Public Land Sell-Off
The proposed mass “disposal” of public lands is unlike any recent threat. The outdoor recreation community has a lot to lose—specifically 547,678 acres of public land in Utah and Nevada. We’ve mapped them below.
Land Disposal = the process by which the government sells, transfers, or exchanges ownership of our public lands to private entities or other government bodies, which results in closed access to the public.
The proposed mass “disposal” of public lands is unlike any recent threat. The outdoor recreation community has a lot to lose—specifically 547,678 acres of public land in Utah and Nevada. We’ve mapped them below.
Land Disposal = the process by which the government sells, transfers, or exchanges ownership of our public lands to private entities or other government bodies, which results in closed access to the public.
547,678 Acres of Our Public Lands Are Up For Sale
Our public lands are under devastating threats of sell-off as Congress continues to draft its budget reconciliation bill. At midnight, on May 6, 2025, a last minute amendment was introduced into the House Natural Resource Committee’s bill, which would authorize the sale of public lands in Utah and Nevada.
How many acres? onX’s GIS analysis reveals that 547,678 acres of public lands in Utah and Nevada are under threat. It was done without opportunity for discussion, review, or public comment. In addition to a lack of public access considerations, proceeds from the sales of these lands would bypass the Federal Land Transaction Facilitation Act (FLTFA), which ensures public land sale proceeds are reinvested back into public lands, as opposed to going to the general treasury for investment elsewhere.
This could set a dangerous precedent, putting public land on the chopping block in other states. At onX, we do not believe our lands belong in this process. They are not a solution to a balanced budget. They should not be for sale.
Perhaps worse, this budget bill attempts to undo several conservation protections, cut staffing, and slash funding for our land management agencies. It would green-light several extractive industry leases while minimizing regulation and rolling back environmental considerations. The bill attempts to invalidate land management planning efforts and decades of public input from the outdoor recreation community.
American public lands offer hunting, hiking, boating, fishing, biking, off-roading, and climbing. They support wildlife habitat, clean water, and recreational access. Congress should be working to protect our public lands heritage, not dispose of it for short term gains. Selling or developing our public lands breaks a promise made to all Americans — and we won’t stand for that.
They Want to Dispose of This? Come Take a Look
onX’s Ben Brettingen has walked the sagebrush and canyons of Nevada’s high desert, chasing wild birds across landscapes targeted for disposal by the federal government. These aren’t forgotten patches of land tucked behind strip malls or hugging the interstate, they’re vast, remote, and rich with opportunity for hunters, anglers, and anyone who seeks solitude and connection on public land. See the land up for disposal and you’ll see for yourself why it’s worth fighting for.
How Much is at Stake?
We had to get to the bottom of how many acres could be lost. But it’s bigger than that. This threat is existential. It would set precedent for decisions in the coming weeks and years to come. And we know these lands are important places for outdoor recreation. Once our public access is gone, it’s gone forever.
Scroll down to see these where these parcels are on the onX map.
A Map of Parcels Targeted For Sale in Nevada and Utah
House Representatives from Nevada and Utah have made their intentions known—they’re ready to sell our public lands. These acres might be in your backyard. Or, your state might be next.
Analyzing these parcels was easier said than done—this is the only known digital map of all affected parcels. To build this interactive map below, our geospatial team started with a set of PDF maps specifically referenced in the legislative text showing federal lands that could be sold off. Some of these maps were already tied to real-world locations, which let us trace the parcels by hand. Some we had to manually align to real-world locations and then extract the parcel information. Others had embedded data that we could pull straight from the files. In one case, we were even given a full digital dataset. For a few larger areas that were only roughly outlined, we used our own onX parcel data to pinpoint exactly which federal lands were included.
This is the kind of call onX is uniquely built to answer — we have the geospatial engineering know-how, powerful mapping systems, and deep experience working with complex land ownership data. Combined with our passion for protecting access to public lands, it allowed us to move quickly and accurately to bring these maps to life.
“This matters to you. If they can dispose of this land, what’s stopping them from coming for yours?”
– Ben Brettingen, onX Hunt Marketing Manager
Join Us In Action
What’s stopping Congress from adding more states, more acres, more lost access to this figure? YOU. The outdoor recreation community.
Our friends at Backcountry Hunters & Anglers have made it easy to write in to your elected officials in Congress. We recommend you add your own personal message to their letter for a bigger impact. Your stories matter, make your voice heard!
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