June 15, 2023
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
SUWA Statement on 6.15.23 House Natural Resources Committee Hearing Regarding Bureau of Land Management (BLM) Proposed Public Lands Rule
Contact: Steve Bloch, Legal Director, Southern Utah Wilderness Alliance (SUWA); (801) 428-3981 (steve@suwa.org)
Salt Lake City, UT – Today, the House Committee on Natural Resources held a legislative hearing regarding H.R. 3397 (sponsored by Rep. John Curtis of Utah), a bill that would require the Director of the Bureau of Land Management to withdraw a proposed rule relating to conservation and landscape health and prevent BLM from drafting any similar rule in the future.
Below is a statement from SUWA Legal Director Steve Bloch and additional information.
“The proposed Public Lands Rule would be good for the land, wildlife, and people who rely on it. It sets forth a framework that will make public lands more resilient to the impacts of a rapidly changing climate and puts conservation on par with extractive uses that have long taken precedence. The rule is consistent with Congress’s long-stated intent for how public lands are supposed to be managed.”
“Rep. Curtis’s partisan comments at today’s hearing were disappointing, misguided, and divisive; BLM manages public lands – including those in Utah that would directly benefit from this rule – on behalf of all Americans.”
Additional Information
- BLM’s webpage on the Public Lands Rule.
- March 30 Statement from SUWA on the proposed rule; information from SUWA about how to submit comments (an extension was announced during today’s hearing; comments are now due on Wednesday, July 5).
- Recent Editorials and Op-eds regarding the Public Lands Rule:
- Salt Lake Tribune, Richard Spotts – June 15, 2023
- Salt Lake Tribune, Kirk Nichols – June 12, 2023
- Salt Lake Tribune, Kaden McArthur – June 8, 2023
- Albuquerque Journal – June 12, 2023
- The Daily Sentinel (Grand Junction, CO) – June 11, 2023
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