Bill to Expand White Sands Missile Range Clears Senate Committee

A bill that would expand White Sands Missile Range by swapping land between the Bureau of Land Management and the U.S. Army cleared a key Senate committee on Thursday. The legislation, sponsored by Sen. Martin Heinrich and co-sponsored by Sen. Tom Udall, represents a three-party agreement between White Sands Missile Range and Fort Bliss, as well as the BLM. According to Heinrich’s office, the bill would provide a “comprehensive and enduring buffer for the total mission set in Doña Ana County.” Sen. John Cornyn, R-Tex., also co-sponsored the bill. The bill, if approved by the full Congress and signed into law by the president, would transfer 5,100 acres of land from the BLM to the Army for use as a “safety and security” buffer to NASA’s White Sands Test Facility and the Department of Defense’s Aerospace Data Facility-Southwest. Both are tenants of White Sands. The measure would also transfer 2,050 acres of land in Fillmore Canyon from the Army to the BLM to create a boundary that is more clearly identifiable to the public to prevent accidental trespass onto Fort Bliss. Finally, the bill would prohibit the BLM from selling, swapping or developing 35,550 acres of land to prevent “incompatible development” near the Fort Bliss Dona Ana Range Complex and Training Areas, Heinrich’s office said...more