"Heres what a few have to say:
RMEF statement:
http://rmefblog.blogspot.com/2014/10/rmef-opposes-sale-or-transfer-of.html
BHA:
https://www.backcountryhunters.org/images/Public_Lands_Report.pdf"
Thanks Buss
BackCountry hunters presents a thoughtful discussion and reflects a position that I and a lot of the the SFW member (not all) I've talked to believe. Again, I do not know nor have I seen an official statement from SFW regarding the matter, nor have I seen much if anything from the others I mentioned.
So far as RMEF, here is my observation of the material you posted.
With the exception of Mr. Allen, Pres. RMEF, the entire video was on preserving public lands and one gentleman referred specifically to preserving State public lands as his concern, in the way of the Adirondack State Park in New York State. So the video had little to do with the transfer of Federal lands to the States and more to do with keeping public lands public and not selling them. The State of Utah claims it will do, like New York State has done with the Adirondack, manage these lands as public land, owned by the State of Utah. (I don't believe they can or will, nor do I believe Utah even wants to, but I believe they need to say they do, in order to silence the likes of us.)
Mr. Allen's halting remarks on the video, where he could barely bring himself to look at the camera, while he said it, was telling. That was fricking scary, if you're trying to determine his commitment to the fight. He looked pretty tentative to me.
RMEF's letter, signed by Mr. Allen, was calculated, better than his comments on the video, but certainly not the pointed position that these organization could be making regarding this issue.
Here's what I'm guessing, Buss:
These national and other hunting/fish organizations know this sucker is a sticky, nasty, political, philosophical, emotional, quagmire. They have members that hate Democrat policy and the big government/big brother/I'll take care of you stupid people, approach to the world. They also have members that hate Republican policy and they're free enterprise/rugged individualistic/take care of yourself, approach to everything.
They know if they side with one side or the other, they loose. So.....................they are standing back and watching, laying low, as at were.......believing there's not a snow balls change in hell that the Feds will transfer current Federal lands to the States. If they can just shut up and let this run it political course and let the State's and the Feds settle for something less, where the States get more money from the Feds, to "make up for the loss of revenue, due to Federally held land" they can get by without offending half their membership and their major funding donors. I believe that's why Mr. Allen looked like he wanted to puke, I'm convinced he hated to have to say what he said, regardless of what he thought. And he had that letter written nearly as chokingly.
I get it, it's a mess. The Federal government has created this mess, the States have grievances that need to be addressed. There needs to be changes in the relationship between the States and Federal government's controls, management and the loss of revenue to the States, under the current public lands programs.
Look, the west is owned by the Federal government, the east is owned by the private sector. Eastern States receive tax revenue for their roads, schools, and public services from those privately held lands. Western States don't. We have roads, schools and other public services that need to be funded as well.
If we want to keep these land public, AND WE DO, we need to compensate the States that have these huge federal land tracks with federally collected tax money "from the private sector States". That means, the eastern private sector States need to anti-up to keep the Federal lands "they want kept public" from being sold so western States can pay for the public services required for our growing populations. I'll pay my extra to keep these land publics as well, but why do I have to pay extra to keep my State's land public, so that people from other States, who own their lands, can come here and enjoy what I'm paying to keep public?
When these western State had small populations, per capita, they had enough tax revenue to provide necessary government services, as our populations have grown, our cities have become large, our per capita need for public services has increased correspondingly. Hence the need for an increase in tax revenues. Utah is 69% Federal land, essentially no income for Utah other than a few million tourist dollars. Hardly enough taxes come off the tourist dollars to pay to keep the roads to the National Parks paved, so our eastern cousins can come see the sight.
So............I don't want to see Utah or any Western State take over the present Federally controlled lands. Nor do I believe it will happen any time soon, if ever, but like I said previously, the Feds need to change their program, the program they are presently using has caused this "rising up" of the Western States and they'll continue to stay "on the hunt" and even more so, if the Federal government doesn't bring appropriate equity to the States.
SFW, RMEF, MDF and all the others have little to do with it, and if the truth be known, they really don't want to, because it will cause huge internal rift within their organizations. It's a tar baby they don't want to take a hold of............Mr. Allen included.
DC