From the SEMA Washington, D.C., office,
SEMA, along with the Off-Road Business Association (ORBA) and three other off-road community organizations, is backing a new federal proposal to repeal a Biden Administration-era policy that threatened recreational access to millions of acres of public lands.
In recently submitted comments to the U.S. Bureau of Land Management (BLM), the organizations spoke in support of a proposal to withdraw the 2024 Conservation and Landscape Health rulemaking that enabled the BLM to issue new and vaguely defined conservation leases. In its place, BLM would incorporate new standards when evaluating traditional multiple-use decisions, expedite designations of new Areas of Critical Environmental Concern (ACECs) and apply land-health standards to all public lands.
Additionally, BLM's proposed rule would undercut the Federal Land Policy and Management Act's multiple-use requirement for BLM lands as it would hinder access to public lands for recreation, forest management, energy and critical mineral development and grazing.
Aligning with SEMA and ORBA in support of the proposal are the United Four-Wheel Drive Association, One Voice and the United Snowmobile Alliance.
Support for the Proposed Withdrawal of the 2024 Rule
The SEMA-led coalition's support for BLM's decision to fully withdraw from the 2024 Conversation and Landscape Health Rule is simple: the groups, on behalf of the motorized recreation community, advocate to protect resources, promote conservation and ensure access for all individuals. The groups view the existing rule as deeply flawed in both concept and process; SEMA has repeatedly warned the federal government that any attempt to partially retain or phase out portions of it would only create confusion and conflict in land management. Furthermore, the 2024 rule fundamentally undermined the long-established principles of multiple-use management that balance recreation, conservation and resource development.
As a result, the coalition believes that a full and immediate repeal is the only responsible path forward to restore clarity and fairness in federal land policy.
Background
Outdoor access to motorized recreation is a core tenet of SEMA's values. SEMA has consistently opposed onerous BLM rulemaking.
SEMA has long contended that the Biden Administration's Public Lands Rule is a heavy-handed attempt to stifle outdoor recreation under the guise of environmental protection, with U.S. Interior Secretary Doug Burgum correctly asserting, "the previous administration's Public Lands Rule had the potential to block access to hundreds of thousands of acres of multiple-use land--preventing energy and mineral production, timber management, grazing and recreation across the West. The most effective caretakers of our federal lands are those whose livelihoods rely on its well-being. Overturning this rule protects our American way of life and gives our communities a voice in the land that they depend on."
- Click here to read SEMA's 2023 comment to the BLM in response to when the agency first proposed the rule.
For any questions, contact Eric Snyder, SEMA's senior director of federal government affairs, at EricS@sema.org.
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