The One Big Beautiful Bill Act and What it Means for Public Lands - Public Lands News (May 12 - 16)

This week, we break down the whirlwind of public lands policy battles happening in Congress and at the Department of the Interior.

But it’s not all grim. We also share a couple glimmers of good news, including a federal court decision slowing mass staff layoffs in national parks and a creative billboard campaign calling out those responsible for the growing park service crisis.

What's covered:

• The One Big Beautiful Bill Act and what it means for public lands, clean energy, and climate policy

• Their plan to sell 500,000 acres of public lands in Utah and Nevada

• Fast-tracking oil, gas, and uranium projects under the guise of a “national energy emergency”

• Rollbacks on solar and wind development rules on BLM-managed lands

• A federal court’s pause on agency staff layoffs
• States sue Trump administration for "illegal" energy emergency

• A billboard campaign exposing the consequences of public lands funding cuts

Have tips, testimonials, or insights on public land changes? Submit them through our Google Form (⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://forms.gle/JwC73G8wLvU6kedc9⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠)

Episode sources:

Full One Big Beautiful Bill Act Text (https://budget.house.gov/imo/media/doc/one_big_beautiful_bill_act_-_full_bill_text.pdf)

Outdoor Alliance: Midnight Land Sales in Reconciliation Megabill (https://www.outdooralliance.org/blog/2025/5/12/midnight-land-sales-in-reconciliation-megabill)

BLM New Mexico Oil & Gas Lease Sale Public Comment - comments open through June 11, 2025 (https://www.blm.gov/press-release/blm-seeks-initial-input-january-2026-sale-oil-and-gas-lease-new-mexico-and-oklahoma)

More Perfect Union Billboard Campaign Locations (https://www.instagram.com/p/DJmjI1dRniQ/?utm_source=ig_web_copy_link&igsh=MzRlODBiNWFlZA==)

NY Times Coverage of Federal Layoffs Court Ruling (https://www.nytimes.com/2025/05/09/us/politics/federal-layoffs-trump-ruling.html)