The Board of County Commissioners wrote to U.S. Representative Lauren Boebert to support the Local Opportunities, Conservation, and American Lands (LOCAL) Act.
The bill protects over 300 Western jobs and preserves millions of dollars of local economic impact, which saves taxpayer money and improves agency decision-making by:
- Ensuring Bureau of Land Management (BLM) employees currently in Western States remain in Western States;
- Requiring the BLM Headquarters to remain in its current location out West; and
- Analyzing whether moving more positions out West will improve management of Federal lands, increase coordination with local communities, and strengthen tourism, conservation, outdoor recreation, grazing, responsible energy production, or other multiple uses.
"The Board of County Commissioners (“Board”) for Mesa County, Colorado, is pleased to support the Local Opportunities, Conservation, and American Lands (“LOCAL”) Act. Grand Junction was selected for the Bureau of Land Management (“BLM”) Headquarters because of its substantial cost savings, travel accessibility, quality of life attributes, and increased representation among the communities affected by land management decisions.
Mesa County is more than 72% federal lands and the decisions made by the BLM and other federal land managers have the potential to significantly impact the long-term economic viability of Mesa County and the lives of its residents. In 2018, the Board adopted the Resolution to Support the Relocation of the Bureau of Land Management Headquarters to Grand Junction, Colorado (attached) because moving the Headquarters to Grand Junction is, as the resolution states, “in the best interest of counties to have the people who manage our BLM lands, and who make the decisions concerning these lands, living within the communities with high percentages of BLM land.”
As mentioned in a letter addressed to Senators Michael Bennet and John Hickenlooper on January 21, 2021 (attached), relocating the Headquarters to Grand Junction has already provided a tremendous impact on the local economy, including a $3 million capital infrastructure investment. Locally, the BLM hired 41 full-time employees from a large pool of qualified individuals. Reversing the decision to locate the BLM Headquarters in Grand Junction would not only be a detrimental loss to local communities, but it could also prove devastating to the families that uprooted their lives to relocate across the West.
Aside from the economic benefits of the relocation to western states, BLM decision-makers are gaining a better understanding of the importance of these lands and their multiple-use mandate and are more accessible and better able to engage with local stakeholders, governments, and tribes affected by land use decisions.
The benefits of relocating the BLM Headquarters and management positions to western states deserves an opportunity to be fully recognized. We appreciate that the LOCAL Act will ensure western voices continue to be heard on important land use decisions."
For more information on the LOCAL Act, click here.