Others, like Simpson, disagreed, saying that the study would have shown the public that the issue was a priority for them and, if the bill failed, any effort to solve the problem comprehensively would end up on the back burner.

In testimony supporting the bill, many groups spoke of an urgent situation where changing dynamics of land ownership are beginning to put access to those public lands in peril. According to a study by the Theodore Roosevelt Conservation Partnership, Wyoming accounts for nearly one-third of all landlocked public land in the West, many of which is sealed in by private landowners.

Traditionally, many of these private landowners have been willing to sign easements or make agreements to allow private citizens and sportsmen to access these lands, said Nick Dobric, a lobbyist for the partnership. However, in recent years, more and more wealthy individuals from out of the state have been buying up the old ranches and been less willing to make deals.

The biggest barrier to a solution, Dobric said, is that there is currently not a good database of public easements that are actually available, something the study could have helped lay the groundwork to build.