Utah
Utah files ambitious lawsuit to take control of 18.5 million acres of federal public land
Utah Gov. Spencer Cox speaks at a press conference announcing a lawsuit from the state seeking to take control of to 18.5 million acres of federally managed land in Utah. (Kyle Dunphey/Utah News Dispatch)
Utah is suing the federal government over how it manages public land in the state, again.
But unlike past legal challenges, which target specific national monuments or policies, the scope of the lawsuit filed with the U.S. Supreme Court on Tuesday is massive, questioning whether the Bureau of Land Management’s claim to 18.5 million acres of land — about 34% of the entire state — is legitimate.
State politicians call it “historic.” Environmental and public land advocacy groups say it’s a “land grab.” Regardless, the lawsuit has the potential to upend how the Bureau of Land Management operates in Utah and possibly the Western U.S.
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The lawsuit targets “unappropriated” public land. That doesn’t include Utah’s five national parks, or any of the state’s national monuments, national forests, or recreation or wilderness areas, which represent about half of the federal public land in the state.
The other half, which is about 34% of the entire state, according to officials, is unappropriated land “that the U.S. government is simply holding on to, without properly reserving it for any designated purpose,” Attorney General Sean Reyes said on Tuesday.
That deprives Utah of its sovereignty, Reyes said, by holding land regardless of how it impacts residents or state business.
“Utah cannot manage, police or care for more than two thirds of its own territory because it’s controlled by people who don’t live in Utah, who aren’t elected by Utah citizens and not responsive to our local needs,” Reyes said.
That means the state can’t impose taxes on that land, or impose eminent domain to build “critical infrastructure” like public roads or communication systems, Reyes said. Nor can the state exercise legislative authority over how to use the land.
The 90-plus page complaint asks the U.S. Supreme Court whether it’s constitutional for the federal government to hold unappropriated land in the state indefinitely.
“This is a question we and many Western states have had for decades,” Utah Gov. Spencer Cox said on Tuesday, speaking to a room packed full of lawmakers, bureaucrats, county-level politicians and reporters. Reyes, as well as Senate President Stuart Adams, R-Layton, and House Speaker Mike Schultz, R-Hooper, also spoke.
There are only a handful of entities allowed to petition directly to the U.S. Supreme Court, including states that have a dispute with the federal government. Even though it could be a more streamlined process than filing with a lower court, the process could still take years. And that’s assuming the high court agrees to hear the case.
If the Supreme Court declines to take up the case, Cox said the state will go back and file a complaint with a federal district court.
Whether it’s the Supreme Court or a lower district, the legal challenge will cost taxpayers money. The legislature appropriated about $20 million to fight the legal challenge, Reyes said, though he believes it won’t cost nearly that much.
“What we’ve spent currently or plan to spend is, I don’t have an exact number, but it’s a fraction,” Reyes said, telling reporters the state will save money by filing the lawsuit with the Supreme Court because it won’t have to litigate in federal district courts.
In an email Tuesday, University of Utah law professor John Ruple agreed with some of the governor’s sentiment, telling Utah News Dispatch there is room for improvement when it comes to how federal land is managed.
“However, the U.S. Constitution is clear that Congress, not the individual states, makes decisions about our federal public lands,” said Ruple, a research professor of law at the university’s S.J. Quinney College of Law, and director of the Wallace Stegner Center for Land, Resources and the Environment’s Law and Policy Program.
To rule in Utah’s favor, Ruple said the Supreme Court would have to reinterpret longstanding constitutional provisions, upsetting “150 years of settled Supreme Court law and destabilizing land ownership throughout the West.”
“That’s a big lift. I can’t help but wonder whether a less adversarial approach would have been more effective,” he said.
What if Utah wins?
If Utah’s lawsuit is successful, setting forth a process where 18.5 million acres is placed under state control, it would unravel the current, decadesold structure of federal land management.
But it’s something state officials have anticipated for years, passing a bill in 2017 that creates the prospective Utah Department of Land Management, which would essentially become Utah’s version of the BLM.
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Much of that unappropriated land is offered up as parcels for grazing, oil and gas production, mining or recreation — those leases would instead be managed by the Department of Land Management.
Redge Johnson, director of the state’s Public Lands Policy Coordinating Office, said Utah would honor all existing leases, but instead of the BLM, lease holders would meet with state employees. Johnson, acknowledging that it’s very much still a hypothetical scenario, said the state would likely hire many BLM employees.
