The death notice, written by Rep. Jason Chaffetz himself, appeared a little over a week after he filed a bill to sell 3.3 million acres of federal land in 10 Western states, an area in total nearly as big as Connecticut. “I hear you and HR 621 dies tomorrow,” Chaffetz wrote on Instagram, which recorded nearly 8,000 “likes” for the announcement.
Conservationists said the bill was part of a Republican drive to surrender public land to the states or to private ownership, shutting off public access to the outdoors and possibly opening the door to more oil and gas drilling. At present, the Interior Department manages the land involved in the legislation.
“The bill would have disposed of small parcels of lands Pres. Clinton identified as serving no public purpose but groups I support and care about fear it sends the wrong message,” wrote Chaffetz, chairman of the House Committee on Oversight. Chaffetz also is sponsor of a House resolution to situate the headquarters of federal departments “throughout the United States” because “the impact of regulations can be perceived more easily by those individuals who are proximate to the affected industries.”