What's in the Budget Bill? - Public Lands News (June 2-6)

This week, we cover a relentless wave of threats to America’s public lands and environmental protections.

But it’s not all bad news, because we wrap up with some powerful land-back victories, state park expansions, and global actions to #BeatPlasticPollution.

Key Topics This Week:

1. Senate Budget Bill Public Land Sales

• Senator Mike Lee (R-UT) moves to reinstate a provision to sell 500,000+ acres of public land in Nevada and 11,000+ acres in Utah.

• Parcels affected include land near Zion National Park, desert tortoise habitat, and lands adjacent to Las Vegas.

• No restrictions on resale — paving the way for luxury developments, mines, and strip malls.

2. What Else Is in the Budget Bill?

• Fast-tracks oil, gas, and mining projects by weakening environmental reviews.

• Opens new offshore drilling in the Gulf of Mexico and Alaska.

• Increases national forest logging quotas and 20-year timber contracts.

• Cuts climate adaptation and restoration funding.

3. Department of the Interior (DOI) Deregulatory Blitz

• Rescinds 2024 rule protecting 13 million acres in Alaska’s National Petroleum Reserve.

• Appoints Kevin Pendergast as BLM Alaska State Director.

• Rolls back 18 federal energy regulations nationwide.

• Green-lights new timber, oil, gas, and mineral leases across Oregon, Utah, Nevada, and Alaska.

4. Supreme Court’s NEPA Decision (May 29)

• An 8-0 ruling limits NEPA’s scope so agencies no longer required to analyze cumulative and downstream environmental impacts.

• Case involved a proposed Utah crude oil railway; ruling sets precedent for pipelines, highways, and fossil fuel infrastructure.

👉 Call your senators before July 4th and demand they oppose public land sell-offs and environmental rollbacks in the Senate’s version of the budget bill.

👉 Follow us on Instagram (@outdoor.minimalist.book) for quick news breakdowns and action alerts.

Have tips, testimonials, or insights on public land changes? Submit them through our Google Form (⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://forms.gle/JwC73G8wLvU6kedc9⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠)

Resources & Action Links: