Federal land policy in Idaho

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Federal land policy involves the ownership and management of land owned by the federal government. As of 2012, the federal government owned between 635 million to 640 million acres, or 28 percent, of the 2.27 billion acres of land in the United States. Federal land is managed for many purposes, such as the conservation and development of natural resources, grazing and recreation. As of 2012, the federal government owned 61.65 percent of Idaho's total land, 32,635,835 acres out of 52,933,120 total acres.

Idaho ranked sixth in the nation in federal land ownership as of 2012.

Land ownership

See also: Federal land policy and Federal land ownership by state

The federal government owned between 635 million and 640 million acres of land in 2012 (about 28 percent) of the 2.27 billion acres of land in the United States. Around 52 percent of federally owned acres were in 12 Western states—including Alaska, 61 percent of which was federally owned. In contrast, the federal government owned 4 percent of land in the other 38 states. Federal land policy is designed to manage minerals, oil and gas resources, timber, wildlife and fish, and other natural resources found on federal land. Land management policies are highly debated for their economic, environmental and social impacts. Additionally, the size of the federal estate and the acquisition of more federal land are major issues.[1][2]

According to the Congressional Research Service, Idaho spans 52.93 million acres. Of that total, 61.65 percent, or 32.63 million acres, belonged to the federal government as of 2012. More than 20.2 million acres in Idaho are not owned by the federal government, or 12.59 non-federal acres per capita. From 1990 to 2010, the federal government's land ownership in Idaho increased by 69,754 acres.[1]

The table below shows federal land ownership in Idaho compared to neighboring states. More than 62 percent of Idaho's federal land was owned by the U.S. Forest Service, which was a smaller percentage than Oregon (92.2 percent) and Montana (63.4 percent), but the Forest Service owned more acres in Idaho than in Oregon and Montana.

Federal land ownership in Idaho and other states by agency
State
Agency Idaho Oregon Montana
Acres owned Percentage owned Acres owned Percentage owned Acres owned Percentage owned
U.S. Forest Service 20,465,014 62.71% 15,687,556 92.20% 17,082,821 63.45%
U.S. National Park Service 507,585 1.56% 192,020 1.13% 1,214,184 4.51%
U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service 48,947 0.15% 482,694 2.84% 635,066 2.36%
U.S. Bureau of Land Management 11,610,111 35.57% 574,510 3.38% 7,981,452 29.65%
U.S. Department of Defense 4,178 0.01% 77,153 0.45% 8,338 0.03%
Total federal land 32,635,835 100% 17,013,933 100% 26,921,861 100.00%
Source: Congressional Research Service, "Federal Land Ownership: Overview and Data"

Land usage

Recreation

National parks in Idaho

Idaho has six National Park Service units, two national monuments, nine national forests, 12 wilderness areas, one national historic site, three national historic trails, and one national conservation area. A study by the U.S. National Park Service found that 614,410 visitors attended Idaho's national parks and monuments and generated $29.4 million in visitor spending in 2013.[3]

State recreation lands

Idaho has 32 state parks. The table below contains a list of all state parks in Idaho and total visitation figures for 2013.[4]

Federal lands and Indian reservations in the state of Idaho by government agency (click on the image to enlarge)
Economic impact of state lands

According to the Idaho Department of Parks and Recreation, outdoor recreation in Idaho created $6.3 billion in consumer spending in 2013 and generated $461 million in state and local tax revenues. The department estimated that the state's recreation lands supported roughly 77,000 private sector jobs throughout Idaho in 2013.[5]

Economic activity on federal lands

Oil and gas activity

See also: BLM oil and gas leases by state

Private mining companies, including oil and natural gas companies, can apply for leases from the U.S. Bureau of Land Management (BLM) to explore and produce energy on federal land. The company seeking a lease must nominate the land for oil and gas exploration to the U.S. Bureau of Land Management (BLM), which evaluates and approves the lease. The BLM state offices make leasing decisions based on their land use plans, which contain information on the land's resources and the potential environmental impact of oil or gas exploration. If federal lands are approved for leasing, the BLM requires an application from the company containing information on how the exploration, drilling and production will be conducted. Afterward, the BLM will produce an environmental analysis and a list of requirements before work on the land can begin. The agency also inspects the companies' drilling and producing on the leased lands.[6]

