Stop the BLM's Plan to Strip Public Input from 155 Million Acres of Public Land
The Issue
The Bureau of Land Management is rewriting the rules governing ranching on 155 million acres of America's public lands. The new rules, which go back for final review in mid-July, are not a balanced reform. They are a gift to the livestock industry, drafted with input from ranching trade groups and a federal official whose family is in the ranching business.
Here is what the proposed changes would do.
They would expand grazing on land that rangeland experts say has already been severely damaged by overgrazing. Studies done under existing rules have found damage to tens of millions of acres. The new rules would make it easier to place cattle on more land, faster, including on plots currently vacant to allow for ecological recovery.
They would gut public participation. Under the new proposal, only those with a "cognizable" interest would get advance notice of agency decisions or the right to comment. Conservationists, hikers, and ordinary Americans who use public lands would be pushed out. A BLM staffer said plainly: "They're clearly trying to reduce involvement of anyone other than ranchers."
They would let harmful grazing continue during appeals. If a rancher challenges a ruling that limits their herd, that ruling is automatically paused. "That effectively invites everyone to appeal to avoid the decision," said one natural resources law professor. "That is a disaster."
They would threaten Native American tribes. Several tribes use BLM permits to graze bison herds for cultural practices and ecosystem restoration. The new rules mandate that public lands operations be "production-oriented," potentially eliminating those permits entirely.
All of this is being driven by a political appointee who has publicly said the goal is to go "back to the Ronald Reagan years" on grazing policy. The ranching industry received $284 million below market rate from taxpayers in 2024 alone for the use of these lands. Now they want to expand that arrangement with less oversight and less accountability.
Sign this petition to demand:
- The BLM restore full public participation rights in all grazing permit decisions
- No expansion of grazing on lands experts have identified as degraded
- A transparent, independent review of the proposed regulations' impact on wildlife, watersheds, and tribal communities
These are public lands. The public deserves a seat at the table.
1,491
The Issue
The Bureau of Land Management is rewriting the rules governing ranching on 155 million acres of America's public lands. The new rules, which go back for final review in mid-July, are not a balanced reform. They are a gift to the livestock industry, drafted with input from ranching trade groups and a federal official whose family is in the ranching business.
Here is what the proposed changes would do.
They would expand grazing on land that rangeland experts say has already been severely damaged by overgrazing. Studies done under existing rules have found damage to tens of millions of acres. The new rules would make it easier to place cattle on more land, faster, including on plots currently vacant to allow for ecological recovery.
They would gut public participation. Under the new proposal, only those with a "cognizable" interest would get advance notice of agency decisions or the right to comment. Conservationists, hikers, and ordinary Americans who use public lands would be pushed out. A BLM staffer said plainly: "They're clearly trying to reduce involvement of anyone other than ranchers."
They would let harmful grazing continue during appeals. If a rancher challenges a ruling that limits their herd, that ruling is automatically paused. "That effectively invites everyone to appeal to avoid the decision," said one natural resources law professor. "That is a disaster."
They would threaten Native American tribes. Several tribes use BLM permits to graze bison herds for cultural practices and ecosystem restoration. The new rules mandate that public lands operations be "production-oriented," potentially eliminating those permits entirely.
All of this is being driven by a political appointee who has publicly said the goal is to go "back to the Ronald Reagan years" on grazing policy. The ranching industry received $284 million below market rate from taxpayers in 2024 alone for the use of these lands. Now they want to expand that arrangement with less oversight and less accountability.
Sign this petition to demand:
- The BLM restore full public participation rights in all grazing permit decisions
- No expansion of grazing on lands experts have identified as degraded
- A transparent, independent review of the proposed regulations' impact on wildlife, watersheds, and tribal communities
These are public lands. The public deserves a seat at the table.
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Petition created on July 8, 2026