“They’re great people, we have a lot of good people at the local level that we work with. It’s the decisions that come out of (Washington) D.C. that we find problematic,” he said.
Other federal entities, like the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, which doesn’t necessarily own unappropriated land but does work on it, would likely be able to operate as it did previously.
The state has long had grievances with the federal government’s hold on land. It has filed lawsuits looking to repeal the Biden administration’s re-designation of Bears Ears and Grand Staircase-Escalante national monuments, a travel plan in Grand County that closed a number of rugged dirt roads near wilderness areas, and a recent rule allowing parcels of Bureau of Land Management land to be leased for conservation.
Those policies were all cited Tuesday as examples of federal overreach.
“For the entire time that we’ve existed as a state, Utah’s public lands have been a treasured heritage for all of us. For many years, decades even, the question of how to best manage Utah’s lands has been at the forefront of our state’s critical issues,” Cox said. “The crazy thing is that all this time, we have not had control of nearly 70% of our land. I want you to think about that for just a second. Utah does not have the ability to manage over two thirds of our state.”
‘This lawsuit isn’t worth the paper it’s printed on’: Environmental groups respond
A number of environmental groups responded to the announcement on Tuesday, calling Utah’s lawsuit an attempted land grab and accusing the state of wasting taxpayer money, while threatening some of the state’s most iconic landscapes.
The Southern Utah Wilderness Alliance, a litigious nonprofit that has previously intervened in several lawsuits in opposition to Utah, called Tuesday’s announcement another example of Utah being “the most anti-public lands state in the country.”
“Utahns and visitors travel to our state to experience stunning redrock canyons, spires, and mesas; public lands that are owned by all Americans and managed on their behalf by the federal government and its expert agencies,” said the group’s legal director, Steve Bloch. “All of that is at risk with Utah’s saber rattling and insistence that many of these remarkable landscapes are instead ‘state lands’ that should be developed and ultimately destroyed by short-sighted state politicians.”
The Center For Western Priorities, a public lands advocacy group, said Utah’s legal argument was likely to fail, telling Utah News Dispatch it “isn’t worth the paper it’s printed on.”
“One hundred and thirty years ago, the people of Utah agreed to ‘forever disclaim all right and title’ to national public lands when Utah became a state. What part of ‘forever’ isn’t clear to you, governor? The property clause of the Constitution gives Congress, and only Congress, authority to transfer or dispose of federal lands. That’s the beginning, middle, and end of this lawsuit,” said the group’s deputy director, Aaron Weiss, who urged the governor and other state leaders to abandon the suit before they “waste millions of taxpayer dollars enriching out-of-state lawyers on this pointless lawsuit.”
And the Wilderness Society said the lawsuit was another example of Utah trying to undermine federal land management, pointing to the state’s other lawsuits.
In a statement, the group’s senior legal director Alison Flint called the lawsuit “a brazen and undemocratic attempt to force the handover of millions of acres of American’s public lands to the state – and ultimately to private companies planning to develop them.”
“The courts should reject these cynical, outrageous attempts to undermine and take control of America’s public lands,” Flint said.
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Country music star Todd Snider, known for his alt-country hits like “Alright Guy” and “Just Like Old Times,” has died following a battle with a mysterious illness. He was 59.
Snider passed away on Friday, according to an Instagram post shared by the singer’s record label, Aimless, Inc. Headquarters.
“Where do we find the words for the one who always had the right words, who knew how to distill everything down to its essence with words and song while delivering the most devastating, hilarious, and impactful turn of phrases?” the statement read.
“Always creating rhyme and meter that immediately felt like an old friend or a favorite blanket. Someone who could almost always find the humor in this crazy ride on Planet Earth.”
“He relayed so much tenderness and sensitivity through his songs, and showed many of us how to look at the world through a different lens,” the Saturday statement continued.
“He got up every morning and started writing, always working towards finding his place among the songwriting giants that sat on his record shelves, those same giants who let him into their lives and took him under their wings, who he studied relentlessly.”
Snider’s family previously revealed in a Friday statement that the singer was diagnosed with pneumonia during his stay at a hospital in Hendersonville, Tennessee.
After his condition worsened due to complications, the “Trouble” hitmaker was transferred to another facility.
At the time, the family requested that Snider’s fans “say a prayer, light a candle, roll one up, send strength, or just keep him close in your heart” during the tough time.
