Transfer of Federal Lands to the States
I am wondering how many RVers are aware of the movement to transfer federal lands to the states? Many western states are pushing this initiative. In Wyoming (my home state) nearly 25 million acres w...
Forum Discussion
n7bsn wrote:highplainsdrifter wrote:
Many of the western states want the land because of the value of the minerals. Plus there is a widespread anti-fed sentiment in the west. ...
Very little BLM or National Forest land, with profitable deposits doesn't already have a mineral claim on it. Most of the highly profitable ones were actually claimed in the 1800s, and certainly many of them mined out now.
I suspect mining companies would rather deal with one entity (US) then a dozen state governments.
Federal lands in the west are rich with mineral resources (mainly coal, oil and gas). Currently the states get about 50% of the revenue from mineral extraction from these lands. They would love to get 100% without federal interference. Maybe the oil companies would rather deal with the federal government than a bunch of states...I don't know about that. I do know several western states are chomping at the bit to get control.
The state of Utah passed legislation requiring the feds to turn over most federal land to the state by December 31, 2014. That didn't happen, so now they are considering their legal and political options.
You can bet that if federal land is turned over to the states, some of the land will be overdeveloped and some will be sold. That would be a shame considering the long legacy of conservation of federal lands in the west. eubank is correct, many of these lands have been in federal ownership for a long time. Most land in Wyoming was part of the Louisiana purchase in 1803.
