Governor Mark Gordon announced a significant, long awaited milestone: the signing of a Letter of Intent between the Wyoming Office of State Lands and Investments (OSLI) and the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) Wyoming Office establishing a deliberate and careful process to pursue the acquisition or exchange of federal land in the state. Governor Gordon previously indicated his desire to utilize the $100 million generated by the sale of the Kelly Parcel to purchase federal lands and minerals within Wyoming. The $100 million could be combined with an additional $62 million from the sale of other Teton County parcels for this purpose, as directed by the legislature.

“Along with the protection of an iconic parcel of land, we now begin working to ensure that there is no net-gain in federal lands in Wyoming,” Governor Gordon said. “It has been my goal to utilize the proceeds of this sale to expand the State’s portfolio of lands and minerals, and this is the first step towards doing so.”

Governor Gordon also stressed that this is just one of the first steps in the purchase or exchange process. Still to come will be opportunities for public comment as well as input from adjoining private land owners, federal and state lease holders, who could be affected by a sale or exchange of federal lands.

Following the combined November meeting of the State Board of Land Commissioners and the State Loan and Investment Board, the Office of State Lands began researching land ownership patterns in both the Powder River Basin and in southwest Wyoming, and has begun identifying a list of potential parcels managed by BLM.

The signed letter of intent may be found here.