Herndon supports public lands, not harmful bureaucracy

The top-down federal control of federal public lands in Idaho has not generally worked well for healthy forest, wildlife, watershed management and recreational access. The federal government owns 32.6 million of Idaho’s 52.9 million acres. East of the Mississippi, the federal government owns less than 5% of the land of the states, but in Idaho it is 62%.

A problem for federal land managers is that many of their intended management actions get tied up in extensive litigation by national environmental groups, paralyzing management of federal land.

For every $1 the federal government invests in public land, they lose at least 22 cents. For every $1 Idaho invests in public land, we gain $2.80. Idaho land management accrues to the benefit of Idahoans for public education, wildlife habitat, economic diversity, recreation and wildfire mitigation.

A great benefit of state management of public lands, whether for conservation, wildlife, wildfire control or timber harvesting, is control closer to home from a responsive state government that is subject to the voters rather than management by a huge federal bureaucracy 3,000 miles away in Washington, D.C.

Republican Scott Herndon supports public land managed by Idaho for Idahoans, not a distant, inefficient, harmful federal bureaucracy.

ARLENE HERNDON

Sagle