In 2013, there were 47,427 active leases covering 36.09 million acres of federal land nationwide. Of that total, 4 leases (0.01 percent of all leases), covering 7,355 acres (0.02 percent of all leased land in 2013), were in Idaho. In 2013, out of 3,770 new drilling leases approved nationwide by the BLM for oil and gas exploration, no leases were in Idaho.[7][8][9][10][11]

The table below shows how Idaho compared to neighboring states in oil and gas permits on BLM-managed lands in 2013. Idaho had more active leases and acres under lease than Washington but fewer than Oregon.

Oil and gas leasing on BLM lands by state
State Active permits on BLM lands (FY 2013) Total acres under lease (FY 2013) State percentage of total permits State percentage of total acres
Idaho 4 7,355 0.01% 0.02%
Montana 3,488 2,728,738 7.35% 7.56%
Oregon 112 188,391 0.24% 0.52%
Washington 2 3,804 0.00% 0.01%
Total United States 47,427 permits 36,092,482 acres - -
Source: U.S. Bureau of Land Management, "Oil and Gas Statistics"

Grazing permits

See also: Grazing permits on federal land
Sheep grazing on BLM lands in Worland, Wyoming in 1940

The U.S. Bureau of Land Management (BLM) manages livestock grazing on 155 million acres of its public lands. Nationally, the BLM oversees about 18,000 permits and leases that allow ranchers to graze their livestock, mostly sheep and cows, on BLM-managed lands. The permits and leases overseen by the BLM are valid for 10 years and the fees are based on the number of animals the rancher has on the land. To track these animals the BLM created what are called Animal Unit Months (AUMs), or "the amount of forage needed to sustain one cow, five sheep, or five goats for a month." Since 1954, grazing on public lands has declined, from 18.2 million AUMs to 7.9 million AUMs in 2013. Holding a grazing permit requires the applicant to own or control the property used for grazing. The applicant may also offer other privately owned property used for grazing by submitting a separate application. The terms and conditions in a grazing permit control how livestock must be used on BLM lands.[12][13][14]

The table compares the grazing permits in the 10 states where permits are issued.[15][16][17][18][19][20][21][22][23][24]

Grazing on BLM lands (March 2011)
State BLM land (acres) Grazing allotments Grazing permits Animal unit months (AUMs) of livestock use
Idaho 11,610,111 N/A 199 832,000
Arizona 12,203,495 824 759 659,990
Alaska 72,958,757 15 N/A N/A
California 15,306,243 699 572 525,000
Colorado 8,332,001 2500 1500 N/A
Nevada 47,805,923 745 635 1,100,000
Oregon 16,134,191 N/A 753 960,288
South Dakota 274,437 504 N/A 73,800
Utah 22,854,937 1,410 1,462 1,300,000
Washington 429,156 N/A 266 (leases) 32,976

Payments in lieu of taxes

See also: Payments in lieu of taxes

Since local governments cannot collect taxes on federally owned property, the U.S. Department of the Interior issues payments to local governments to replace lost property tax revenue from federal land. The payments, known as "Payments in Lieu of Taxes" (PILTs), are typically used for funding services such as fire departments, police protection, school construction and roads.[25]

The table below shows PILTs for Idaho compared to neighboring states between 2011 and 2013. Idaho received more PILTs in 2013 than Oregon and Washington but fewer than Montana.

