BHA Members in Idaho Stand Up to Local Commission, Anti-public Lands Organization
Authored by: Nate Collins
About the Author: Nate was essentially raised on the public lands of North Idaho and serves as the Policy Chair for BHA's Idaho Chapter. Nearly all his life has been spent exploring the mountains, fly-fishing for native trout, prowling the woods for deer and elk.
"Valley County is for Public Land Owners"
As the Utah lawsuit to seize our public lands rages on, some of our elected officials in Idaho are jumping on Utah’s bandwagon to destroy our public land heritage. In October, we saw Idaho Attorney General Raúl Labrador demonstrate brazen disregard for Idahoan’s love of our wild spaces when he submitted an Amicus Brief to the U.S. Supreme Court voicing his support of the State of Utah. And last week, we saw Valley County Commissioners attempt to insert themselves into the wrong side of this public lands heist.
Valley County Fights Back
Last Monday, Valley County Commissioner Sherry Maupin brought forth the agenda topic to discuss formally aligning with the American Lands Council (ALC), an ardent anti-public lands organization, to support Utah’s lawsuit against the federal government. Thankfully, public land enthusiasts in Valley County stood up and showed up by writing letters, emails, and giving in-person comments to the Commission. Despite the short notice of this agenda item, BHA immediately turned around a letter to the commission and sent an action alert to BHA members in Valley County. The result: Commissioners decided to table taking any action, for now.
While we view it as a win that the commission did not move forward with plans to align with ALC, this topic is likely to resurface in future commission meetings. All three commissioners made it clear that they are in support of Utah’s lawsuit. Furthermore, we were deeply troubled with many of the comments made by the commission and will continue to fight any attempt to support the transfer to the states movement in Valley County and beyond.
Get Involved
The recent events in Valley County highlight the importance that we engage at all levels of government. It’s vital that all our elected officials know that attempting to take our public lands is an absolute non-starter. We highly encourage BHA members to check the agendas and minutes of their county commission meetings and let us know if you hear any anti-public lands topics coming up.
For those who value the diverse opportunities afforded on our public lands, the stakes couldn’t be higher. And while BHA will continue to be the tip of the spear against threats to the shared national treasure that is our public lands system – your support could make all the difference. Help BHA ensure the voice of the hundreds of thousands of Public Land Owners across North America isn’t diluted or muted. Learn more and join the fight!
View the December 16th, 2024 Valley County Commission Meeting here.