Today, the Bureau of Land Management (“BLM”) released its final “Public Lands Rule.” Certain provisions in the Rule will negatively impact the 22.8 million acres of BLM land in Utah. Although the BLM claims that this Rule will enhance conservation, it will ironically impair the ability of BLM employees and their partners at the state and local level to effectively improve and restore Utah’s landscapes and watersheds.

“Utah has a long track record of successful conservation and restoration of its public lands in tandem with local BLM offices,” Utah Gov. Spencer Cox said. “The added layers of red tape and federal bureaucracy embedded in the BLM’s Public Lands Rule create new roadblocks to conservation work. The health of Utah’s lands and wildlife will suffer as a result. This Rule is contrary to the bedrock principle of ‘multiple-use’ in the BLM’s governing law, the Federal Land Policy and Management Act. I look forward to working with Utah Attorney General Sean Reyes and his office to challenge this Rule in federal court as soon as possible.”

In an unprecedented move, the Public Lands Rule opens the door for special interest groups to lease public lands for “restoration and mitigation” while effectively locking out or excluding almost all other uses, including traditional activities such as livestock grazing, certain recreational uses, or commercial guiding. This delegation of power and exclusion of certain user groups contravenes the respectful balancing of interests that is fundamental to public lands management and Utah’s way of life.

Utah calls on the BLM to immediately withdraw the Public Lands Rule and instead work with Western states and other stakeholders on practical solutions to enhance the conservation of our public lands.

Background:  In June of 2023, Gov. Cox, along with five other governors, sent a letter asking the BLM to withdraw its initial draft of the Public Lands Rule. Although the BLM made some positive changes based on the states’ feedback, the final Rule carries forward most of the harmful provisions from the originally proposed Rule.