Legislation Would Reauthorize The Federal Land Transaction Facilitation Act
WASHINGTON, D.C. — Senator Steve Daines today joined a bipartisan group of senators to introduce legislation reauthorizing the Federal Land Transaction Facilitation Act (FLTFA).
Before it expired in 2011, FLTFA allowed the Bureau of Land Management, the U.S. Forest Service, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, and the National Park Service in the western United States to use the proceeds from sales of certain federally designated areas to protect lands of exceptional conservation value.
“As an avid hunter and fisherman, I know the importance of having the tools necessary to protect and increase access to our public lands,” Daines stated. “In Montana alone, FLTFA has facilitated two important land transactions, including the Lewis and Clark National Historic Trial and the Red Rock Lakes National Wildlife Refuge. I urge my colleagues to prioritize this bipartisan legislation to preserve, protect and expand the access to public lands that I, like all Montanans, value so deeply.”
From 2000 to 2011, FLTFA allowed the preservation of important sites across the western United States without the use of taxpayer money. The program also assisted in better land management practices by disposing of isolated or difficult to manage parcels identified by the public land management agencies themselves.
Additional cosponsors of the Federal Land Transaction Facilitation Act are U.S. Senators Martin Heinrich (D-N.M.), Dean Heller (R-NV), Tom Udall (D-N.M.), Mike Crapo (R-Idaho), Michael Bennet (D-Colo.), Cory Gardner (R-Colo.) and Jon Tester (D-Mont.).
A copy of the bill is available here.
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