The Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee on Wednesday approved a host of public lands and conservation bills with mostly bipartisan support.
Included among 12 bills approved at the full-committee markup was S. 1860, the “Brian Head Town Land Conveyance Act,” from Chair Mike Lee (R-Utah) and Sen. John Curtis (R-Utah).
Lee’s bill would hand 24 acres of federal land within the Dixie National Forest in southern Utah to the ski resort town of Brian Head. The plan passed by voice vote with almost no debate.
The town has a population of about 151 people, but it hosts about 300,000 visitors each year during the ski season, the senator said. “That kind of seasonal surge puts enormous strain on local infrastructure, especially public safety,” Lee said.
