Utah lawsuit seeks state control over vast areas of federal land

SALT LAKE CITY (AP) — Utah’s attorney general said Tuesday he’s asked to file a lawsuit with the U.S. Supreme Court challenging a federal agency’s control over vast tracts of public land covering about one-third of the state.

The legal action — considered a longshot attempt to assert state powers over U.S. Bureau of Land Management property — marks the latest jab in a long-running feud between states and the U.S. government over who should control huge swaths of the West and the enormous oil and gas, timber, and other resources they contain.

Federal agencies combined have jurisdiction over almost 70% of Utah.

The lawsuit seeks to assert state control over about half of that federal land — some 29,000 square miles (75,000 square kilometers), or an area nearly as large as South Carolina. Those parcels are under land bureau management and used for energy production, grazing, mining, recreation and other purposes.

Utah’s world-famous national parks — and also the national monuments managed by the land bureau — would remain in federal hands under the lawsuit.

“Utah cannot manage, police or care for more than two thirds of its own territory because it’s controlled by people who don’t live in Utah, who aren’t elected by Utah citizens and not responsive to our local needs,” Reyes said.

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