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Utah Senate urges rescission of Bears Ears monument designation after heated floor debate
Summary
The Utah Senate passed HCR 11 urging the President to rescind the Bears Ears National Monument designation after several hours of debate over process, tribal consultation and county impacts; the resolution passed 22–6 with one absence.
The Utah Senate on the floor of Day 12 voted 22–6, with one senator absent, to approve House Concurrent Resolution 11 urging the President to rescind the Bears Ears National Monument designation. The resolution moved quickly through procedural steps before a lengthy debate about federal land policy, local economic impacts and tribal consultation.
Supporters of the resolution argued the monument designation was imposed without adequate local input or congressional negotiation. President Niederhauser, sponsor of the motion to move the resolution forward, said the intent is to re-open a negotiated process: “The voice of the people needs to weigh in on these decisions,” he said, emphasizing legislative channels and negotiation.
Opponents, including Senator Derek Dabakis, criticized both the monument’s scope and the process used to create it, calling the unilateral action problematic. “I urge you to vote no,” Dabakis said, arguing the issue requires more careful negotiation with federal officials and attention to local financial impacts.
Lawmakers debated specific financial figures and governance implications. Senators expressed concerns about county budgets and Payments in Lieu of Taxes (PILT), citing a roughly $32 million annual PILT figure and noting Utah’s federal land holdings of about 31.5 million acres as background for their fiscal arguments. Supporters countered that local tribes and the Bears Ears Intertribal Coalition had sought monument protections and that the Antiquities Act had been used historically to protect culturally significant sites.
The Senate’s passage of HCR 11 directs the state’s formal request that the federal executive reconsider the Bears Ears designation and signals the chamber’s preference for a negotiated, legislative process in addressing public-land management. The resolution will be returned to the House for its action and, per standard practice, may be transmitted to federal officials.
Next steps: HCR 11 will be signed by the Senate president and returned to the House for further handling and potential transmittal to federal authorities.
