Did anyone talk about RS 2477 ? A simple and straightforward law. It is a right-of-way across public lands and not just for roads.
2. Congress specifically and clearly reaffirmed the validity and intent of RS 2477 in 1976. Because RS 2477 became law in 1866, anti-access extremists argue that it is now somehow inconsistent with modern public land management policy. Congress explicitly reaffirmed all RS 2477 grants previously made.
3. Congress specifically by-passed the Executive Branch of the Federal Government in making RS 2477 grants. Under our Constitution, Congress has the exclusive power to manage and dispose of public lands and property (Article IV, Section 3 ).
4. The RS 2477 right-of-way grant is a property right. Therefore, it enjoys the same constitutional and legal protections as any other property. Legally, when the grant was made, the federal government’s interest in the land underlying the right-of-way became the “servient estate” and the interest of the right-of-way grantee became the “dominant estate.”
11. No federal agency has the authority to close an RS 2477 road for any reason, period.
http://www.icmj.com/more_page.php?id=5&keywords=RS_2477_Roads_&_Rights-of-Way_(Summary
It was certainly mentioned by a few folks, including the BLM Rep, who stated this was NOT the time to discuss RS 2477 (of course, those of us in the know disagreed and suggested it was THE time to discuss RS 2477). Unfortunately, the Fed's position is simple: We know about RS 2477, and we're going to ignore it. If you don't like that, the County can sue us.
Well, the issue is that the County is questioning whether or not they have the resources to sue the Feds over this, and the Feds know this. The County is stating that they are not taking lawsuits off the table, but are focusing on keeping that need from becoming reality in the first place.
If I’m not mistaken, RS2477 was watered down during the Sagebrush Rebellion. I believe that it became necessary to assert RS2477 rights prior to some fixed date. Again, I may be mistaken, it’s been a few years since I was heavily involved in this. It seems that they are back to their old tricks and trying to accelerate the closure of roads like they did during Clinton’s term.