New public lands sale bill leaves Boise Foothills vulnerable, critics say

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A new version of a controversial public land sales proposal in Congress cuts back on the land that could be sold in Idaho and 10 other states. But opponents have said the changes aren’t enough.

U.S. Sen. Jim Risch, R-Idaho, and other critics have called on lawmakers to reject the provision in the budget reconciliation bill, which President Donald Trump’s administration dubbed “One Big Beautiful Bill.” Environmental activists said the legislation poses a threat to recreation and won’t address housing affordability as suggested by U.S. Sen. Mike Lee, R-Utah, who proposed the legislation.

“After reviewing the Senate Energy and Natural Resources reconciliation language, I do not support the proposed provision to sell public lands,” Risch said in a statement on June 20.

A spokesperson for Risch said Thursday that he stood by that statement.

Lee, who chairs of the Energy and Natural Resources Committee, published the revised draft for the committee’s contribution to the budget bill Wednesday. An earlier version of the legislation proposed selling U.S. Forest Service and Bureau of Land Management parcels in 11 “eligible states,” including Idaho. The new version removed Forest Service land and shifted focus to Bureau of Land Management parcels “within 5 miles of population centers.”

“We are NOT selling off our forests,” Lee wrote on X.

The original bill was met with fierce backlash from conservation groups, outdoor recreators, hunters and anglers, and politicians.

U.S. Sen. Mike Crapo, R-Idaho, opposed the original public land sale proposal. But through a spokesperson, he said he’s still reviewing the new proposal and has yet to provide a new position on the bill.

Crapo and Risch have traditionally been quiet on such issues and earlier this year voted to reject a budget amendment that would have banned the government from reducing the federal deficit using proceeds from public land sales.

Idaho’s Republican Reps. Russ Fulcher and Mike Simpson had different approaches to similar proposals in the House version of the bill. Simpson cosponsored a bill to prevent the sale of public lands to pay down federal debt and joined a bipartisan Public Lands Caucus that helped kill the House bill. He joined a group of House Republicans that pledged to vote against the budget reconciliation bill if it contains a public land sale provision.

Fulcher did not respond to requests for comment on the topic.

Public lands sale would impact Boise trails

Lee revised the legislation after the Senate parliamentarian, an unelected adviser who interprets rules and laws for the governing body, removed the initial draft from the budget reconciliation bill. The parliamentarian determined Lee’s initial bill violated the Byrd Rule, the senator acknowledged on X. The rule limits the inclusion of nonbudgetary items in reconciliation bills.

The new version of the bill would mandate the sale of as much as 1.2 million acres of Bureau of Land Management land. Like the previous iteration of the bill, the legislation says the land would be sold “solely for the development of housing or to address any infrastructure and amenities to support local needs associated with housing.” Critics have pointed out that the bill does not require housing built on the land to meet affordability requirements.

The revised bill already faces opposition. Boise Mayor Lauren McLean, who submitted and passed an emergency resolution against the original legislation at the U.S. Conference of Mayors, continued to push against the updated version of the bill. McLean noted that about 11% of trails in Boise’s Ridge to Rivers system cross Bureau of Land management property and could be impacted if parcels are sold.

Trails that could be affected include Polecat Loop, Sweet Connie, Corrals and Dry Creek.

Mike Lee’s proposal ‘a smokescreen’ for ‘unpopular’ sell-offs

More outcry also came from groups like the Idaho Conservation League, the Sierra Club, the Idaho Trails Association and Idaho Outfitters and Guides Association.

John Robison, Idaho Conservation League’s public lands and wildlife director, told the Idaho Statesman that Lee’s proposal is “just a smokescreen for resoundingly unpopular public lands sell-offs.”

“No means no,” Robison added. “Public lands sales have no business being in a budget bill. Our public lands cannot be used as an ATM for the ultra wealthy.”

The Trails Association in a newsletter pointed out Bureau of Land Management parcels near other population centers, including Scout Mountain near Pocatello, popular hunting areas near Emmett and land near Ketchum and Hailey.

Idaho Outfitters and Guides Association Executive Director Aaron Lieberman told the Statesman in an email that the new version of the bill is still vague and lacks guardrails to prevent wealthy buyers or corporations from privatizing large tracts of previously accessible public land. He said that’s especially concerning for members of his group.

“While the revised land sale bill makes some modest improvements, it still puts Idaho’s public lands — and the livelihoods of guides and outfitters — at risk,” Lieberman said. “We appreciate the leadership of Sens. Risch and Crapo in pushing back on this bill, and we urge Idaho’s full delegation to continue their admirable efforts in protecting public access and the integrity of our public lands.”