Political Quotes

“I want to rise just to spend a couple of moments discussing a bill that we just passed. It is the Wyoming Public Lands Initiative. The Senate passed this by unanimous consent. This legislation is very important to my home State of Wyoming-- something we have been working on for years. The bill would resolve the management status for thousands of acres of Federal public lands across 7 counties of the 23 counties in my home State of Wyoming. These acres involve what are known as wilderness study areas. These are lands managed solely for preservation, even though they are not included in the National Wilderness Preservation System. The Bureau of Land Management studies these areas. They study them to determine whether they should be designated as wilderness lands or if these lands should be returned to multiple-use status. Until Congress acts, the Bureau treats all of the land as if it is wilderness. In other words, these lands currently under study are closed off to almost every use. For the people of Wyoming who rely on access to the land to make a living and for recreation, this just doesn't work. In 1991--now, here we are in 2024, but in 1991, the Bureau of Land Management released a report recommending a balanced approach for these Wyoming wilderness study areas. Specifically, the Bureau of Land Management recommended that Congress designate some of the lands as wilderness and release the majority of the lands back to multiple use.…”