Senator Mike Lee (R-Utah) introduced a proposal, as part of the Trump administration’s larger “One Big Beautiful Bill Act,” that would mandate the sale of a significant portion of federal public lands in the United States. States directly impacted are Colorado, Alaska, Arizona, California, Idaho, Nevada, New Mexico, Oregon, Utah, Washington and Wyoming. That could add up to more than 5,000 square miles — an area larger than the state of Rhode Island.
Key features of the proposal include the mandatory sale of a percentage of land managed by the BLM and USFS, targeting “underutilized” federal land for residential development. It also aims to bypass public input and participation requirements, with a timeline for sales to begin within 60 days of passage. Revenue from sales would be distributed among the U.S. Treasury, the state of the sale, and the selling agency.
Beyond facilitating Trump’s tax cuts, Lee argues that selling off federal land would ease housing shortages in the West. But critics of the plan pose compelling arguments against in Public Land Sales are a threat to people and the climate.
Potential Impact on Virginia Public Lands:
While the legislation focuses primarily on public lands in Western states, it could still have an impact on Virginia. The bill allows state and local governments to nominate parcels of land for sale, which could include some federal lands within Virginia.
Take Action
- Have friends in the Western states listed? Share this so they can contact their Senators.
- Call Virginia Senators Tim Kaine and Mark Warner and urge them to do what they can to stop the mandatory sale of public land.