Total PILTs for Idaho and neighboring states
State FY 2011 FY 2012 FY 2013 State's percentage of 2013 total
Idaho $25,592,241 $26,560,218 $26,326,163 6.55%
Montana $24,717,269 $26,151,999 $26,497,071 6.60%
Oregon $13,062,332 $14,004,966 $15,578,762 3.88%
Washington $13,843,603 $15,340,025 $17,222,833 4.29%
Source: U.S. Department of the Interior, "PILT"

State trust lands

The Idaho Department of Lands manages 2.4 million acres of endowment trust land intended to benefit specific educational and medical institutions. The largest beneficiaries are the Idaho public schools, the University of Idaho, public buildings, state hospitals and prisons. Idaho's forest lands generate the primary revenue for the state's endowment trust fund. Other revenue comes from mineral lands, commercial and residential real estate, grazing lands, recreation lands, and oil and gas exploration. In fiscal year 2013, Idaho raised $75.01 million in revenue from state trust lands while $47.5 million of that revenue went to the beneficiaries.[26][27]

Environmental policy in the 50 states

Click on a state below to read more about that state's energy policy.

http://ballotpedia.org/Environmental_policy_in_STATE

See also

External links

Footnotes

  1. ↑ 1.0 1.1 Congressional Research Service, "Federal Land Ownership: Overview and Data," accessed September 15, 2014
  2. ↑ U.S. Congressional Research Service, "Federal Lands and Natural Resources: Overview and Selected Issues for the 113th Congress," December 8, 2014
  3. ↑ U.S. National Park Service, "2013 National Park Visitor Spending Effects Report," accessed October 14, 2014
  4. ↑ Idaho Parks and Recreation, "Visitation Statistics 2012-2013," accessed December 1, 2014
  5. ↑ Idaho Department of Parks and Recreation, "Travel and Tourism in Idaho," accessed December 1, 2014
  6. ↑ U.S. Bureau of Land Management, "Oil and Gas Lease Sales," accessed October 20, 2014
  7. ↑ U.S. Bureau of Land Management, "Number of Acres Leased During the Fiscal Year," accessed October 20, 2014
  8. ↑ U.S. Bureau of Land Management, "Total Number of Leases in Effect," accessed October 20, 2014
  9. ↑ U.S. Bureau of Land Management, "Summary of Onshore Oil and Gas Statistics," accessed October 20, 2014
  10. ↑ U.S. Bureau of Land Management, "Number of Drilling Permits Approved by Fiscal Year on Federal Lands," accessed October 20, 2014
  11. ↑ U.S. Bureau of Land Management, "Total Number of Acres Under Lease As of the Last Day of the Fiscal Year," accessed October 22, 2014
  12. ↑ U.S. Bureau of Land Management, "Grazing Permits," accessed October 6, 2014
  13. ↑ U.S. Bureau of Land Management, "Rangeland Program Glossary," March 4, 2011
  14. ↑ U.S. Bureau of Land Management, "Fact Sheet on the BLM’s Management of Livestock Grazing," March 28, 2014
  15. ↑ U.S. Bureau of Land Management, "Grazing and Rangeland Management," December 14, 2012
  16. ↑ U.S. Bureau of Land Management, "Grazing and Rangeland Management," December 14, 2012
  17. ↑ U.S. Bureau of Land Management, "Grazing and Rangeland Management," December 14, 2012
  18. ↑ U.S. Bureau of Land Management, "Grazing and Rangeland Management," December 14, 2012 (dead link) (dead link)
  19. ↑ U.S. Bureau of Land Management, "Grazing and Rangeland Management," December 14, 2012
  20. ↑ U.S. Bureau of Land Management, "Grazing and Rangeland Management," December 14, 2012
  21. ↑ U.S. Bureau of Land Management, "Grazing and Rangeland Management," December 14, 2012
  22. ↑ U.S. Bureau of Land Management, "Grazing and Rangeland Management," December 14, 2012 (dead link) (dead link)
  23. ↑ U.S. Bureau of Land Management, "Grazing and Rangeland Management," December 14, 2012
  24. ↑ U.S. Bureau of Land Management, "Grazing and Rangeland Management," December 14, 2012 (dead link) (dead link)
  25. ↑ U.S. Department of the Interior, "PILT," accessed October 4, 2014
  26. ↑ State Trust Lands, "Idaho State Trust Lands," accessed December 2, 2014
  27. ↑ Idaho Department of Lands, "State Board of Land Commissioners," accessed December 2, 2014
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