SALT LAKE CITY, Utah - Utah Governor Gary Herbert reports on dysfunction in Washington, D.C. resulting in a delay passing 10 key pieces of legislation affecting public lands in Utah. The public lands package did not survive after Sen. Mike Lee, R-Utah, did not consent to its passage. Lee wanted to include language that, like Alaska and Wyoming, Utah would be exempt from any new monument designations under the 1906 Antiquities Act. "We hope that the next Congress will set aside ideology and personal differences, take up these important legislative initiatives and expedite their passage in the New Year," Herbert says in statement.

As reported on KSL.com, Utah provisions in the massive public lands package included the Emery County Public Land Management Act by Rep. John Curtis, R-Utah, and a bill by Rep. Rob Bishop, R-Utah to turn the Golden Spike National Historic site into a national historic park and establish a network of trails. Lee objected to the reauthorization of the fund because it provides money for the federal government to acquire more land. Rob Bishop (Utah) was a key architect of the negotiated compromise regarding the reauthorization of the Lands and Water Conservation Fund, established in 1965 as a way to preserve open space. So far, many are disappointed in the decision and they don't plan to give up on making changes for the future. 

For the complete story by Amy Joi O'Donoghue, click here.