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So now what? (The land use thread)

Kevin B.

Kevin B.

Not often wrong. Never quite right.
Moderator
Location
Stinkwater
Johnny Quest said:
So with Trump returning to office shortly, what do we see happening with the control of public lands in Utah?
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****-all? The last time he was in office with a friendly House and Senate he made a half hearted swing at reducing Bears Ears and GSE, did nothing to make sure they stayed reduced, and that was pretty much it. I expect him to consolidate power at the Federal level, I don't think he'll cede a thing to the states on any issue, including Take Back Utah. It's entirely possible that Cox et al will back off that entirely, actually, because I'm pretty sure that whole thing is at least 50% about trying to rile the base against a Democrat administration and with a friendly Interior there's no need for that now. Trump might even TELL them to knock it off, and Cox is apparently a good little doggie now so if Trump says jump, he'll jump.

Good news? Haven't heard any BS from Biden about new monuments, and Deb Haaland will be out as Interior so you might see a little shuffling at the top as Trump finds somebody sympathetic to the extraction and ranching industries to fill that spot. Whoever that is MIGHT be sympathetic to open access. But open access doesn't make money, so I doubt we'll see more than lip service.
 
mbryson

mbryson

.......a few dollars more
Supporting Member
Location
Bountiful, land of rocks
Volley #1 (kind of)


Save Moab Milestone: BRC Files Opening Brief in Federal Court​

We are excited to share an important milestone in our fight to overturn the closure of 317 miles of our trails in Moab. After several months spent reviewing thousands of pages of records BlueRibbon Coalition, and our legal team at Texas Public Policy Foundation, filed our opening brief against the Bureau of Land Management in federal court this week.

This last Tuesday while Americans were tuned into the election, our legal team put the finishing touches on our exhaustive arguments that expose many of the deficiencies in the BLM’s plan. We encourage our members and supporters to read it.

Here are some highlights of our case:
  1. Constitutional Violation: We argue that BLM’s decision violates the U.S. Constitution’s Appointments Clause. Only properly appointed officials should have the power to decide such impactful closures, especially when the closures carry substantial penalties for those who enter these areas.
  2. Illegal Buffer Zone: By closing popular routes such as Hey Joe Canyon and Dead Cow Loop, the BLM’s plan violates the Dingell Act by effectively creating a “buffer zone” around the Labyrinth Canyon Wilderness. Our legal team highlights that Congress specifically forbids using restrictive management in non-wilderness areas to limit noise and visual impacts to wilderness areas, yet BLM’s decision does exactly that.
  3. Arbitrary Closures: The closures are not only unconstitutional but also arbitrary. They disregard essential Congressional mandates that require BLM to prioritize public recreation, and we document numerous instances where routes were unjustifiably closed despite no evidence of environmental harm.
  4. Environmental Policy Concerns: Finally, the plan bypassed essential requirements under the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA). Such a sweeping decision should have undergone a full Environmental Impact Statement due to the significant implications for the human environment.
  5. Ignoring Recreation Mandates: Our lawsuit highlights that BLM's decision fails to consider the statutory mandate to prioritize recreational access on public lands, a point reinforced by a recent Supreme Court ruling in Loper Bright Enterprises v. Raimondo, which overturned the Chevron Deference precedent. This landmark decision emphasizes that agencies cannot disregard specific Congressional instructions—yet, by treating all use as inherently harmful, BLM’s approach effectively ignores the directive to balance recreation with conservation.
The State of Utah also filed their opening brief on the same day, which we have also made available for you to read. The federal government has until January 10, 2025 to reply to our brief, which will be the next step in this challenge.

We believe many recent changes in legal precedents and a strong shift in political winds bode well for the future of this challenge. We are proud to stand on the front lines to defend our access to our public lands, and our active engagement has positioned us to be ready to take advantage of recent opportunities. Texas Public Policy Foundation has done exceptional work as our partners in this case.

>>>Read the Brief<<<

This legal action isn’t just about trails; it’s about preserving the rights of Americans to experience and enjoy their lands for generations to come.

Your support is what makes our work possible. Together, we’re pushing back against unnecessary restrictions and closures to ensure that everyone has the chance to experience the beauty and adventure of these landscapes.

Thank you for standing with us.

Defend Your Ground!

Ben Burr
Executive Director
 
mbryson

mbryson

.......a few dollars more
Supporting Member
Location
Bountiful, land of rocks
sharetrails.us14.list-manage.com

No Lame Duck Land Grabs | BlueRibbon Coalition

sharetrails.us14.list-manage.com


No Last Minute, Lame Duck Land Grabs: An Important Post-Election Brief​

​
This last week has been a whirlwind here at BlueRibbon Coalition. On Tuesday while the rest of the country was watching the outcome of the 2024 election, our legal team at Texas Public Policy Foundation put the finishing touches on our opening brief in our challenge to the closures in Moab. You can read the brief here!

Then on Tuesday we learned that President Trump was re-elected to be the 47th President of the United States. We also learned that Republicans gained control of the United States Senate. It is looking likely that Republicans will maintain control of the House of Representatives.

While we believe the work we do to make public lands open and accessible for all Americans is not partisan, the Biden Administration has been one of the most adversarial administrations for public land access that we have seen in our organization’s history.

We held our annual Board Meeting this weekend in Las Vegas, and we spent a decent amount of time identifying our top priorities to take advantage of the priority changes we are likely to see in 2025. We will be sharing details of these plans with you in the coming weeks, because we are going to need the help of all of our members and supporters to make sure important and necessary changes are made for our public lands in the first 100 days of the next administration.

The Risks of a Lame Duck President​

However, there are many immediate risks that we can’t ignore. President Biden is now a lame duck president whose policies were decisively rejected by voters this last week. Through executive orders and Congressional action taken by strong majorities, any last minute efforts to secure a legacy through presidential action can, and likely will, be reversed. Unfortunately, from what we’ve seen in the last few days following the election, this administration is already making last minute, lame duck land grabs, and we will be gearing up to oppose them.

For example, on Friday the BLM in Oregon released their final Lakeview Resource Management Plan, which essentially shuts down almost the entire planning area which includes Christmas Valley Sand Dunes. We will be spending the coming weeks preparing an objection to this plan to secure our legal standing to challenge the plan in federal court if necessary. We are worried this will be the first of several plans outstanding that gets rushed through in the coming weeks. We will be tracking them all. We will be fighting for you every step of the way.

Of course the biggest threat of all is that we will get millions of acres of last minute, lame duck national monuments. This is a RED ALERT situation, and we will be profiling all of the monuments that we believe are at highest risk of being designated in the coming days. We will have actions you can take to help build a record of opposition to each one, so that President Trump and the new Congress will have strong support to take necessary action to reverse these lame duck designations.

Today, we have an action alert you can use to send current members of Congress a strong message to announce their opposition to any lame duck monuments. We believe members of Congress need to announce that they strongly oppose any last minute, lame duck land grabs by committing to encourage President Trump to rescind Biden's land grabs, committing to defund all new monuments through the budget reconciliation process in order to reduce federal spending, and committing to permanently reform the Antiquities Act to prevent future abuses.

We urgently need this action alert to reach as many people as possible, so forward it to your friends, family, and clubs. Share our content on social media. Watch for future updates in your inbox and from our social media channels. We can’t let our guard down now.

Defend Your Ground,

Ben Burr
Executive Director
 
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