Hickenlooper Vows to Fight Trump Administration’s Plan for Mass Sell Off of Public Lands

Hickenlooper: "Public lands belong in public hands, and we'll fight tooth and nail to keep them that way."

WASHINGTON - Today, U.S. Senator John Hickenlooper released the following statement after the Department of the Interior unveiled its five-year strategic plan, which calls for selling public lands to states, tribes, and local governments to "decrease the size of the federal estate."

"When MAGA Republicans tried to sell off three million acres of our public lands as part of their tax bill, we stopped them. And we'll stop them again," said Hickenlooper. "Colorado's crown jewels are not for sale. Period. Public lands belong in public hands, and we'll fight tooth and nail to keep them that way."

Hickenlooper has been outspoken against Trump administration cuts to public lands and led an effort against the admin's plans to overturn the Bureau of Land Management's (BLM) Public Lands Rule. Hickenlooper led the fight against Senator Mike Lee's proposal to sell off more than three million acres of public lands. Hickenlooper first sounded the alarm last year when he voted against the Republican budget resolution and introduced an amendment with colleagues to protect public lands from being sold to pay for Republicans' tax cuts for the ultra-wealthy. Hickenlooper was the first Senator to publicly oppose Steve Pearce's nomination to lead BLM and voted against his nomination. Hickenlooper pressed Pearce over his previous anti-public lands stances and the Trump administration's efforts to roll back methane emissions regulations during his confirmation hearing. A former geologist, Hickenlooper sits on the Senate Energy and Natural Resources committee.

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