Our Public Lands, Our Future: A Progressive Vision for Northern Nevada

As your candidate for Nevada’s 2nd Congressional District, I stand in stark contrast to Representative Mark Amodei’s approach to our public lands. While he recently pushed through legislation to sell off over 93,000 acres of Nevada’s public lands—with proceeds going to Washington rather than staying in Nevada—I believe our public lands are not for sale. They are our shared heritage, our economic engine, and the key to solving Northern Nevada’s affordability crisis.

Recent polling shows that 72% of Western voters, including Nevada residents, want Congress to prioritize conservation over energy extraction on federal lands. Even among self-identified MAGA voters, 64% oppose closing public lands and 61% oppose selling them to private bidders. The data is clear: Nevadans want a different approach.

1. Keep Public Land Revenue in Nevada—Always

Unlike Rep. Amodei’s recent amendment that diverts billions from Nevada land sales to fund federal tax cuts for the wealthy, I will fight to ensure 100% of public land sale revenues stay in Nevada. For over two decades, the Southern Nevada Public Land Management Act kept $1.8 billion in our state for conservation, recreation, and affordable housing. Amodei abandoned this principle. I won’t.

Progressive Position: Expand the SNPLMA model statewide, ensuring all BLM land transaction revenues fund Nevada priorities: affordable housing development, water infrastructure, wildfire prevention, and conservation.

2. Transform Public Lands into Affordable Housing Solutions

Northern Nevada faces a severe housing affordability crisis. More than half of Nevada renters are cost-burdened, spending over 35% of income on housing. With federal ownership limiting 85% of Nevada’s land, we need creative solutions—not fire sales to developers.

Progressive Position: Work with BLM to identify suitable lands near Reno, Carson City, and rural communities for mixed-income housing developments with strict affordability covenants. Use renewable energy leasing revenues to fund down payment assistance and community land trusts that keep housing permanently affordable.

3. Accelerate Renewable Energy Development on Public Lands

While Amodei prioritizes fossil fuel extraction and has supported opening pristine areas to drilling, progressive data shows only 11% of young Americans (18-29) support auctioning more public lands for oil drilling. Nevada has world-class solar and geothermal potential.

Progressive Position: Champion BLM’s goal to permit 50 gigawatts of clean energy on public lands by 2030. Prioritize Solar Energy Zones in Northern Nevada, creating thousands of union jobs while generating revenue for local communities. Support geothermal development in Humboldt, Pershing, and Churchill counties, which provide baseload renewable power.

4. Protect Tribal Sacred Sites and Expand Indigenous Co-Management

Amodei’s recent land sale amendment was introduced without consulting affected tribes, including lands near the Pyramid Lake Paiute Reservation. As the Native Voters Alliance noted, “You don’t accidentally mark land for disposal right next to a sovereign nation.”

Progressive Position: Require meaningful Tribal consultation before any BLM land disposition. Support co-management agreements giving Indigenous nations authority over culturally significant landscapes. Protect all Tribal sacred sites and traditional use areas from development.

5. Prioritize Conservation and Recreation Over Extraction

Rep. Amodei has consistently pushed for “local control” that favors mining and grazing interests over recreation and conservation. Yet 87% of Western voters prefer career professionals—rangers, scientists, firefighters—managing public lands over political appointees from extractive industries.

Progressive Position: Expand protected wilderness areas and national monuments in Northern Nevada. Increase funding for BLM recreation management to support the outdoor recreation economy, which generates more sustainable jobs than extractive industries.

6. Combat the Climate Crisis Through Public Land Stewardship

Nevada has experienced devastating wildfires, with over 1 million acres burned in recent years. Yet Amodei opposed Biden-era environmental protections and supported rolling back climate considerations in public land management.

Progressive Position: Require all BLM projects to undergo climate impact assessments. Invest in forest health, fire prevention, and ecosystem restoration. Support carbon sequestration projects on public lands, including Great Basin restoration that benefits ranchers, wildlife, and climate resilience.

7. Ensure Transparency and Public Participation

Amodei’s 93,000-acre land sale was introduced at 11:20 PM without input from affected communities or even Nevada’s Democratic congressional delegation. This is government by ambush, not democracy.

Progressive Position: Mandate robust public comment periods for all significant BLM decisions. Hold town halls in affected communities before any land disposition. Make all BLM planning documents easily accessible online. Support whistleblower protections for BLM employees who report political interference.

8. Strengthen Water Rights and Protect Watersheds

Water is life in the desert. Drinking water pollution remains Americans’ top environmental concern across party lines. Yet public land decisions often ignore watershed impacts.

Progressive Position: Give watershed protection priority in all BLM planning. Oppose projects that threaten aquifer recharge areas or surface water quality. Support BLM enforcement of Clean Water Act protections on public lands. Invest in water infrastructure using public land revenues.

9. Create Good-Paying Union Jobs Through Public Land Investment

The renewable energy sector offers better long-term employment than boom-and-bust extraction industries. BLM solar projects in Nevada have created thousands of construction jobs, while geothermal provides permanent operations positions.

Progressive Position: Require project labor agreements and prevailing wages for all major BLM projects. Invest in workforce development programs training Northern Nevadans for renewable energy careers. Support BLM employee unions and ensure adequate staffing for public land management.

10. Stop the Sell-Off: Public Lands Are Not For Sale

Rep. Amodei has repeatedly attempted to transfer or sell federal lands, most recently in mandating the sale of over 93,000 acres. While he claims this addresses housing needs, it actually enriches developers while stripping Nevada of its heritage.

Progressive Position: Oppose all wholesale transfers or sales of public lands. Support only targeted, community-driven land exchanges that benefit local needs while ensuring equal or greater conservation value. Reject the privatization agenda that would lock Nevadans out of their own backyard.

Why This Matters Now

Northern Nevada stands at a crossroads. We face an affordability crisis that demands bold solutions. We need thousands of new homes, good-paying jobs, and a sustainable economy. Representative Amodei’s answer is to sell our birthright to the highest bidder, with the money flowing to Washington to fund tax cuts for billionaires.

There’s a better way

We can use our public lands as a platform for renewable energy development that creates lasting careers. We can work with BLM to make suitable lands available for truly affordable housing while protecting our most treasured landscapes. We can ensure that revenues from our lands stay here, funding the infrastructure and services our growing communities need.

The polling is unequivocal: Nevadans want conservation prioritized over extraction. They oppose selling public lands. They want career professionals, not political appointees, managing our natural resources. They understand that our public lands are not just empty space—they’re the foundation of our outdoor recreation economy, our quality of life, and our children’s inheritance.

We don’t have to choose between economic opportunity and environmental protection. We don’t have to sell our public lands to solve our housing crisis. We don’t have to sacrifice our future for short-term profits.

What we need is leadership that sees our public lands as they truly are: a shared resource that, properly managed, can help us build an economy that works for everyone. An economy with affordable homes powered by clean energy. An economy with good-paying union jobs that can’t be outsourced. An economy that respects our Indigenous neighbors, protects our watersheds, and preserves the wild places that make Northern Nevada special.

That’s the vision I’m offering. Not a fire sale, but a future. Not a giveaway, but an investment. Not the end of public lands, but a new beginning.

Our public lands belong to all of us. It’s time we had a representative who acts like it.

Together, we can chart a new course for Northern Nevada—one that honors our past, meets our present challenges, and secures a sustainable, affordable, and just future for generations to come. The choice is ours. We are battle born! Let’s make it count!