Much of the prized public land in the Sierras above Fresno that was at risk of getting sold off to real estate developers as part of President Donald Trump’s “Big Beautiful Bill,” such as Huntington Lake and Edison Lake, was taken off the bargaining table Monday afternoon after senate officials ruled that selling these key parcels owned by the National Forest Service could not be voted on in its current state due to procedural issues.  But one of Fresno’s top hiking spots, with cultural significance to local tribes – the San Joaquin River Gorge – could still be at risk of getting auctioned off. It is expected that the final decision will be made before the 4th of July. … The new proposal from Sen. Mike Lee, R-Utah, would still allow public land to be sold to developers to create more housing, but only land held by the Bureau of Land Management within five miles of a population center. The Senate parliamentarian ruled that Lee couldn’t sell off the national forest land, the Associate Press reported, due to restrictions in the budget reconciliation process. 

Other public lands news:

• High Country News (Paonia, Colo.): Public land sale a ‘frontal assault on tribal treaty rights’
• The New York Times: Trump administration to end protections for 58 million acres of national forests
• Westword (Denver, Colo.): Colorado Republicans aren’t big on GOP plan to sell off public lands, either
• Writers on the Range: Blog: Public land goes back on the chopping block
• Western Water Notes: Blog: When federal land is sold, impacts are local​