Public Lands Victory! 1.5 Million Acres Saved From Sell-Off

Keep Public Lands in Public Hands

A Public Lands Victory Worth Celebrating

Every once in a while, something big happens that reminds you why you get involved in the first place. That’s what just went down with the One Big Beautiful Bill Act (H.R. 1).

Tucked into this massive House budget reconciliation bill was a last-minute, backdoor proposal to sell off nearly 500,000 acres (affects up to 1.5 million acres) of public land in Utah and Nevada. Yep. half a million acres, gone and many more perminantly effected. These amendments were slipped in during committee markup by Reps. Mark Amodei (NV) and Celeste Maloy (UT), bypassing the normal process, bypassing public input, and worst of all, bypassing the conservation measures that protect our shared outdoor heritage.

But here’s the good news: we stopped it.

Thanks to pressure from hunters, anglers, and public land advocates across the country, folks like you and me, the selloff provisions were stripped from the bill. It’s a massive win for those of us who believe public lands should stay in public hands.

Backcountry Hunters & Anglers (BHA) was at the center of this effort, launching their United We Stand for Public Lands campaign and rallying thousands to flood congressional offices with calls and emails. It became the third-most activated alert in BHA’s history. That’s real grassroots power, and it worked.

Here’s what makes this even more powerful: this wasn’t just about one piece of legislation. It was about drawing a line in the sand. A message was sent loud and clear to lawmakers: public lands aren’t for sale. Not now, not ever.

To be clear, the battle isn’t over. While the land sale amendments are gone, the One Big Beautiful Bill Act still includes some seriously concerning stuff:

• It reverses protections in Minnesota’s Boundary Waters, threatening clean water and world-class canoe country.

• It forces oil and gas leasing in the Arctic Refuge, skipping environmental reviews.

• It guts conservation funding and undermines protections for roadless areas.

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So no, we can’t hang up our boots just yet. But this moment is worth celebrating. It’s proof that when we rally together, as hunters, anglers, conservationists, and lovers of the outdoors, we can beat back bad policy and stand up for the places we care about.

As Patrick Berry, BHA’s President and CEO, put it: "When the BHA community shows up, speaks out, and takes action, we prove we can defy the odds and stop bad ideas before they become bad law."

So take a second to soak this in. Then, stay in the fight. Keep the pressure on. Keep speaking out. Because this win? It was powered by you.

And next time someone tells you that one voice doesn’t matter, remind them what just happened.