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Trump reduces size of 2 national monuments in Utah amid public lands revamp | OUT WEST ROUNDUP
UTAH Trump shrinks national monuments President Donald Trump on July 13 sharply reduced the size of two national monuments in Utah, undoing protections established by his Democratic predecessors on public lands that are sacred among many Native Americans. Bears Ears and Grand Staircase-Escalante national monuments in southern Utah have ancient cliff dwellings, petroglyphs and scenic…
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New Mexico governor could seek billions after DEA let fentanyl hit streets | OUT WEST ROUNDUP
NEW MEXICO Governor rips DEA policy ALBUQUERQUE — New Mexico’s governor said on June 29 that state officials could pursue billions of dollars in civil damages after revelations that U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration agents repeatedly allowed shipments of fentanyl to flow into drug-plagued communities as investigators sought to build bigger cases. Democratic Gov. Michelle Lujan…
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Heat, wind and drought conditions spark wildfires across US West | OUT WEST ROUNDUP
Heat, drought spark wildfires Extreme heat and dry, windy conditions fueled several wildfires in the West on June 21, including an uncontained blaze in Utah that forced the evacuation of a small town southwest of Salt Lake City. The Iron Fire in Utah’s Juab County was first detected on June 20 and had blackened 34…
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A decade after Standing Rock protests, Dakota Access oil pipeline segment gets OK | OUT WEST ROUNDUP
NORTH DAKOTA Pipeline segment OK’d BISMARCK — Federal officials on May 21 gave final approval for the Dakota Access oil pipeline to continue operating its contentious Missouri River crossing, an outcome that comes nearly a decade after boisterous protests against the project on the North Dakota prairie. The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers’ decision to…
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Trump administration cancels rule that made conservation a ‘use’ of public lands | OUT WEST ROUNDUP
MONTANA Interior cancels conservation ‘use’ rule BILLINGS — The Interior Department is canceling a rule that put conservation on equal footing with development, as President Donald Trump’s administration eases restrictions on industries and seeks to boost drilling, logging, mining and grazing on taxpayer-owned land. The 2024 rule adopted under former President Joe Biden was meant…
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Trump plans to move Forest Service headquarters to Utah, shutter research sites | OUT WEST ROUNDUP
UTAH Forest Service bound for Salt Lake City SALT LAKE CITY — President Donald Trump’s administration will move the U.S. Forest Service headquarters out of the nation’s capital to Salt Lake City as part of an organizational overhaul that involves shuttering research facilities in 31 states and concentrating resources in the West, the agency announced…
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Low and slow meets forever: US postage stamps honor lowrider car culture | OUT WEST ROUNDUP
NEW MEXICO Stamps honor lowrider culture ALBUQUERQUE — From Mexican American and Chicano barrios in the American Southwest to the halls of the Smithsonian on the National Mall and even the streets of Japan, lowrider culture has become part of mainstream car culture around the globe. The U.S. Postal Service is joining the club with…
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Oklahoma’s governor picks energy executive Alan Armstrong to fill US Senate seat | OUT WEST ROUNDUP
OKLAHOMA Governor makes US Senate pick OKLAHOMA CITY — Oklahoma’s governor on March 24 appointed energy executive Alan Armstrong to serve in the U.S. Senate through the end of the year and finish the term of Republican Markwayne Mullin, the new homeland security secretary. The choice by Republican Gov. Kevin Stitt, who had pledged to…
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Law puts Kansas at vanguard of denying trans identities on government documents | OUT WEST ROUNDUP
KANSAS Law reverses trans documents TOPEKA — Kansas is set to invalidate about 1,700 driver’s licenses held by transgender residents and roughly as many birth certificates under a new law that goes beyond Republican-imposed restrictions in other states on listing gender identities in government documents. The new law took effect Feb. 26. Democratic Gov. Laura…
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New Mexico launches ‘truth commission’ investigation into Jeffrey Epstein’s ranch | OUT WEST ROUNDUP
NEW MEXICO State investigates Epstein’s ranch SANTA FE — State legislators in New Mexico launched an investigation on Feb. 17 into past activity at a secluded desert ranch where financier and sex offender Jeffrey Epstein once entertained guests and whether local authorities looked the other way. A bipartisan, four-member panel of state House is investigating…