The Department of Interior's proposal to sell off federal lands has triggered opposition from both parties, with at least five Republican and Democratic lawmakers vowing to block any acreage from leaving public hands. The plan, detailed this week, revives a fight that played out over the One Big Beautiful Bill last summer, when land-sale provisions were stripped from the tax and spending package.

What are lawmakers saying?

Democratic Senator Martin Heinrich of New Mexico, who is set to chair the Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee next year, promised to repeat his earlier success. "Two summers ago, I led the successful fight to stop an unprecedented proposal to sell off millions of acres of public lands, and I will do it again," Heinrich said. "These lands belong to the American people, not private interests looking to cash in."

Republican Senator Tim Sheehy of Montana posted on X that his office was not consulted. "Last year, I stopped the sale of lands in the One Big Beautiful Bill," Sheehy said. "I will not allow ONE ACRE of Montana land to be sold."

The opposition extends to Representative Mike Simpson (R-ID), Senator Steve Daines (R-MT), and Representative Ryan Zinke (R-MT), who served as Interior Secretary during the first Trump administration. Environmental and conservation groups including the Sierra Club, the Center for Western Priorities, Nature is Nonpartisan, the Sagebrush Institute and Save our Parks have united against the sale.

"Selling off our public lands is nearly universally unpopular," Maya Cohn, vice president of policy and external affairs at Nature is Nonpartisan, told the Washington Examiner. "The vast majority of Americans want to keep public lands in public hands."

Can Interior actually sell the land?

Under current law, Interior's Bureau of Land Management (BLM) may sell public lands only in specific circumstances: when the land is no longer needed for federal purposes, has become difficult or uneconomic to manage, or would serve a vital public interest.

The Federal Land Policy and Management Act requires that any sale exceeding 2,500 acres go to Congress, which holds veto power. BLM rarely exercises this authority, and disposals have often been offset by acquisitions.

According to Resources For the Future, BLM sold or transferred approximately 1.08 million acres between 2014 and 2023, while acquiring 291,400 acres. Gabriella Hoffman, director of the Center for Energy and Conservation at Independent Women, warned that transfers to states for housing or infrastructure "could be seen as a Trojan horse to privatize all public land in the U.S." She noted that only 28% of U.S. land is publicly managed.

What else moved in energy policy?

• Permitting bill: House Energy and Commerce Republicans, led by chair Brett Guthrie of Kentucky, met Energy Secretary Chris Wright and raised concerns about BAAJA provisions expanding federal approval of interstate transmission lines. Senator Josh Hawley of Missouri introduced four amendments yesterday to raise eminent-domain compensation and limit federal regulators' authority.
• Jones Act: A waiver allowing foreign ships to move goods between U.S. ports expires Nov. 15. Reuters reported a White House extension could come today, citing four industry sources; a White House official called the report "premature."
• FEMA: The agency plans to reduce disaster assistance to states within six months, according to The Hill. Former FEMA chief of staff Michael Coen said states at an emergency management conference asked for more time and definitive information.
• Project 2029: The Democratic policy group would force vertically integrated utilities (companies owning both power plants and transmission) into wholesale markets. "Opening the electric grid to competition and innovation can help lower costs, address the climate crisis, and power America's energy future all at the same time," the group said.
• Gas prices: The national average fell 6.2 cents per gallon yesterday, the third-largest single decline in 26 years per GasBuddy. AAA puts the average at $3.90 per gallon, the first sub-$4 reading in nearly four months; diesel remains just above $6.
• Underwater data centers: DeepGreen Holding LLC holds a 48-month preliminary permit to study sites in Cook Inlet, Alaska and the Gulf of Maine — 66 data pods and more than 300 tidal turbines across 1,650 acres in Alaska, and 50 tidal turbines across 27 acres in Maine — with environmental groups already pushing back.

At COP31 in Antalya, Turkey, California Governor Gavin Newsom attacked the administration's climate retreat. "China is cleaning our clock," Newsom said, adding that "Trump's head is in sand soaked with oil." The administration sent no federal officials to the conference for a second consecutive year following its Paris Agreement withdrawal, while 19 House representatives plan to attend later this week.