The Natural Resources Management Act enjoyed bipartisan support in both houses of Congress. But it left out contentious issues like wildfires, greenhouse gas emissions, and protecting wildlife corridors.

The largest public lands protection bill since 2009, the Natural Resources Management Act adds over 1.3 million acres of wilderness and creates four new national monuments, writes Carl Segerstrom. The bill also protects 367 miles of rivers and permanently reauthorizes the Land and Water Conservation Fund. It's on its way to President Trump after passage in the Senate and the House.
While it's a comforting example of bipartisanship, Segerstrom points out that the bill punts on the more controversial aspects of "updating public-lands laws for the 21st century." He goes on, "Rather than address the overarching issues facing public-lands management, such as wildfires, greenhouse gas emissions and protecting wildlife corridors for endangered species, the new lands bill is [pork barrel politics]."
Substantive environmental policymaking, meanwhile, isn't something the current Congress seems capable of, Segerstrom says. "Bedrock environmental laws that drive public-land policy, such as the Wilderness Act, Endangered Species Act, National Environmental Policy Act and Federal Land Policy and Management Act, were all signed during or before 1976." Without Congressional leadership, policy on public lands tends to volley back and forth depending on who's in the White House. Amid the bill's 700 pages, Segerstrom notes, the word "climate" does not appear.
FULL STORY: New bill leaves lands protected, lawmaking neglected

Maui's Vacation Rental Debate Turns Ugly
Verbal attacks, misinformation campaigns and fistfights plague a high-stakes debate to convert thousands of vacation rentals into long-term housing.

Planetizen Federal Action Tracker
A weekly monitor of how Trump’s orders and actions are impacting planners and planning in America.

San Francisco Suspends Traffic Calming Amidst Record Deaths
Citing “a challenging fiscal landscape,” the city will cease the program on the heels of 42 traffic deaths, including 24 pedestrians.

Cleveland to Boost Bike Safety With New Bike Lanes, School Programs
The program, using curriculum created by Cleveland Bikes, is part of a broader effort to improve safety along school routes.

Florida Home Insurers Disproportionately Dropping Low-Income Households
Non-renewal rates are highest in inland counties, not the coastal areas most immediately vulnerable to storms.

Half of Post-Fire Altadena Home Sales Were to Corporations
Large investors are quietly buying up dozens of properties in Altadena, California, where a devastating wildfire destroyed more than 6,000 homes in January.
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