Public lands are essential to Colorado’s economy, environment and way of life. They support outdoor recreation, clean air and water, wildlife, grazing and more. In 2023 alone, Colorado’s outdoor recreation economy generated $65.8 billion, supported 404,000 jobs and brought in $11.2 billion in tax revenue.

But a recently passed House bill threatens these lands by prioritizing oil, gas, mining and logging over conservation and public access. It includes harmful provisions like mandatory fossil fuel leasing, reduced public input, weakened environmental reviews and higher fees for clean energy. It also locks up 4 million acres for unprofitable coal mining and guts endangered species protections.

This bill would worsen the climate crisis – 22% of U.S. carbon emissions already come from fossil fuel development on public lands. And while 81% of BLM lands (including 74% in Colorado) are already open to drilling, 76% of Coloradans want leaders to focus more on protecting water, air, wildlife and recreation.

Though some of the worst provisions were removed from the House version, major threats remain. It’s now up to the Senate – and later, the House again – to reject this bill’s most damaging elements. And now they want to sell off more than 3.3 million acres of public land as well, and an additional 258 million acres over the next five years.

Colorado’s congressional delegation must stand with their constituents, not with “big oil.” They must fight to protect our public lands, climate and community’s way of life.

John Clark, Mayor, town of Ridgway

Ridgway

[Editor’s note: This letter was updated to correct the actual acreage that would be affected by the budget bill currently before Congress.]