Public Lands Sell Off Back in Budget Bill

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Public Lands Sell Off Back in Budget Bill originally appeared on BikeMag.
The Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee has added pubic land sales back into President Donald Trump's One Big Beautiful Bill Act, the administration's budget reconciliation bill that is before the Senate.
The new provision would place 3 million acres of Bureau of Land Management and U.S. Forest Service Land on the market, with state and tribal entities having first right of refusal before being offered for sale to private entities.
The new amendment echoes an earlier proposal put forth by the House Natural Resources Committee that was removed before the House passed the bill. That amendment would have placed 500,000 acres of public land in Utah and Nevada on the open market, including land adjacent to Zion National Monument and the Hurricane Cliffs Trail System in Utah that is popular with mountain bikers. The new amendment greatly increases the acreage to be sold and expands the sale to all western states where the BLM and USFS manage public land, except for Montana.The committee, chaired by Sen. Mike Lee (R-UT), estimates the provision would generate up to $29 billion in revenue for the federal government by way of public land sales, mining and geothermal energy revenue, timber sales and the cancellation of funds for National Park Service employees and conservation programs.
Subtitle C—Lands Requires the prudent sale of certain Bureau of Land Management and National Forest System land for housing, increased timber sales, geothermal leasing, and compensation of states and localities for the cost of wind and solar projects on federal land.
Section__0301. Mandatory Prudent Sale of Bureau of Land Management (BLM) Land and National Forest System Land for Housing. Directs BLM to dispose of 0.5-0.75% of certain BLM land and the Forest Service to dispose of 0.5-0.75% of certain National Forest System Land to address the housing crisis. This section also appropriates $5 million to the Secretary of the Interior and $5 million to the Secretary of Agriculture, acting through the Chief of the Forest Service, to carry out this section.
Section__0302. Timber Sales and Long-Term Contracting for the Forest Service and Bureau of Land Management. • Timber Sales on Public Domain Forest Reserves. Requires the Forest Service to sell an annual quantity of timber that is 250 million board feet greater than what was sold in the previous fiscal year through fiscal year 2034 on forest reserves created from the public domain. • Long-Term Contracts for the Forest Service. Requires the Forest Service to enter into at least 40 long-term contracts for timber sales with private or public persons or entities for timber sales in the National Forest System between fiscal years 2025 and 2034. Revenue from these specific contracts would go to the general fund of the Treasury. • Timber Sales on Public Lands. Directs the Secretary of the Interior, acting through the Director of BLM, to sell an annual quantity of timber that is 20 million board feet greater than what was sold in the previous fiscal year through fiscal year 2034. • Long-Term Contracts for the Bureau of Land Management. Requires BLM to enter into at least 5 long-term contracts with private or public persons or entities for the disposal of vegetative materials on public lands. Revenue from these specific contracts would go to the general fund of the Treasury.
Section__0303. Renewable Energy Fees on Federal Land. Adjusts rents and fees for wind and solar projects developed and operating on Federal Land and removes the Secretary's discretion to reduce such fees.
Section__0304. Renewable Energy Revenue Sharing. Requires that of the revenue collected from renewable energy projects on public land, 25 percent shall be paid from the Treasury to the State where the revenue was derived, and 25 percent shall be allocated to the counties where the revenue was derived based on the percentage of county land on which the project is located.
Section__0305. Geothermal Lease Sales. Requires BLM to hold annual lease sales, which is not required at present.
Section__0306. Geothermal Royalties. Clarifies that geothermal royalties are tied to the facility generating the electricity.
Section__0307. Rescission of National Park Service and Bureau of Land Management Funds. Rescinds the remaining funds for the following programs created by the Inflation Reduction Act (IRA) and made available to the National Park Service (NPS) and Bureau of Land Management (BLM): 1. SEC. 50221. National Parks and Public Lands Conservation and Resilience. 2. SEC. 50222. National Parks and Public Lands Conservation and Ecosystem Restoration. 3. SEC. 50223. National Parks Service Employees.
Section__0308. Celebrating America's 250th Anniversary. Provides funding for the Secretary of the Interior to establish and maintain a statuary park named the National Garden of American Heroes and for events, celebrations, and activities related to the 250th anniversary of America's founding.
The new Senate amendment would sell off 0.5 to 0.75 percent of public land overseen by the BLM and USFS nationally, except in Montana. The BLM oversees 245 million acres, and the USFS oversees 193 million acres, mostly in the West. On the high side, if included and passed, the amendment could see 3.29 million acres of land pass from public to private ownership.
The amendment exempts lands within national parks, national monuments, wilderness areas, national recreation areas, as well as land with mining claims, grazing permits, mineral leases and right-of-ways.
However, a Justice Department legal opinion released June 10 states that the administration could revoke national monument status from lands created under previous administrations.
Supporters of the amendment say that affordable housing could be built on former public land. Those opposed, including Sen. Martin Heinrich (D-NM), a ranking Democrat on the Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee, say the amendment will only benefit wealthy private investors while reducing outdoor recreation opportunities, including mountain biking.
The bill is currently being debated in the Senate and will come to a vote after any changes are made and Republicans are confident the bill will pass a full Senate vote. If passed, the bill would then go to the President's desk for his signature, becoming law.
Conservation and outdoor recreation groups, including the International Mountain Biking Association, are encouraging the public to contact their Senate representatives to make their opinions regarding the bill known. Contact information can be found at Congress.gov.
This story was originally reported by BikeMag on Jun 12, 2025, where it first appeared.