Executive Action Taken Against Utah Monuments

Friends of the Amargosa Basin expresses disapproval over executive action taken against Bears Ears and Grand Staircase-Escalante National Monuments 

Shoshone, CA – Friends of the Amargosa Basin has issued the following public statement from its Executive Director Cameron Mayer expressing disappointment and disapproval over action taken by the president to reduce the size of both Bears Ears and Grand Staircase-Escalante National Monuments in Utah. 

On July 13th, 2026 the president of the United States, Donald Trump, signed executive orders (EOs), cutting down the size of these two monuments by approximately 3 million combined acres. Both were reduced by the first Trump administration in 2017 after a review of national monuments that demonstrated their overwhelming support from the American public. Former president Joe Biden restored Bears Ears and Grand Staircase National Monuments in 2021 after the first reduction.  

The White House fact sheet on the orders just released explains the current administration’s point of view that the two national monuments in question are a barrier to expanding extractive economic uses of these lands, to proper multiple use of public lands under the authority of the BLM, and are examples of federal overreach in the management of public lands. This action comes just days after an attempt to overturn the current management plan for Grand Staircase-Escalante via the Congressional Review Act (CRA) stalled out in the Senate.  

“The action taken by the president against Bears Ears and Grand Staircase-Escalante National Monuments is not only unlawful, it blatantly ignores bipartisan voter support of both monuments, including in the state of Utah, in favor of the anti-public lands Utah delegation and special interests. This is purely a top-down decision from Washington that hardly represents a democratic way to go about major public land management decisions. Tribal Nation coalitions for Bears Ears and Grand Staircase-Escalante both explain how the monuments include lands and resources that are a part of indigenous cultural lifeways. Moreover, both monuments are beloved by Americans of all backgrounds. Their effective management under national monument designations give a voice to local communities, Tribal Nations, and diverse stakeholders on the ground, while helping to facilitate extractive projects and proposals in areas with lesser resource conflicts. Attacking Bears Ears and Grand Staircase-Escalante is an affront to the supportive American public and to the integrity of sound public land management across the board.” 

“The action taken today is purely for the benefit of a few at the expense of the many. National Monuments are not partisan footballs to punt back and forth as the political winds blow. We as an organization support keeping our monuments soundly protected and well-managed for the benefit of future generations.”