FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: June 11, 2025  Contact: media@backcountryhunters.org    MISSOULA, Mont. — Backcountry Hunters & Anglers (BHA) is rebuking a sweeping new proposal released by the Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee that would force the sale of up to 3 million acres of public lands under the guise of a solution to the housing crisis. This proposal—led by committee chair Senator Mike Lee (R-UT)—would apply to public lands managed by the Bureau of Land Management and U.S. Forest ...

This is your March 4th edition of BHA's Western Policy Spotter - a high-level scan of state policy and legislation impacting wild public lands, waters and wildlife across the West. Note - this is not a comprehensive list of legislation or issues that chapters are working on, but rather a spotlight in the moment of what is moving. There are many more bills and issues BHA's chapters are grappling with, and those will be added to the Spotter when they are strategic to surface. Jump to ...

The Wyoming Chapter of Backcountry Hunters & Anglers (BHA) has long advocated for sportsmen’s and women’s ability to access public lands via corner crossing—the act of moving between adjoining public parcels at their corners. While we appreciate the intent of House Bill 99 to clarify legal ambiguities, we encourage lawmakers to address issues in its current draft to ensure it protects public access without creating unintended consequences. Wyoming BHA secured a significant victory two years ...

Earlier this year, with your help, Wyoming BHA helped to defeat HB60 in the legislature. Our efforts were aimed at protecting the investment of hunter and angler dollars from a significantly expanded damages program that would incentivize wildlife to consolidate on private lands without any corresponding increase in public access. Unfortunately, in July we saw this game damages plan renewed by the Game & Fish Department through a regulation change, despite the overwhelming negative response ...

On June 12, the Senate Energy and Natural Resources Subcommittee on Public Lands, Forests, and Mining held a legislative hearing which included the consideration of six bills supported by Backcountry Hunters & Anglers. Members of BHA have advocated for these bills which together would permanently conserve nearly 3 million acres of public lands and 3,600 miles of rivers and streams, as well as improve publicly available data for accessing federal waters. These priority landscapes contain ...