“You’ve carried him through so much over the years, and he needs that from all of us now more than ever,” the message continued.
His death comes shortly after his tour in support of his most recent album, “High, Lonesome and Then Some,” which released in October, was canceled earlier this month.
The tour was axed after he was allegedly the victim of a violent assault in the Salt Lake City area, according to a Nov. 3 statement from his management team.
However, Snider was later arrested by Salt Lake City police after he caused a disturbance at the Holy Cross Hospital where he was being treated.
The singer was reportedly yelling and cursing at the hospital staff after they discharged him before he was apparently ready, per the Salt Lake Tribune.
He was charged with disorderly conduct, criminal trespassing and threatening violence.
Born and raised in Oregon, Snider’s musical influences were based on artists like Kris Kristofferson, Guy Clark and John Prine.
He got his start in the music industry as a young artist signed to Jimmy Buffet’s record label, Margaritaville, which released his first two albums 1994’s “Songs for the Daily Planet” and 1996’s “Step Right Up.”
He went on to write songs for several major artists including Jerry Jeff Walker, Billy Joe Shaver and Tom Jones. He also co-wrote a song with Loretta Lynn that appeared on her 2016 album, “Full Circle.”
Paging Jay Hill. Calling Hill.
TCU QB Josh Hoover is coming to town and needs your immediate attention.
Attention, Morgan Scalley. Summoning Scalley.
Baylor QB Sawyer Robertson is trotting onto the field and needs your instant focus.
There will be big-time throwing artists in the crosshairs of BYU and Utah defenders on Saturday when No. 13 Utah travels to Baylor and No. 12 BYU hosts the Horned Frogs in LaVell Edwards Stadium.
Leave these guys unchallenged and they can deliver big-time plays, standing in the pocket like statues in target acquisition, and they’re lethal.
Chase them, harass them, bring them down to the turf, or disrupt their comfort, and their artistry is impacted.
Robertson is No. 1.
In Waco, Robertson is the Big 12’s leading passer with 230 completions in 366 attempts, seven interceptions, 62.8% completion rate for 2,780 yards and 26 touchdown passes. His efficiency rating is 146 and he averages 308 yards passing per game.
Coming to Provo, Hoover, who diced BYU apart two years ago as a freshman, is the league’s No. 2-ranked passer. He has completed 219 of 335 passes with eight interceptions, a 65.4% completion for 2,690 yards, 23 touchdowns, an average of 298 yards per game and a 150 pass efficiency rating.
Hoover has almost twice as many TD passes as BYU’s Bear Bachmeier (12), and Robertson’s 26 touchdown passes are 11 more than Utah’s Devon Dampier (15).
Both have shown a penchant for struggling when pressured.
Hoover’s strongest performance of the 2025 season came on Sept. 20 against SMU, where he completed 22 of 40 passes (55% completion) for a season-high 379 yards and five touchdowns with just one interception. He also contributed 27 rushing yards on eight carries. This explosive outing powered TCU to a 35-24 victory and showcased his arm strength with multiple deep balls, earning him a 162.4 pass rating for the game.
Hoover’s most challenging game was on Sept. 26 at Arizona State, completing 20 of 32 passes (62.5% completion) for 242 yards, zero touchdowns and two interceptions. His rushing line was particularly rough at minus-38 yards on nine carries, which included multiple sacks. The lack of scoring production and turnovers contributed to a tight 27-24 loss, marking his lowest pass rating (113.5) of the season to date.
He also threw two interceptions that led to Kansas State scores in a four-sack loss on the road.
Robertson’s standout performance this 2025 season came on Sept. 6 against SMU, where he threw for a career-high 440 yards on 34 of 50 passing (68% completion) with four touchdowns and no interceptions. He also added 20 rushing yards on six carries. This game helped Baylor secure a thrilling 48-45 double-overtime victory, marking one of his two 400-plus yard outings and contributing to his FBS-leading passing yards total.
Robertson’s toughest outing was on Oct. 18 at TCU, when he completed 25 of 52 passes (48.1% completion) for 318 yards, two touchdowns and a season-high three interceptions. He managed just minus-12 rushing yards on four carries. The turnovers were pivotal in Baylor’s narrow six-point loss.
Both the Utes and Cougars are in dire need of wins this weekend. Utah is in survival mode — a third league loss would shut the door on a myriad of Big 12 and College Football Playoff opportunities.
The Cougars already used up their mulligan with a loss at Texas Tech last week, but still control their own destiny to Arlington and possibly a CFP bid.
