Issue Position: Champion of Multiple-Use on Public Lands

Issue Position

As a rancher, I have seen firsthand the negative impacts of increasing restrictions on multiple-use. Strict reductions in grazing and logging have led to unhealthy conditions on federal forests and rangelands as well as larger and more prevalent wildfires. Regrettably, grazing, logging, wildlife, and mining aren't the only victims of the anti-mulitple use mentality. Motorbikes, four-wheelers, boats, jeeps, and snowmobiles have come under increasing attack by environmentalists and the courts as unwelcome uses on public lands. In certain areas, this philosophy has gotten so out-of-control that bicycles, horses, and even humans are being removed from public lands. I believe that state governments must increasingly fight back against the federal government when multiple-uses are threatened and insist that the federal government respect the role of states and local governments in their planning processes. Further, I will work directly with our federal Congressional delegation to ensure that the concerns of Idaho and all Western states are part of the discussion as Congress works to reform the federal laws that are at the root of the problem including the Endangered Species Act and the National Environmental Policy Act.

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