Report details economic effects of transferring federal public land to state.

PositionAround Utah: SALT LAKE AREA

Salt Lake City -- The transfer of 31.2 million acres of land managed by the federal government to Utah would create a major shift in the economic structure of the state, according to a report released by researchers from the UNIVERSITY OF UTAH'S Bureau of Economic and Business Research, UTAH STATE UNIVERSITY and WEBER STATE UNIVERSITY.

The report offers an in-depth analysis of the proposed land transfer, which was ordered when H.B. 148 passed into law in 2012. The law orders the federal government to transfer the title of millions of acres of public land into state control by Dec. 31, 2014--a deadline the federal government did not meet.

The newly released study examines current uses of land, the economic effects and non-economic benefits of the land uses and ramifications to the state if the lands are transferred. Information on the potential costs of managing the transferred lands and suggestions for state agencies to manage areas currently under the jurisdiction of the federal government are also highlighted.

Key Findings:

* The cost to Utah of managing the transfer of lands was estimated to be $248 million by 2017--the year researchers assumed the state would first have control of the lands. Maintaining federal PILT (payments in lieu of taxes) to the counties would add $31.7 million, bringing the total cost of managing lands in 2017 to almost $280 million.

* Revenues produced on public lands are significant. In 2013, a total of $331.7 million was generated on lands managed by the BLM and Forest Service (federal agencies) in Utah. Of this, mineral lease revenue accounted for $308 million. Oil and gas...

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