These are the games Hill and Scalley are built for.
These are the kind of quarterbacks they like to scheme for, then wait and see if there is chaos and carnage.
This will be a fun Saturday, finding out if Hill and Scalley can create the QB havoc they so deftly love to design.
This week’s predictions
- Indiana 42, Wisconsin 24
- Texas A&M 31, South Carolina 14
- Notre Dame 28, Pittsburgh 21
- Cincinnati 31, Arizona 28
- Kansas State 27, Oklahoma State 17
- Arizona State 24, West Virginia 21
- Alabama 28, Oklahoma 24
- Texas Tech 42, UCF 13
- Miami 33, North Carolina 31
- Georgia Tech 35, Boston College 21
- USC 27, Iowa 21
- Virginia 31, Duke 17
- Penn State 24, Michigan State 14
- Ole Miss 38, Florida 31
- Ohio State 42, UCLA 14
- Georgia 28, Texas 24
- Utah 38, Baylor 21
- UNLV 28, Utah State 24
- BYU 28, TCU 24
Last week: 11-5; overall 136-42 (.764)
The federal government is open again, but Utah’s air travel may remain snarled for the foreseeable future.
Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy announced Nov. 12 that flight reductions will stay in place at 6% as the Federal Aviation Administration continues to monitor national staffing levels. The same goes for air travel in Salt Lake City.
“The Department of Transportation has indicated that they don’t have all of the air traffic control workers back, and so it will take some time before they are back in the saddle,” said Salt Lake City International Airport Communications Director Nancy Volmer. “It takes time to get these flight schedules back to normal.”
Volmer said the airport has not had any additional conversations with the FAA about how long flight reductions will be in place.
Even before the longest government shutdown in history, there was already a shortage of air traffic controllers. It’s something that’s felt across the airline industry.
The FAA faces a shortage of roughly 3,000 air traffic controllers. The shutdown did not make the situation any easier, with no pay, pressure from President Donald Trump and the ordered flight reductions. The country’s biggest travel hubs, including Salt Lake, felt it. But what about the smaller municipal and regional airports?
“There’s a lot of airports that would love to have [air traffic control] because it does increase your safety,” said Travis Biggs, president of the Utah Airport Operators Association and manager of the Heber Valley Airport.
Outside of SLC International, Biggs said the need for additional controllers is most acute at a place like Spanish Fork, a busy municipal airport without a dedicated control tower. An abundance of flight schools and proximity to a larger airport in Provo with commercial flights mean a crowded airspace.
“There’s just a lot of planes in the pattern,” he said. “In that congestion, that’s where your likelihood of having an incident or an accident or something like that between aircraft could happen.”
It’s something a new program at Utah State University in Logan is trying to address. Here in the classroom, students look like they’re parked in front of a complicated video game, but it’s actually part of the school’s air traffic control minor.
“I haven’t had to sell it,” said assistant professor and former air traffic controller Aaron Whittle in a video from the school. “The students just love it.”
Now in its second year, students use the simulator to learn what it takes to make sure aircraft get to where they’re headed safely.
“[The controller shortage has] been that way for years, and so we’re trying to stand where we are and make a difference from where we’re at,” Whittle said. “We’ve had four individuals get accepted by the FAA that are currently in the process of becoming air traffic controllers.”
Whittle said the goal of the program is not solely to develop new talent — the FAA has strict standards and oversees the hiring and training for those jobs — but he’s been encouraged by how students have gravitated toward the classes. Overall, more than 160 students have participated since it was first offered last fall.
An aviation student in the university’s video, Jacob Ivie, admitted his goal was to fly for an airline after graduation, but he saw the value of the experience gained in the simulator.
“It shows you all the opportunities that are out there in aviation beyond just flying the planes,” he said in the video. “It might help change a couple people’s minds and make some new controllers.”
The simulator provides students with an environment where they can practice the complex procedures and phraseology necessary in aviation without the added stress and risk of a real-world scenario.
USU’s program isn’t sending fully fledged controllers out into the world, but it is, at least, a first step to exposing students to a possible career.
Becoming an air traffic controller is a long and arduous process, according to the FAA. There’s a lengthy list of medical requirements and security clearances to meet to be considered for training, including being younger than 31 years old. Even then, less than 10% of applicants are accepted into the program. After completing the initial courses, applicants can expect 2-3 more years of education before they become certified air traffic controllers.
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