Following increasing pressure by sportsmen and others to keep public lands under public ownership, state legislators announce decision to amend suit, which would have cost Utah taxpayers $14 million SALT LAKE CITY – In the wake of rapidly escalating opposition by sportsmen and other citizens to attempts to sell, transfer or seize the public estate, Utah legislators have backpedaled on a lawsuit that would have claimed ownership of public lands and waters that lie within the state’s ...

WASHINGTON – Following today’s introduction in the U.S. House of Representatives of a bipartisan resolution affirming the value of America’s public lands, Backcountry Hunters & Anglers President and CEO Land Tawney offered the following response: “Loudly and consistently, American sportsmen have raised our voices in support of our public lands and waters. We the people have spoken, yet some of our elected officials are slow to hear us – and continue to plot ways to steal from citizens our ...

82,000-plus acres of prized fish and wildlife habitat to be privatized; public access a question mark under future ownership SALEM, Ore. – Despite widespread support from sportsmen, conservationists and the public at large to work cooperatively on options to keep the Elliott State Forest publicly accessible, the state of Oregon moved forward on Tuesday with a plan to privatize the Elliott, Oregon’s oldest state forest and a destination for generations of hunters, anglers and other outdoor ...

On Jan. 24, Rep. Jason Chaffetz of Utah introduced the Local Enforcement for Local Lands Act (H.R. 622) in the U.S. House of Representatives. H.R. 622 would eliminate federal law enforcement officers on America’s national forests and Bureau of Land Management lands, leaving hundreds of millions of acres vulnerable to abuse and lawless behavior, taxing state and local authorities and fundamentally compromising American’s safety, both in and around public lands. The following is a recording of ...

Rep. Jason Chaffetz announced decision to abandon H.R. 621, which would have seized millions of acres of public lands and waters WASHINGTON - Following pressure from Backcountry Hunters & Anglers and numerous other sportsmen's interests and businesses, Rep. Jason Chaffetz announced last night his decision to abandon H.R. 621, legislation that would have mandated the sale of more than 3 million acres of public lands in Utah, Arizona, Colorado, Idaho, Montana, Nebraska, Nevada, New Mexico, ...

WASHINGTON – As members of the Senate meet this afternoon to hold a hearing on Rep. Ryan Zinke, nominated as secretary of the Interior by the Trump administration, Backcountry Hunters & Anglers President and CEO Land Tawney issued the following statement: “Rep. Zinke, as a sportsman and lifelong public lands user, is well positioned to appreciate the critical role played by these lands and waters in our national economy, our outdoor traditions and our identity as Americans. Backcountry ...

Public opportunities to legally fish, hunt or float Utah waterways could be decided this week SALT LAKE CITY – Years of legal uncertainty surrounding public access of Utah streams and waterways soon could be resolved, as the Utah Supreme Court prepares to issue a ruling on a controversial state law prohibiting public access on waters that cross private property. On Monday, the court heard oral arguments on Utah’s stream access law. At issue is the public’s ability to access waters that ...

Bill introduced today would permanently reauthorize popular, effective conservation program WASHINGTON – Bipartisan legislation introduced in the U.S. House of Representatives this morning would permanently reauthorize the Land and Water Conservation Fund, the nation’s most popular and successful access program. Introduced by Patrick Meehan, a Republican from Pennsylvania, and Raul Grijalva, a Democrat from Arizona, the bill mirrors legislation from the 114th Congress that was widely ...

The newest issue of Backcountry Hunters & Anglers magazine is available today MISSOULA, Mont. – The winter issue of Backcountry Journal is arriving in BHA members’ mailboxes now. Here’s a taste of what you'll find inside: Is Wildlife Viewing the New Hunting?: In 1960, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service counted almost 14 million hunting license holders in the U.S. Despite there being 140 million more Americans today, hunter numbers haven’t changed. But wildlife watching is on the rise. Ed ...

Final lease retirements safeguard critical fish and wildlife habitat,  culminate decades-long effort by hunters, anglers, others   HELENA, Mont. – Montana hunters and anglers are celebrating following the secretary of Interior’s cancellation of the last remaining oil and gas leases in some of the finest big game habitat and native fisheries in North America: the Badger-Two Medicine area of the Lewis and Clark National Forest.  Following 35 years of legal and political battles over leases ...