1. United States
2. Calif.
3. Letter

I am writing as a concerned constituent to strongly oppose any proposals to sell off federal public lands, including the one recently circulated by Senator Mike Lee and echoed in messaging from the Trump-aligned faction of Congress. The idea of privatizing even a small portion of the 640 million acres of land held in public trust is not only wildly unpopular — with 71% of Americans opposing it, per recent polling — but also fiscally irrational. Even if we sold all federal lands, the proceeds wouldn’t cover more than half a year of federal spending. Why would we trade away a permanent, generational asset for such a short-term gain? This is not about using land to “benefit Americans.” Americans already benefit from public lands — through recreation, ecological protection, tourism, and as a bulwark against unchecked private development. Selling it to developers does not serve the people — it serves a small group of speculators and political donors. If this land sale proceeds, I urge you and your colleagues to introduce a companion bill making clear that any land sold off under this scheme will be eligible for future reclamation via eminent domain. Furthermore, the “fair market value” for that reclamation should be pegged to the original purchase price, not speculative resale values. This would remove the financial incentive to hoard or flip these lands, while preserving the federal government’s ability to restore public stewardship in the future. This is not a left/right issue. It’s a future/past issue. Selling public lands for short-term gains is a one-way trip. Once they’re gone, they’re gone — and we, the American people, will be poorer for it. Please stand up against this cynical and unpopular land sell-off proposal. Protect our parks, our wilderness, and our shared future.