Greetings!
Though the facts have been out for over a year now, many people continue to misconstrue the facts about the Public Lands Transfer Act (TPLA), first passed by Utah in 2012, and now acting as a model for other Western States.
In this day of soundbites and headlines, people tend to believe what they read on a flier, hear in line at the grocery store or an email passed on by a friend-of-a-friend-of-a-friend, but will rarely go check out the facts for themselves.
I am encouraging you to be different. It's not as hard as you might think. The best way to check out the facts is to go to the SOURCE itself. Most of the myths about HB148 (Utah's TPLA) could quickly be extinguished if people would read the bill itself. They would learn that the bill does NOT promote the selling of public lands, but of transferring them to the states; it does not include our National Parks or School Trust Lands; It does not promote "Agenda 21" or any other agenda. But those who do not want to support our sovereign states will do all in their power to confuse the facts with something as simple to disprove as a viral email.
Today, I invite you to go to our website and read HB148 once again, if you haven't already. It is a scant 7 pages. Even YOU have time to read 7 pages! Then, if you still have questions (which you probably will), please listen to this amazing podcast, "The Future of Publicly Owned Lands", produced by the Federalist Society on Feb. 7, 2013. Put it on during your morning walk or your drive home from work. It is a wonderful discussion between two leading experts on both sides of this fence: Dr. Donald J. Kochan, Professor at Chapman University, School of Law, and Mr. David Garbett, Staff Attorney, Southern Utah Wilderness Alliance. Dr. Kochan has done a thorough study of HB148, and produced a White Paper that investigates every possible angle within it, and has concluded that our claim to the public lands is valid and needs to be addressed. You may also read the summary of that White Paper.
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