CHEYENNE, Wyo. – A group of lawmakers meets tomorrow in Cheyenne to advance a state constitutional amendment to manage federal lands if they're transferred to states. The measure would govern lands currently managed by the U.S. Forest Service and BLM, not national parks or monuments. Critics are concerned lands could be sold off to the highest bidder, limiting access to outdoor recreation.

Chamois Andersen, executive director of the Wyoming Wildlife Federation, said protecting lands owned by all Americans is an issue that cuts across partisan divides.

"And it has nothing to do with whether you're a Republican or a Democrat, whether you like the federal government or not," she said. "We all recognize the risk is too great. And we all want to work toward solutions when it comes to federal-lands management."

Proponents of the amendment claim the feds are bad managers, and are slow to grant oil, gas and mining permits. In November, a Wyoming legislative committee charged with natural resources heard more than two hours of comments from hunters, anglers and conservation groups opposed to the move. Only two people spoke in favor of the proposal.

A recent study commissioned by the Wyoming Legislature found state management would be too costly, and adhering to federal multiple-use and environmental standards would present significant challenges. Anderson said lawmakers also should consider the potential loss of money from tourism and outdoor recreation, a sustainable and ongoing source of revenue.

"More than a billion dollars per year is provided by hunters and anglers and watchable wildlife enthusiasts," she added. "This is just going to continue, the use of these lands, and the important dollars that hunters and anglers and other outdoor enthusiasts bring to the counties, and thus to Wyoming state coffers."

A Western Attorney Generals' report, chaired by Wyoming AG Peter Michael, found no legal merit for a constitutional amendment to transfer public lands. Governor Matt Mead told the Casper Star-Tribune the move also would be financially impractical.


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SALT LAKE CITY -- If you went camping on Utah's public lands this past summer, you were not alone, literally.

A new survey shows a major increase in camping on national public lands in the past decade, with a notable spike during the pandemic. The estimated occupancy for reserved campsites in Utah in the summer months has seen a 77% increase from 2014 to 2020.

Tyler McIntosh, conservation and research manager at The Center for Western Priorities and the report's author, said interest in the great outdoors has exploded in recent years.

"Looking at a lot of the polling, we see that they're incredibly popular," McIntosh confirmed. "Polling from Colorado College in 2020 found that 84% of Westerners support creating new protected areas like national parks, monuments, wildlife refuges and tribal protected areas."

While conservation groups applauded the increased interest in public lands, McIntosh noted there are concerns the parks have limited resources, and overcrowding could strain them. The study showed increased use demonstrated a need for more funding for land-management systems.

McIntosh added nationally, growth in national parks visitation has smashed records this year, while campgrounds and other facilities on protected lands outside the National Park System were not as full, leaving extra room for camping in other areas.

"The national parks consistently has the highest levels of occupancy," McIntosh reported. "There's been a huge growth in the popularity of other national public lands, which tells me that the public is beginning to discover these other landscapes, to love them, and to want to spend time out on them."

For those looking for less crowded campsites, the report has an interactive tool to search campgrounds with highest and lowest site occupancy, in Utah and other states. Results can be filtered by season, by weekdays or weekends, or by year.

HELENA, Mont. -- Wildlife managers and biologists in Montana are airing their frustration over how the state is managing its natural resources.

A group of retired and former wildlife managers who boast nearly 1,500 years of experience combined said Montana leadership is politicizing management in ways that are harmful to predators, hunters and habitat conservation.

Chris Servheen, former grizzly bear recovery coordinator for the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, said state and federal-level managers want leaders to know they are disheartened with the direction Montana is taking.

"This is not something that is accepted by professional wildlife biologists, and it's not right, and it's not going to be beneficial to Montana and the wildlife in Montana," Servheen argued. "And it's really disturbing to see this partisan nature of what's happening now."

In their published opinion piece, the managers and biologists say they believe the leaders of the Montana Fish and Wildlife Commission and Montana Fish, Wildlife and Parks (MFWP) appointed by Gov. Gianforte are focused on special interests like privatizing and commercializing elk hunting and are not using science to guide their decisions.

MFWP has proposed changes to elk and deer hunting it said will simplify regulations. The governor's office did not return a request for comment.

Dan Vermillion, a former commissioner on the Montana Fish and Wildlife Commission for 13 years, believes the state has approved controversial methods for hunting predators like wolves, outside of fair chase hunting ethics and signal a move away from bipartisan wildlife management.

"The idea that the Montana Fish and Wildlife Commission would approve a regulation that uses the word night and hunting and bait all in one sentence tells you how far they've strayed from the original and the traditional, historical approach to wildlife management in Montana," Vermillion asserted.

Wildlife managers and biologists in Montana are also concerned baited neck snares and leg-hold traps will also ensnare other predators. Lawmakers have said the changes are needed because of reduced elk and deer populations.

LINCOLN, Mont. - Residents in western Montana have proposed a unique approach to managing the landscape.

The Lincoln Prosperity Group includes conservationists, loggers, motorized-vehicle users and other seemingly disparate members. Karyn Good is a resident of Lincoln, a town northwest of Helena.

"We were a group with diverse interests who agreed whole heartedly on one thing, and that is that the status quo was not working." said Good. "And that was, sort of, our starting point."

The proposal calls for managing 200,000 acres of public lands surrounding Lincoln through a mix of conservation, forest restoration and outdoor recreation. Good said she believes the group came up with a well-balanced plan...

"Developing new mountain bike and ATV trails." said Good. "It establishes nearly 70,000 acres that will be managed for restoration, which is logging practices. And it expands the Scapegoat Wilderness and designates a new wilderness in Nevada Mountain."

The Lincoln Prosperity Proposal would create the first stand-alone wilderness area - at Nevada Mountain - in nearly 40 years.

Good said the proposal sets aside land for forest restoration to reduce the growing threat from wildfires. She said it also has economic benefits for the town, largely through recreation dollars.

Zach Angstead is the field director in Great Falls for Wild Montana, which is part of the group. He said the plan brings a holistic approach to protecting the landscape.

"The Lincoln Prosperity Proposal is a proposal looking to really expand how we think about managing our national forest land and doing that to the benefit of the people of Lincoln," said Angstead.

Russ Ehnes is president of the Great Falls Trail Bike Riders Association, which also is part of Lincoln group. He said motorized vehicle users have been working over the past two decades to improve trails in the valley.

Ehnes said there was plenty of give and take while developing the proposal.

"When it all came together," said Ehnes, "it was really a situation where every single one of us at the table could see that by having this kind of a collaborative solution, there was something in it that made our lives better."

The Lincoln Prosperity Group has been working with Montana's senators to get a measure introduced in Congress.