Western landowners support new bipartisan caucus in opposing proposed sales of public land  

Denver – The Western Landowners Alliance applauds the formation of the bipartisan public lands caucus to protect our public lands. Better management of our public lands is a shared priority across party lines and fence lines in the West. Western Landowners Alliance members steward tens of millions of acres of private and public land, and recognize the challenges facing federal land management and budgets. We are also acutely aware of the nation’s real housing deficit. However, disposal of federal land is not a practical solution to either problem.  

Therefore, with limited exceptions, Western Landowners Alliance does not support the sale of federally managed public lands. We do support voluntary, equitable land exchanges to resolve checker boarding and inholding issues in the interest of both parties. We believe the integrity of the Federal Land Policy Management Act (FLPMA) needs to be maintained and that public lands should be managed in accordance with the multiple-use mandate contained therein.  

Multiple use lands are a shared natural heritage, essential to meeting current and future natural resource needs. Public lands provide for timber, grazing, energy, water, wildlife and recreation. These resources become ever more valuable and important with a growing population and the competition for diminishing natural resources around the world. The conversion of public lands to urban development, and the attendant loss of the many resources they supply, is a direct threat to national prosperity and national security. The nation’s housing needs can be met through better land use planning that reduces sprawl, confronts water resource limitations, and tempers real estate speculation. 

Sustained public investment in public lands is essential. At the same time, the current federal lands management system is hamstrung with regulations, staffing issues, budget shortfalls, stakeholder conflict and litigation. The solution is not to dispose of federal lands and natural resources but to improve their management in collaboration with states, local communities and affected stakeholders. Partnership-based approaches such as Good Neighbor Authority, stewardship contracting, and the Collaborative Forest Landscape Restoration Program have repeatedly demonstrated the success and positive outcomes that result from strong collaborative approaches. These efforts have led to reduced bureaucracy, red-tape, litigation and costs. Federal policies and investments should focus first and foremost on strengthening these approaches and the capacities of federal, state, local and private partners to participate.