WASHINGTON, D.C. – U.S. Senator Patty Murray (D-WA) has voiced strong opposition to a plan proposed by U.S. Senator Mike Lee (R-UT) to sell off public lands in states including Washington.
The plan is part of a Republican reconciliation bill and could affect up to 450,000 acres of Bureau of Land Management land in Washington, Murray said in a release.
Murray, Vice Chair of the Senate Appropriations Committee, criticized the plan, stating it puts public lands at risk for sale, especially in Central and Eastern Washington. She urged outdoor enthusiasts to contact Republican members of Congress to oppose the plan.
“Now is the time for everyone who enjoys hiking, camping, fishing, hunting, and other outdoor recreation on BLM land to call their Republican members of Congress and demand that they oppose this giveaway,” Murray said.
The proposal mandates selling BLM lands near “population centers,” a term not clearly defined, Cantwell said.
The Senate Parliamentarian had previously struck down an initial version of the plan. A ruling on the revised plan is expected soon.
Murray also criticized the plan as a means to fund tax cuts for the wealthy, calling it a “betrayal of future generations and our cherished outdoor spaces.”
Sen. Lee has been an advocate for significant changes in how federal lands are managed. He noted on his website that the federal government owns more than half of the land west of the Rockies.
“When an unelected and unaccountable bureaucracy owns and manages more than half the land in your state, that is a recipe for disaster,” he stated on his webpage.
Lee has argued that land sales would create opportunities for housing development and address associated community needs.
