NM lands transfer

Public lands transfer: Representatives from New Mexico’s pueblos and tribes turned out to oppose a measure that would create a task force to investigate transferring millions of acres of U.S. Forest Service and Bureau of Land Management land back to state control. SB 404 excluded tribal lands, national parks and monuments, and wilderness areas. Still, tribal representatives said, it would be an expensive and extensive task for the state to take on the trust responsibilities now handled by the federal government. The New Mexico Wildlife Federation, New Mexico Trout and the Sierra Club also spoke against the bill. Representatives from state livestock associations and from Lincoln County, where thousands of acres and dozens of homes burned in a wildfire, spoke in favor of the bill, saying the federal government had done a poor job of managing forests. The result was no go for the bill as senators tied on two motions.  Santa Fe New Mexican 

Interesting about the Native Americans.  The feds hold their lands in trust.  Folks should remember their position on this if they ever try to get their lands back from the feds.