A proposal to seize and sell off America’s national forests and other
public lands could make its way into the House GOP’s budget resolution when
it is announced this week.
In a recent memo
<http://www.eenews.net/assets/2015/03/05/document_pm_01.pdf> to the House
Budget Committee, Rep. Rob Bishop (R-UT), chair of the House Natural
Resources Committee, proposed that America’s public lands be transferred to
state control. He then requested $50 million of taxpayer money to be spent
to enable transfers to “start immediately.” The memo states that public
lands “create a burden for the surrounding states and communities,” and
“the solution is to convey land without strings to state, local, and tribal
governments.”
ALC’s lobbying payments have drawn additional scrutiny because the
organization’s budget is dependent on taxpayer money, contributed by county
governments in the West. According to the Center for Western Priorities
<http://westernpriorities.org/2015/03/02/western-counties-are-spending-big-to-join-the-american-lands-council-which-could-result-in-them-losing-millions-more/>
(CWP), 47 county governments have spent a total of more than $219,000 for
ALC membership. Most of these county governments receive substantial
federal grant money through the Payment in Lieu of Taxes Program (PILT),
raising questions about whether American taxpayer dollars are being
channeled to fund lobbying of the federal government. A federal law, known
as the Byrd Amendment <https://www.law.cornell.edu/uscode/text/31/1352>,
prohibits the use of federal funds from a grant to be used for lobbying
federal officials.
The state of Utah is thus far the only state to have passed such a measure,
however. In 2012, the Utah legislature passed a bill demanding public lands
be transferred to state control by December 2014. The state plans to sue
the federal government and is currently accepting proposals to launch a $2
million
<http://www.sltrib.com/news/2213075-155/lawmakers-seek-applicants-to-develop-2>
fight.
Whether Rep. Bishop’s proposal makes it into the House GOP budget or not,
the Congressman has made it clear that disposing of national forests and
public lands will be one of his top priorities as chair. The House
Republican majority is expected to release its 2016 budget resolution this
week
<http://www.wsj.com/articles/gop-to-stick-to-sequester-spending-limits-in-2016-budget-1426018538>
.
*Claire Moser is the Research and Advocacy Associate with the Public Lands
Project at the Center for American Progress. You can follow her on Twitter
at @Claire_Moser.*
[permaculture] The Quiet Plan To Sell Off America’s National Forests | ThinkProgress,
Lawrence London, 03/18/2015