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We need your help to stop yet another fire sale of our nation's public fishing and hunting areas. The FY 2007 budget proposal for the United States Department of the Interior would allow for the sale of public lands managed by the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) and require that 70 percent of all income from land sales be used to reduce the federal deficit. Over a 10-year period, this proposal would require that more than $350 million of public land is sold with little regard for their wildlife, fish, and water values. In a second proposal, the United States Department of Agriculture Forest Service is proposing to sell off hundreds of thousands of acres of National Forest lands to raise $800 million to fund the Secure Rural Schools program as part of the Forest Service's Fiscal Year 2007 budget proposal. The Secure Rural Schools legislation was passed six years ago by Congress to offset the loss of revenue in rural communities affected by a downturn in logging activity on National Forests. Click here to learn more.
Most sportsmen cannot afford to pay for private hunts or high rod fees for access to private waters. Public lands are the backyard of the little guy, and they provide crucial opportunities for hunting and fishing. More than 50 percent of all blue ribbon trout streams flow across national forests. And public lands provide more than 80% of crucial habitat for animals such as elk, and other big game. These landscapes shouldn't be made available to the highest bidder simply because the government cannot balance its own checkbook. The federal government's FY 2007 budget is $2.7 trillion. Just as children's education shouldn't be dependent on timber sales, sportsmen should not be forced to bear the cost of the government's fiscal irresponsibility. Click here to read some recent press on this issue.
Congress will be considering specific legislative proposals from the BLM and the Forest Service to sell public lands by May 15. Click here to contact your member of Congress and tell them to keep public lands in public hands.