Utah’s 2nd District Representative and Southern Utah University alumna, Celeste Maloy, recently intensified her focus on land management issues within the state.
Drawing from her experience as a former public lands policy advisor, Rep. Maloy introduced a Congressional Review Act resolution to cancel the U.S. Forest Service’s Criminal Prohibitions Rule. This rule, which took effect on Dec. 26, 2024, grants Forest Service law enforcement the authority to apply state laws on National Forest lands.
Rep. Maloy believes this rule creates jurisdictional confusion and a risk of government interference on national forest lands. She asserts that the Forest Service should center their primary responsibilities on managing production and watersheds, rather than enforcing state and local laws.
“It’s going to cause friction in states where we’re already trying to minimize friction between federal land management agencies and local authorities,” Maloy said.
She is supported by Senator Cynthia Lummis of Wyoming, who introduced a companion resolution.
In addition to addressing the Criminal Prohibitions Rule, Rep. Maloy has been actively involved in discussions surrounding the Northern Corridor project in Washington County, Utah. The project approved by President Trump’s administration was previously rejected by Biden and the Bureau of Land Management to protect wildlife and the environment.
Rep. Maloy and Mike Kennedy addressed the concept of multiple use at a federal lands subcommittee meeting. This concept requires federal agencies such as the BLM to manage land for a variety of purposes.
Rep. Maloy and Kennedy hope the project will be revived, but associations such as Conserve Southwest Utah point out that the highway has already been rejected several times for its negative impacts.
Author: Fanny Felixine
Photo courtesy of Scott G. Winterton
Editor: Anna Mower
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