Senator accuses BLM of undermining Wyoming's greater sage-grouse efforts; agency official says plans were developed with the state

A senator told the Senate Committee that the Bureau of Land Management is ignoring Wyoming's long-running, bipartisan approach to conserving the greater sage-grouse and is "planning to upend the state's successful efforts at balancing conservation with economic development." The senator said Wyoming has worked for more than 15 years, with Republican and Democratic governors, to adopt new management approaches and asked why the federal agency was not working with the state that has "proven time and again" it can protect the species.

An unidentified agency official disputed that characterization, saying the bureau had been meeting "twice weekly with the state of Wyoming as we develop the sage grouse plans." The official said the agency and state partners were working closely together and "we are literally line editing the documents together," adding the bureau believes the plans "are gonna have the durability that they need for success for the sage grouse."

During the exchange, the senator invoked historical conservation rhetoric, referencing a 1963 speech by John Kennedy at the University of Wyoming and noting Tom Udall's father was present at that event, to underscore Wyoming's conservation tradition. The senator repeated the assertion that the BLM "has gone a long way away from maintaining a living balance and basically trying to shut down the state of Wyoming." The exchange concluded with the senator thanking the chair.

No formal motions, votes, or committee actions were recorded in the transcript excerpt.