Look West: Public lands and energy news from the Center for Western Priorities
** Did Congress just invalidate thousands of oil and gas leases?
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Friday, October 17, 2025
Rawlins Field Office in Wyoming. Bureau of Land Management ([link removed])
The Senate passed three bills ([link removed]) last week overturning established land-use plans in Montana, North Dakota, and Alaska under the Congressional Review Act ([link removed]) (CRA), marking the first time the CRA has ever been applied to land management plans since its inception in 1996.
What the Senate failed to consider is the way these unprecedented bills could invalidate ([link removed]) every resource management plan, including every oil, gas, and mineral lease issued under those plans.
Just as the Center for Western Priorities warned might happen ([link removed]) , a draft lawsuit being circulated in Washington claims the federal government unlawfully issued thousands of permits in Wyoming because they aren't consistent with any valid resource management plan.
“Congress has now confirmed that each and every RMP in Wyoming—and many across the nation—is legally invalid because none of the RMPs were ever submitted to Congress under the Congressional Review Act (CRA),” reads ([link removed]) the draft lawsuit. “This means that each and every oil, gas, and mineral lease, drilling permit, and other authorization issued pursuant to those RMPs is also invalid.”
In Wyoming alone, BLM field offices have issued 2,599 oil and gas leases on nearly 2.2 million acres since the CRA was signed into law.
What the shutdown means for public lands
In the latest episode ([link removed]) of The Landscape podcast, Aaron talks to Rep. Jared Huffman ([link removed]) , ranking member of the House Natural Resources Committee ([link removed]) , about the government shutdown, whether Adelita Grijalva ([link removed]) will ever get sworn in, and what he tells people who ask what’s bringing him hope in this dark time.
** Quick hits
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Interior planning layoffs despite court order, unions say
Bloomberg Law ([link removed]) | E&E News ([link removed])
State, greens seek emergency order for salmon at Northwest dams
E&E News ([link removed])
Judge dismisses young climate activists’ lawsuit challenging Trump on fossil fuels
Associated Press ([link removed])
Nearly two dozen states sue to stop Trump ending $7 billion solar grant program
The Guardian ([link removed])
Column: The Endangered Species Act is on life support
More Than Just Parks ([link removed])
Colorado’s Front Range had a less smoggy summer thanks to cooler weather, less wildfire smoke
CPR News ([link removed])
Corner-crossing petition to Supreme Court employs successful past strategies
WyoFile ([link removed])
National parks, public lands feared at risk of long-term harm as shutdown drags on
Colorado Newsline ([link removed])
** Quote of the day
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” The national parks are effectively museums. This would be like the Smithsonian saying, ‘Well, you know, we don’t have the staff to keep the Smithsonian museum staffed, but we’ll go ahead and leave the gates, the doors open, and come in and take a look, do what you want.’ ”
—Aaron Weiss, Center for Western Priorities deputy director, Colorado Newsline ([link removed])
** Picture This
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@coparkswildlife ([link removed])
Cotton candy skies make this trail all the more sweet.
We don’t need to sugarcoat it either; the Scenic Overlook to Cookie Tree Trail at Ridgway State Park offers spectacular views. This 1.2-mile cruise is a real treat, with only 100 feet of elevation gain, an observation deck along the route, and easy access from the park’s campgrounds and visitor center.
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