An amendment proposed by Rep. Mark Amodei that was included in a budget reconciliation bill in the U.S. House of Representatives and passed by the House Natural Resources Committee last Tuesday would require the sale of federal lands in four Nevada counties.
It also angered Nevada’s Democratic members of Congress, who objected that the money from the sale would go to the U.S. Treasury instead of being earmarked to be spent in Nevada, and that no land was designated for conservation in exchange.
The House Natural Resources Committee passed its directives for the Reconciliation process, which includes $18.5 billion in savings. Amodei’s amendment pertaining to disposal of Federal lands in Nevada was included in the package.
In Lyon County, the amendment identifies 12,085 acres which will be sold for fair market value to the City of Fernley and be developed as the Tahoe-Reno Industrial Center (TRIC) II.
Amodei said the bill delivers on the Administration’s commitment to curb reckless spending, steward taxpayer dollars responsibly, and identify smart investments and will generate a total of $18.5 billion in savings, well beyond its $1 billion target.
“The reality is, most of my colleagues don’t fully grasp the unique challenges Nevada faces as a state that is 80% federally owned,” Amodei said. “For years, folks from my district, and even across district lines, have voiced serious concerns about how these vast stretches of public land could threaten Nevada’s economic momentum and competitiveness if we run out of usable acreage.
Amodei said with Republicans holding only a slim majority, the reconciliation process presented a rare vehicle to advance these land disposal requests.
“This is only the first step in our efforts to support responsible development in our state while also delivering a meaningful return for the American taxpayer,” Amodei said
Amodei’s amendment was introduced at 11 p.m. Tuesday night after 11 hours of debate on the reconciliation bill.
Amodei said reconciliation is a rigorous process that allows the president’s agenda to move forward without being blocked by a Senate filibuster. It began with both the House and Senate passing an identical budget blueprint that provided clear directives for committees to identify areas for saving and investment. Congressional committees have been working to turn those directives into actionable legislation within their respective jurisdictions.
All proposed legislation must meet deficit-reducing or revenue-related targets. The end goal is to compile all legislation passed through committees and bring it onto the chamber floors for voting in one big bill.
But Amodei’s bill angered U.S. Senators Jacky Rosen and Catherine Cortez Masto.
“In the dead of night, Representative Mark Amodei pushed House Republicans to move forward with an insane plan that cuts funding from water conservation and public schools across Nevada,” Cortez Masto said. “This is a land grab to fund Republicans ‘billionaire giveaway tax bill, and I’ll fight it with everything I have.”
“I am outraged that Congressman Amodei sold out Nevadans in the dead of night by passing a flawed, hastily-drafted proposal that undermines the careful balance struck in the Washoe County Lands Bill and would result in our state losing out on much-needed funding,” Rosen said. “While I will always support taking steps to address Nevada’s housing crisis, I will not support a Washington-drafted proposal that will lead to Nevada losing out on millions of dollars in funding for our local priorities like education and restoration around the Truckee River, all so Republicans in Washington can pay for more tax cuts for billionaires.”
Amodei said Nevada’s population centers are all encumbered by federal lands and can’t meet their housing and development needs without disposal of federal lands. Unlike most other states, Nevadans rely on Congress to make these lands available.
He said each of the maps included in this amendment was generated by the respective counties referenced in the bill. National Parks and areas of significant environmental value are not included in the list of disposal lands within the amendment, and all disposal of federal lands must still go through the NEPA process and comply with existing federal regulations. This amendment focuses on communities who have been starved of development and housing needs.
The amendment encompasses 449,174 acres, but Amodei said 356,100 acres are part of the Pershing County checkerboard resolution that have no net change in federal ownership.
Washoe County
The amendment identifies 15,860 acres in Washoe County for disposal, also allowing for joint selection between the County and Federal government to prioritize lands for affordable housing development.
In addition to the land to be sold to the City of Fernley, the bill also includes provisions for the disposal of land in Calrk, Washoe and Pershing counties.
Clark County
The amendment identifies 65,129 acres in Clark County for disposal, also allowing for joint selection between the County and Federal government to prioritize lands for affordable housing development. The amendment includes a savings clause to ensure that no proceeds deposited into the SNPLMA special account under previous lands sales are to be rescinded or redirected.
Pershing County
The amendment authorizes the sale or exchange of lands previously identified for disposal by the BLM in a streamlined manner. This encompasses approximately 356,100 acres of land to be exchanged at a 1:1 ratio.
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