U.S. Sen. Mike Lee says he’s pulled from the “Big Beautiful Bill” his controversial proposal to sell federal public lands to states and private buyers for new housing developments.
On Saturday morning, a sprawling, 940-page Senate version of President Donald Trump’s signature domestic policy was released that included Lee’s proposal. The bill at that time would have required the Department of the Interior to sell between 0.25% and 0.50% of all land management Bureau of Land Management across 11 Western states, including Utah, to make room for housing development.
But GOP Senators have struggled to find an agreement on the bill overall: Republicans have been fighting to find the votes to pass the bill. Some House Republicans expressed their disapproval of selling federal land. And a ruling from a Senate rules enforcer gave Lee a setback when they said his effort didn’t abide by requirements for budget bills.
So, on Saturday evening, Utah’s senior U.S. senator announced his public lands proposal had met its end.
“Because of the strict constraints of the budget reconciliation process, I was unable to secure clear, enforceable safeguards to guarantee that these lands would be sold only to American families—not to China, not to BlackRock, and not to any foreign interests," Lee posted to social media.
“For that reason, I’ve made the decision to withdraw the federal land sales provision from the bill,” he continued.
Because Republicans in Congress are trying to pass the “One Big Beautiful Bill Act” through the budget reconciliation process, only a simple majority is required in the Senate, as opposed to a filibuster-proof majority of 60 votes. Also, all provisions of the bill must be related to the federal budget.
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This article is published through the Utah News Collaborative, a partnership of news organizations in Utah that aims to inform readers across the state.