WASHINGTON DC – Today, U.S. Senator Jacky Rosen (D-NV) released the following statement after Congressman Mark Amodei (R-NV-02) and House Republicans snuck in a hastily-drafted proposal to sell off Nevada public lands to pay for more tax cuts for billionaires.
“I am outraged that Congressman Amodei sold out Nevadans in the dead of night by passing a flawed, hastily-drafted proposal that undermines the careful balance struck in the Washoe County Lands Bill and would result in our state losing out on much-needed funding. For years, I’ve worked in good faith with a wide array of stakeholders to craft a balanced bill that makes more land available for housing and economic development in Washoe County, while at the same time conserving precious public lands and advancing Tribal priorities,” dijo el Senador Rosen. “While I will always support taking steps to address Nevada’s housing crisis, I will not support a Washington-drafted proposal that will lead to Nevada losing out on millions of dollars in funding for our local priorities like education and restoration around the Truckee River, all so Republicans in Washington can pay for more tax cuts for billionaires.”
Without consulting Senator Rosen or the rest of the Nevada delegation, Congressman Amodei proposed and passed a flawed amendment in the House Natural Resources Committee that would sell off nearly 16,000 acres of public lands in Washoe County and hundreds of thousands of acres of public lands in Pershing County to pay for Congressional Republicans’ budget reconciliation proposal. This proposal abandons key provisions in the Truckee Meadows Public Lands Management Act, also known as the Washoe County Lands Bill, and directs funds from public land sales in Nevada to the U.S. Treasury, instead of keeping the funding in Nevada. It also ignores the balance struck in Senator Rosen’s Pershing County Economic Development and Conservation Act.
Senator Rosen’s Truckee Meadows Public Lands Management Act would:
- Permanently protect a million acres of public lands, which Congressman Amodei cut in his proposal.
- Promote sustainable growth and economic development by directing over 15,200 acres of public lands to be made eligible for sale, all of which must be assessed for its suitability for new affordable housing. An additional 33 acres are set aside to only be sold for affordable housing. Any land sold for affordable housing would have to be sold at less than fair market value.
- Support local Tribal communities by expanding land held in trust by more than 8,400 acres for the Reno-Sparks Indian Colony, 11,300 acres for the Pyramid Lake Paiute Tribe, and over 1,000 acres for the Washoe Tribe of Nevada and California, none of which is in the Amodei proposal.
- Provide local governments over 3,700 acres for public purposes such as parks, water treatment facilities, and schools, all of which is excluded from the Amodei proposal. Land is specifically conveyed to Washoe County, the City of Reno, the City of Sparks, the Incline Village General Improvement District, the Gerlach General Improvement District, the State of Nevada, the Truckee River Flood Management Authority, the Washoe County School District, and the University of Nevada, Reno.
- Keep proceeds from land sales in Nevada for priorities like education and restoration around the Truckee River, unlike the Amodei proposal that sends money from land sales to the federal government in Washington, D.C.
For years, Senator Rosen has worked closely with a wide range of stakeholders across Washoe County to develop this comprehensive legislation. In 2023, she unveiled a working draft of the bill and collected feedback from hundreds of Nevadans during a public comment period, which she then incorporated into this legislation, which was previously introduced last year with the support of local government officials, conservation advocates, and business leaders.
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