Look West: Public lands and energy news from the Center for Western Priorities
** How Congress is hijacking the management of public lands
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Friday, January 30, 2026
Metate Arch in Grand Staircase-Escalante National Monument. Photo: John Fowler, Wikimedia Commons ([link removed])
A seismic shift in federal land management is underway due to Congress using an obscure law in ways it was never intended, writes CWP's Kate Groetzinger ([link removed]) in a new piece for the Gunnison Country Times.
Groetzinger, who co-hosts The Landscape podcast ([link removed]) , explains how members of Congress and the Trump administration are using the Congressional Review Act to repeal land management plans and protections that balance conservation with extractive uses on national public lands—overturning a stable, community-driven planning system for public lands in the process.
Historically, the CRA has been used sparingly—only about 20 times in nearly 30 years. But starting last June, members of Congress started weaponizing the CRA against land management plans and protections that were not previously treated as “rules,” including mineral withdrawals, resource management plans for BLM field offices, and management plans for national monuments.
The next targets for this unprecedented use of the CRA are Grand Staircase-Escalante National Monument in Utah and the Boundary Waters in Minnesota. Read more in the Gunnison Country Times ([link removed]) .
Next stop on Trump's war on signs: Death Valley
The Timbisha Shoshone Tribe says the Trump administration is attempting to remove language from a Tribal exhibit at Death Valley National Park. Mandi Campbell, the Tribe's historic preservation officer, told the Nevada Current ([link removed]) , “One of the displays says ‘we are still here’ and they highlighted that they do not want that there.” The Interior department also flagged the words "This is our Homeland" for removal.
The Park Service planned to add a medallion and earrings to the Timbisha exhibit to mark the 25th anniversary of the Timbisha Shoshone Homeland Act, which established co-management of the park. The updated display would have included the phrase "Timbisha Homelands," which was also rejected by Interior.
** Quick hits
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Trump suggests he appointed Doug Burgum to the cabinet because his wife is attractive
Mediaite ([link removed]) | HuffPost ([link removed])
GAO: Workforce cuts slow Tribal cooperation agreements
E&E News ([link removed])
Trump officials awarded Venezuela oil contracts to firms tied to bribery
Washington Post ([link removed])
As governors convene in Washington, Colorado River stewards debate a broad range of options
Deseret News ([link removed]) | Arizona Daily Star ([link removed]) | KUNC ([link removed]) | Colorado Sun ([link removed]) | Las Vegas Review-Journal ([link removed])
Economic analysis shows national monuments promote stable economies
National Parks Traveler ([link removed])
Wyoming housing project on 3 acres of public land spurs debate
WyoFile ([link removed])
Park Service looks for vandals and illegal off-roaders in California
SFGate ([link removed]) | Outside ([link removed])
Opinion: Thanks to Utah, Americans are about to lose their public lands
Moab Times-Independent ([link removed])
** Quote of the day
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” I saw them riding horses in a video and I said, ‘Who is that?’ I was talking about her, not him. They explained it, and I said, ‘I’m going to hire him’ because anybody that has somebody like you to be with—it’s an amazing tribute.”
—President Donald Trump on Kathryn Burgum, Mediaite ([link removed])
** Picture This
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@SierraClub ([link removed])
Did you know ❓ In 2008, Coalie spilled 1.1 billion gallons of coal ash sludge from the Kingston Coal Plant into Emory River and across 300 acres of neighboring property! Bad Coalie!
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