The Bureau of Land Management has announced not one, but two dates, for the next Advisory Board meetings.

The first dates are July 9-11 in Boise, Idaho. The second October 29-31 in DC. The announcement of dates is significant for multiple reasons. BLM never announces multiple dates for the board to meet at one time.

The July date in Idaho will coincide with the end of the protest period on the spay experiment in Oregon (comments are due on the 12th of June, the decision record would arrive shortly after, and then the shortened protest period would have just expired). The BLM state that hosts the event will do a “state update.” The person at the helm of BLM Idaho is John Ruhs, formerly BLM Deputy Director, and closely associated with Protect the Harvest, an organization pushing the spay experiment.

The October date would coincide with the beginning of fiscal year 2020 (what the current debate in Appropriations is about). Either the “ask” from the BLM on the budget will have been defeated or the Wild Horse and Burros Act will have been gutted. The venue they chose for his will be a “Washington office.”

Carefully chosen venues. Carefully chosen dates.

Below is the BLM press release in full. Under the press release we have a “know before you go” reading list and an action item.

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National Wild Horse and Burro Advisory Board

to meet in Boise and Washington, D.C.

The Bureau of Land Management’s (BLM) National Wild Horse and Burro Advisory Board will meet July 9-11 in Boise, Idaho, and October 29-31 in Washington, D.C. The Board will discuss the pressing challenges of wild horse and burro management, including the number of unadopted and unsold animals in BLM facilities and the effects of overpopulation on public lands.

Both meetings will be live-streamed from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. local time July 10-11 and October 30-31 at www.blm.gov/live. The BLM will host a site visit for the Advisory Board to a local wild horse herd management area on July 9.

The National Wild Horse and Burro Advisory Board is comprised of individuals representing a diverse range of stakeholders and interests. The Board provides advice and recommendations to the BLM as the agency carries out its responsibilities under the 1971 Wild Free-Roaming Horses and Burros Act. The law mandates the protection and management of these free-roaming animals in a manner that ensures healthy herds at levels consistent with the land’s capacity to sustainably support them as part of BLM’s multiple-use mission.

As of March 1, 2019, the BLM estimated public rangelands were home to approximately 88,090 wild horses and burros in 10 Western states – the largest population estimate since the 1971 Wild Free-Roaming Horses and Burros Act was passed – and more than three times the number the habitat can sustainably support in conjunction with other authorized land uses. At the same time, the BLM continues to care for approximately 50,000 unadopted and unsold animals in its off-range corrals and pastures, costing taxpayers $50 million annually – nearly two-thirds of the Wild Horse and Burro Program annual budget.

The agendas of the upcoming meetings can be found in the June 7, 2019 Federal Register at www.federalregister.gov. More detailed agendas and materials will be posted on the BLM website at BLM.gov/WHB prior to each meeting. The July meeting will be held at the Hilton Garden Inn Downtown Boise, located at 348 S. 13th Street, Boise, Idaho 83702. The October meeting will be held at the Phoenix Park Hotel located at 520 North Capitol Street, NW, Washington, DC 20001 and at 20 F Street Conference Center located at 20 F Street, NW, Suite 1000, Washington, DC 20001.

The public may address the Advisory Board on July 11 and October 31. Individuals who wish to comment should register in person with the BLM at least 30 minutes prior to the start of the public comment period on that same day at the meeting site. Depending on the number of speakers, the Board may limit the length of comments, which has been set at three minutes per person during previous meetings.

Speakers should submit a written copy of their comment to the BLM at the addresses below or bring a copy to the meeting. There will be a webcam present during the entire meeting and individual comments will be recorded. Those who would like to comment but are unable to attend may submit a written statement at least two weeks prior to the start of each meeting to: U.S. Department of the Interior, Bureau of Land Management, National Wild Horse and Burro Program, WO-260, Attention: Advisory Board, 20 M St. SE, Room 2134LM, Washington, D.C., 20003. Comments may also be e-mailed two weeks before the meeting to the BLM at whbadvisoryboard@blm.gov. Please include “Advisory Board Comment” in the subject line of the e-mail.

For additional information regarding the meeting or to register to attend the July 9 HMA tour, please contact Dorothea Boothe, Acting Wild Horse and Burro Program Coordinator, at (202) 912-7654 or at dboothe@blm.gov. Individuals who use a telecommunications device for the deaf (TDD) may reach Ms. Boothe during normal business hours by calling the Federal Information Relay Service at 1-800-877-8339.

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Help us stay in the fight.

KNOW BEFORE YOU GO:

TAKE ACTION

Contact Grijalva:

Request that as an American whose interest he is to protect as the Chair of the House Natural Resources Committee, you want him to create a full hearing on “Extremism in Public Lands.” The intimidation tactics that have forwarded todays political agenda on public lands must be exposed and justice must be served. (contact Grijalva HERE)

Next make calls to all of your Representatives in both the House and the Senate.

Tell them that you want to BLM Wild Horse and Burro Program held in status quo: the budget levels of last year and no new authorities granted requested under the BLM Report to Congress presented by Brian Steed.

Too many conflicts of interest exist between Brian Steed, and multiple members of Interior Staff, in the document presented by Chris Stewart and incorporated into the BLM “ask.”

An investigation must be done into those conflicts of interest and ethical violations prior to any and all changes to the BLM Wild Horse and Burro Program.

You can find your representatives HERE.

To find the “long form” of the call to your Reps you can click our Urgent Action tab or click HERE.