
“Let me be really clear about this,” he said as he explained why he has taken a leadership role in compelling congress to transfer federal lands to the states. “We are not AGAINST anybody. We are FOR managing the resources so we don’t actually burn our forests to the ground, destroy our watersheds, or kill millions of animals in the process. We are FOR not putting more pollution into the environment — than all our industrial processes combined — because of mismanagement and the wildfires that are occurring.
Read more#TransferPublicLands “So much bigger than one rancher in Nevada.”
Washington Times, DENVER — Behind the hoopla surrounding Nevada rancher Cliven Bundy’s standoff with the Bureau of Land Management is a growing resentment over the federal government’s status as the largest landowner in the West.
“This is so much bigger than one rancher in Nevada,” Utah state Rep. Ken Ivory, who heads the American Lands Council, said in an April 23 online debate sponsored by The Salt Lake Tribune.
How much land does the federal government own? A 2012 Congressional Research Survey said the federal government owns about 640 million acres, or 28 percent of the nation’s land mass. Roughly 90 percent of that property is in the West.
Put another way, one out of every two acres in the West is federally owned. In Nevada, the figure is 81.1 percent; in Alaska, 61.8 percent; in Utah, 66.5 percent; in Oregon, 53 percent. In Connecticut and Iowa, the federal government owns 0.3 percent of the land.
Read moreBYU Law Review-Fed Govt’s Duty to Dispose of Public
Recent legislation passed in March 2012 in the State of Utah — the “Transfer of Public Lands Act and Related Study,” (“TPLA”) also commonly referred to as House Bill 148 (“H.B. 148”) — has demanded that the federal government, by December 31, 2014, “extinguish title” to certain public lands that the federal government currently holds (totaling an estimated more than 20 million acres). It also calls for the transfer of such acreage to the State and establishes procedures for the development of a management regime for this increased state portfolio of land holdings resulting from the transfer. The State of Utah claims that the federal government made promises to it (at statehood when the federal government obtained the lands) that the federal ownership would be of limited duration and that the bulk of those lands would be timely disposed of by the federal government into private ownership or otherwise returned to the State.
Read morePursuing Fiscal Self-Reliance in Utah: Rep. Ken Ivory Interview with Reason Magazine
Gilroy: You’ve also been engaged on issues related to western lands—specifically the large amount of federal ownership of land in western states—which plays into this state self-reliance concept as well. How did you get involved in that?
Read moreSchool board adopts Transfer of Public Lands Resolution
by Tracy Hiscock Southen Utah New, February 13, 2014
The Kane School Board, at the February 6 meeting of the Kane County Board of Education, passed a resolution “Supporting the full and present implementation of the Transfer of Public Lands Act (Utah House Bill 148 -2012).”
Utah Ends 2014 Session With Package of Transfer Bills
Sutherland Institute, March 24, 2014
The Utah Legislature adjourned with a nice package of bills to support the state’s Transfer of Public Lands (TPLA) initiative. Since they’ve already passed a bill demanding transfer, the next step is to address what happens to the lands when that transfer occurs.
Read moreReason Magazine: Take Back The Land
In 2012, Utah passed the Transfer of Public Lands Act, a law that essentially demanded that the federal government surrender the two-thirds of state territory it controls. Other western states, including Arizona, Wyoming, New Mexico, Colorado, Nevada, and Idaho, are now considering similar measures. Now Utah has gone a step further: planning for a future that isn’t funded by federal largesse.
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