Posted on 07/05/2010 12:11:36 PM PDT by Willie Green
MOOSE, Wyo.—For Sale: Two square miles of Grand Teton National Park.
Majestic views of the Teton Range. Prime location for luxury resort, home development. Pristine habitat for moose, elk, wolves, grizzlies.
Price: $125 million. Call: Gov. Dave Freudenthal.
Wyoming is trying to force the Interior Department to trade land, minerals or mineral royalties for 1,366 acres it owns within the majestic park. If the foot-dragging feds don't agree to a deal—soon—Freudenthal threatens to put a For Sale sign on the property.
Wyoming has owned the land since statehood in 1890, when the federal government set aside land in new Western states to be mined, logged or leased to raise money for public education. Wyoming kept its so-called "school sections" after Grand Teton National Park was established in 1950.
The state has tried for a decade to negotiate some kind of trade. Saying that his patience is running out, Freudenthal, a Democrat, sent an ultimatum recently to park Superintendent Mary Gibson Scott.
"I think he wants to pound the (for sale) sign in himself," said Ed Grant, director of the Office of State Lands and Investments.
Wyoming gets just $3,000 a year from the land by leasing it for cattle grazing. Sold with the proceeds invested at 3 percent, the land easily could bring in $3.75 million a year.
The state constitution requires state officials to manage state lands for maximum profit. Their oaths of office Advertisement require them to act.
"If it's to recreate on, or if it's a new ski lodge, highest and best use," said Susan Child, deputy director of the state lands office. "It's obviously not grazing."
(Excerpt) Read more at mercurynews.com ...
Sell it to the U.N. for Agenda 21 use.
I wonder why they don’t mention that this governor is a democrat? He is very conservative but a democrat.
Ah, but the writer did -
The state has tried for a decade to negotiate some kind of trade. Saying that his patience is running out, Freudenthal, a Democrat, sent an ultimatum recently to park Superintendent Mary Gibson Scott.
What a joke! If the federal government doesn't just take the land and actually lets Wyoming sell it, the dough will be gone so fast Wyomins won't even remember getting it.
No, use it for an illegal immigrant repatriation camp. The libs of Jackson Hole will love it. JH is the only part of the state that sends a lib to the state capitol.
This is why I like Gov. Dave. He has some fire in the belly when dealing with the land managment agencies.
Unlike the silk pantywaist GOP. Wait, scratch that. The only (former) GOP governor to show some spine in dealing w/ the federal land managment agencies probably does wear silk panties.
I read a different AP story in another paper that didn’t. I tried to read this AP version but it wouldn’t load. Sorry about that.
Actually, the 3-plus million would be noticed in this state. In a state with only 550K population, depending upon mineral severance taxes to finance the state budget, a million here and ther is noticed pretty quickly.
Its in the lead in to this thread. You don't have to see the AP version.
Check your Constitution:
"To exercise exclusive Legislation in all Cases whatsoever, over such District (not exceeding ten Miles square) as may, by Cession of particular States, and the Acceptance of Congress, become the Seat of the Government of the United States, and to exercise like Authority over all Places purchased by the Consent of the Legislature of the State in which the Same shall be, for the Erection of Forts, Magazines, Arsenals, dock-Yards, and other needful Buildings;--And"
Presumably the federales could purhase other land WITHOUT the consent of the legislature, but then they would not exercise "like Authority"!
Bet there's a lot of that been going on ~ anyone ever notice that?
Most of the big disputes have involved land already owned by the US government that changes "use" ~ e.g. BLM land transferred to a National Park, and so on. The Interstate Highway system involved, for the most part, states purchasing land from private buyers ~ although the source of the money was ultimately the federal tax system (see: gasoline tax) the states are not constrained in the same manner as the federales in this business of "Authority". Sometimes disputes would arise concerning state use of federal owned land where local interests didn't want the federales to give up the land to the state for a road.
There is quite a bit of oil and gas drilling and coal mining in Wyoming. I would think the revenues they could skim off of that would dwarf this paltry little real estate scheme.
Not quite as you think. The monies from the state grazing lands are pre-designated to go to school budgets. The mineral taxes go to the general fund. I will have to see if the grazing lands revenues are designated on a county basis, ie, the revenues from the grazing lands in the the county go to the school budget in the county.
Personally, I think it is high time the federal land management agencies got their heads out of their asses. They’re incompetent in the extreme, costing western states quite a bit of tax revenue and paying pennies on the lost tax dollars in PILT.
I have no problem with Wyoming asserting its rights as a state or any difference with you about FedGov incompetence and malfeasance. I would just think that Wyoming could bring in plenty from oil, gas and coal for a population of 550k.
Is there access by mass transit or a train?
“Sell it to the U.N. for Agenda 21 use.”
And then our UN dues would be increased to pay for it.
:-(
Should be: And, then our UN dues would be increased to pay for ten times the amount. UN ‘management fees’, you know.
States that use mineral severance taxes (like WY) as a tax revenue stream go through fat and lean times as the prices of the minerals go up and down. Right now, we’re down in revenues, since the price of oil, coal and especially natural gas have all fallen off from peaks. If the state sold those 2-plus sections and put the money into 30 year treasury debt and just clipped the yield, it would be a far more steady source of tax revenue than severance taxes.
To his credit, Gov. Dave saw this downturn coming and enacted 10% across the board cuts in the budget (including education), so we’re not burning a huge hole in our pockets.
Also, folks have to remember thaty WY remembers well the actions of the feds WRT nuke power created a modern day ghost town overnight here in WY when the feds killed all future license for nuke plants in 1983. Sure, it wasn’t a huge town, but it cost the county and state rather dearly to deal with that. Stroke of an administrative pen in DC, ghost town here.
The same thing can happen with oil, gas and coal extraction in WY. Consider the effect on the state budget when the feds yank gas drilling leases because they’re going to list the stupid sage grouse as endangered. Compared to depending on those tax streams, selling those lands and putting into a safe investment looks like smart budgetary practice.
If the land were in private hands, it would be cared for. State-owned resources always deteriorate.
The state would spend this “windfall” fast and furious. Maybe you haven’t noticed but most of the regulation we’ve had laid on us in the past forty years has come from the states.
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