For Immediate Release: 

May 7, 2025 

Contact: 

[email protected]

MISSOULA, Mont. – Less than a week after expressing cautious optimism over the exclusion of public land sales in the House Republicans’ budget proposal, Backcountry Hunters & Anglers (BHA) is condemning a late-night maneuver that sidestepped stakeholder engagement and ignored conservation impacts. Just before midnight, members of the House Natural Resources Committee advanced an amendment authorizing the sale of upwards of 500,000 acres of public lands in Utah and Nevada. The surprise provision was opposed by all Democratic members of the committee and Representative Jeff Hurd (R-CO). 

The amendment, inserted into the reconciliation bill without adequate time for analysis or committee-wide consultation, would use the relatively minimal revenue generated from the land sales as negligible offset to a budget expected to reach almost $7 trillion – circumventing the intent of the Federal Land Transaction Facilitation Act (FLTFA), a bipartisan law BHA supports and worked to make permanent. 

“This amendment isn’t just a backdoor land sale – it’s a deliberate effort to circumvent a process that was thoughtfully designed to protect and improve our nation’s public lands,” said Devin O'Dea, Western Policy and Conservation Manager for BHA. “FLTFA was established so that any sale of federal lands would serve the public interest, with proceeds used to acquire high-priority conservation lands. This last-minute maneuver violates that principle and sets a dangerous precedent that could very easily pave the way for larger-scale land disposals in the future.” 

Additional Cause for Concern 

Beyond the reintroduction of public land sales, the broader budget package still includes provisions that warrant serious scrutiny, including: 

• Changes to the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) that could limit environmental review and weaken safeguards for public access, wildlife habitat, and water quality 

• Rollbacks to land management plans affecting millions of acres across the West 

• Cuts to conservation funding for federal land management agencies 

• Amendments to the Alaska National Interest Lands Conservation Act (ANILCA) that risk undermining protections for key landscapes like Alaska’s Brooks Range 

• Reversal of a 20-year mineral withdrawal from the Superior National Forest in Minnesota that threatens conservation of the Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness 

BHA is calling on members of Congress to uphold their commitments to public access, habitat protection, and responsible land management by rejecting policies that undermine the integrity of our public lands. 

“Public lands aren’t just assets on a ledger — they’re woven into the fabric of our communities and our American identity," O'Dea added. "When federal lands are sold or developed without consent from the constituents who use and care for them, we erode public trust and bipartisan commitments to strengthen - not siphon - our public lands legacy.” 

The Federal Land Transaction Facilitation Act 

Passed as part of the John D. Dingell, Jr. Conservation, Management, and Recreation Act, the permanent authorization of FLTFA ensures that revenue generated from the sale of small, low-value federal parcels is reinvested into acquiring new public access, wildlife habitat, and recreational lands – often at the request of local communities. Using public land sales as a short-term budget fix ignores that commitment and threatens the future of America's public lands legacy. 

BHA urges its members and supporters to stay engaged, and take action, as the budget bill advances. The fight to keep public lands in public hands is far from over.

TAKE ACTION

Backcountry Hunters & Anglers seeks to ensure North America's outdoor heritage of hunting and fishing in a natural setting, through education and work on behalf of wild public lands, waters, and wildlife. To learn more about issues important to BHA’s membership, visit https://www.backcountryhunters.org/our_issues.