The public land grabbers are once again trying to subvert the will of Idahoans in a legislative effort that will waste taxpayer money. Rep. Judy Boyle, R-Midvale, introduced House Bill 162 to create a permanent council on federal lands, made up of eight legislators, with a mandate to facilitate contracts between federal and state agencies as well as individuals.

Article 2, Section 1, states that no one branch of government will exercise powers expressly given to another. There are already 12 agencies in the executive branch that facilitate these activities.

House Bill 162 would give the council the ability to facilitate contracts and hire their own legal counsel. The last interim committee on federal lands spent over $100,000, mostly on legal fees, over its two-year life span and produced nothing but a report that said the state couldn’t afford to manage our national forests. House bill 162 is just one more ploy to shift power to anti-public lands legislators like Boyle, espouse anti-public land sentiment and hire lawyers all at Idaho taxpayer expense.

Just say no on HB162.

Greg McReynolds

Pocatello, Idaho