Late last night, the United States Senate ruled that Mike Lee's attempt to sell off 2 to 3 million acres of public land in the West violates a key rule-making policy known as the Byrd Rule. The ruling, issued by non-partisan Senate Parliamentarian Elizabeth MacDonough, means that Lee's current sell-off provision will have to be removed from the budget bill.
The news comes less than 24 hours after Lee said he'd be making changes to the sell-off provision in an attempt to appease hunters who were up in arms over the plan. Lee himself hasn't said that he'll give up on the idea of selling public lands in the budget. Instead, he appears to be doubling down on keeping some form of his proposal alive.
"Housing prices are crushing families and keeping young Americans from living where they grew up," Lee said in an X post issued last night. "We need to change that. Thanks to YOU—the AMERICAN PEOPLE—here’s what I plan to do:
1. REMOVE ALL Forest Service land. We are NOT selling off our forests.
2. SIGNIFICANTLY REDUCE the amount of BLM land in the bill. Only land WITHIN 5 MILES of population centers is eligible. 3. Establish FREEDOM ZONES to ensure these lands benefit AMERICAN FAMILIES. 4. PROTECT our farmers, ranchers, and recreational users. They come first." Conservation groups across the political spectrum are celebrating the Senate Parliamentarian's ruling. But many remain vigilant in light of Lee's recent activity on social media. "This fight is absolutely not over," Backcountry Hunters and Anglers CEO Patrick Berry tells Field & Stream. "Mike Lee has made it clear: He is going back to the drawing board to modify language that he wants to include in this same Budget Reconciliation Bill."
At least 4 Republican senators expressed opposition to Lee's sell-off provision before the Parliamentarian determined that it violated the Byrd Rule last night. Tim Sheehy and Steve Daines of Montana and Mike Crapo and James Risch of Idaho all issued separate statements saying they wouldn't support it.
"We're confident that the momentum needed to get this thing pulled out completely was already headed in the right direction thanks to overwhelming push back from hunters and anglers and all public land advocates," Berry says. "There's no question that a large array of public lands users—not just hunters and anglers, but everyone who loves public lands—united to really turn the tide here."
Berry says BHA has generated nearly 100,00 calls and emails to legislators from people who oppose Lee's proposed sell-off, setting a record for the organization. The Rocky Mountain Elk Foundation reportedly sent an additional 25,000 calls and messages to Senators. Charles Whitwham, founder of HOWL For Wildlife, tells F&S members of his the pro-hunting rights organization sent tens of thousands selfie-style videos explaining why they opposes public land sales in budget bills. And earlier today, a coalition of 45 hunting and fishing-related brands and corporations sent a letter to Senate Majority Leader John Thune urging him to kill Lee's proposal because they say it would directly impact their combined contributions to the $1.2 trillion recreation economy.
Even so, Berry says, it's not time to let up on the gas. "We have to keep calling in order to keep this language from resurfacing," he says. "Even a significantly scaled-back version of this sell-off proposal would be detrimental for our public lands legacy."
Read Next: Mike Lee Says He'll Change Plan to Sell Off Millions of Acres of Public Land
The Theodore Roosevelt Conservation Partnership echoed Berry's sentiments in an emailed statement provided to F&S. “While we are encouraged to see the parliamentarian agree that these provisions have no place in the budget reconciliation bill, this is not the time to celebrate,” said Joel Pedersen, TRCP President and CEO. “Hunters and anglers need to continue to reach out to lawmakers urging them to remove all public land sales from this legislation. We have their attention, and we must see this through.”
