Look West: Public lands and energy news from the Center for Western Priorities
** Lee releases a new plan to sell off public land. It's still bad
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Thursday, June 26, 2025
A biker on Lunch Loops Trail within 5 miles of Grand Junction, Colorado. BLM Colorado, Flickr ([link removed])
Utah Senator Mike Lee released a new version ([link removed]) of his unpopular plan to sell off public land across the West after his first attempt received vehement pushback ([link removed]) from the public and was flagged ([link removed]) for violating Senate rules.
The new plan does not include U.S. Forest Service land, but it still requires the Bureau of Land Management to sell up to 1.2 million acres of national public land. This is limited to land within 5 miles of "population centers"—a vague, undefined term that could apply to lands near virtually any community.
Despite narrowing the scope of his proposal, Lee will likely continue to receive strong backlash from the public. According to ([link removed]) the 2025 Conservation in the West Poll, 82 percent of Westerners prefer building more housing within or close to existing communities over selling off public lands to develop housing.
Lawmakers are quietly trying to hand over millions of acres of public land to oil and gas companies
In a new blog post ([link removed]) , Center for Western Priorities Communications Manager Kate Groetzinger describes how Lee's proposed public lands sales aren't the only attack on public lands nestled in the budget reconciliation bill. Quietly making their way through Congress are provisions ([link removed]) to sell out millions of acres of our public lands to oil and gas companies for a fraction of the current cost, allowing them to lock up millions of acres in drilling leases and putting even more money into the pockets of corporations and billionaires.
** Quick hits
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Lee's revised plan would sell up to 1.2M acres of public lands
The Hill ([link removed]) | Utah News Dispatch ([link removed])
National parks scramble to fill top leadership positions, but fix could create more vacancies
Government Executive ([link removed])
Colorado oil and gas official picked for top BLM post
E&E News ([link removed])
Lawmakers are quietly trying to hand over millions of acres of public land to oil and gas companies
Westwise ([link removed])
Public land advocates: Mike Lee's new land sale plan is 'just a different pile of dog sh*t'
Outdoor Life ([link removed])
A plan to sell public land near this Colorado town looks dead. Here's why
New York Times ([link removed])
As Wyoming protests, public land sell-off ‘just getting started’
WyoFile ([link removed])
Opinion: We're not willing to give up a single acre of public land, Senator Lee
RideApart ([link removed])
** Quote of the day
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” It’s still a pile of dog sh*t, it’s just a different pile of dog sh*t. He just doesn’t get it.”
—Randy Newberg, TV personality and Montana-based hunter, on Senator Mike Lee's revised public lands sell-off, Outdoor Life ([link removed])
** Picture This
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@usinterior ([link removed])
"You look great, not a day over 4,000."
Bristlecone pines are among the oldest living organisms on Earth. Shaped by wind, snow, and time, they've endured ice ages, volcanic eruptions, and the rise and fall of empires. Their secret to longevity is thriving in harsh, high-altitude environments.
You can find these ancient survivors at places like @greatbasinnp ([link removed]) in Nevada and the Ancient Bristlecone Pine Forest, managed by @u.s.forestservice ([link removed]) , in California.
Photos by Ross Stone and Thomas Sikora
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