Lawmakers considering President Donald Trump's 'Big Beautiful Bill' are expected to strip out a controversial piece of legislation that would have opened up federal lands for sale.
The sale of public lands is one of several provisions in the bill that the Senate Parliamentarian on Monday found will be ineligible for passage.
This is thanks to the Byrd Rule, which says that provisions found to be "extraneous" in a federal budget bill should be cut unless they can pass a 60-vote threshold.
Republicans currently hold 54 seats in the Senate, making it a near certainty that they will not be able to assemble the votes to keep the land sale measure in place.
“Ranking Member Heinrich applauds the Parliamentarian for making the right decision in blocking Republicans’ massive public land grab, but he also remains vigilant against any attempts by Republicans to re-write those provisions before votes are taken," a spokesperson for Senate Committee on Energy and Natural Resources Ranking Member Sen. Martin Heinrich (D-NM) said in a statement.
Rep. Ryan Zinke (R-MT), who was the Secretary of the Interior during President Trump's first term, told Scripps News he was glad to see the measure excluded.
"Whether the public land is in Montana, Utah or Maine, it belongs to all Americans, and all Americans deserve a voice on the highest and best use, period," Rep. Zinke said. "The deal was made in the Senate — it certainly wasn't mine — but my position is a red line on the wholesale selling of public lands."
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Other measures in the bill likely to be disqualified include those that govern offshore oil and gas leasing, geothermal leasing and certain fees assessed for renewable energy projects on federal land.
