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Read. Follow. Verify.Utah directs public lands mapping and asserts jurisdictional interests over federal lands
Last action · March 25, 2026: Governor SignedSponsors: Ken Ivory and 1 other
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What This Bill Does
Utah enacts the Public Lands Duty of Care Amendments, requiring the Public Lands Policy Coordinating Office to map landscape-scale public lands and establish for access, nuisance areas, and minerals by January 1, 2028. The bill asserts state sovereignty and police power over , directs the Division of Forestry, Fire, and State Lands to assist in identifying public nuisance areas in forested regions, and mandates annual reporting to the Legislature starting May 6, 2026.
Residents and local governments gain a structured state inventory of large federal landholdings, affecting how natural resource management, grazing access, and local taxation priorities are coordinated with federal agencies.
- The Federalism Commission is a Utah legislative body created to monitor, evaluate, and make recommendations regarding federal laws and state sovereignty. context
- The Public Lands Policy Coordinating Office assists the governor in coordinating state and local public lands policies and management plans. context
Who It Affects
Groups the bill's text affects, as described in the record. Being affected is not a position for or against it.
Public Lands Policy Coordinating Office
The office is required to identify and digitally map landscape-scale lands, establish GIS data layers, coordinate with other entities, and submit annual reports.
Division of Forestry, Fire, and State Lands
The division is tasked with assisting in identifying polygons for landscape public nuisance areas in forested regions.
Federalism Commission
The commission is designated to receive annual updates on the digital maps and mineral zone recommendations.
Key Facts
You don't have to trust us. Each fact below is taken straight from the official document - click any one to see the exact passage, highlighted in the original.
Frequently Asked Questions
What lands does this bill apply to?
By what date must the mapping be completed?
Who receives the annual reports regarding these public lands maps?
What else do you want to know?
News Coverage
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Votes, people, money & the original sourceWhere This Stands
Current status: Signed into law.
Procedural history
38 actions- Mar 25, 2026Lieutenant Governor's office for filingEnrolledGovernor Signed
- Mar 12, 2026HouseHouse/ to Governor
- Mar 12, 2026HouseHouse/ received enrolled bill from Printing
- Mar 11, 2026HouseHouse/ enrolled bill to Printing
- Mar 11, 2026Clerk of the HouseEnrolled Bill Returned to House or Senate
- Mar 6, 2026Legislative Research and General Counsel / EnrollingDraft of Enrolled Bill Prepared
Show 32 earlier actions
- Mar 6, 2026Legislative Research and General Counsel / EnrollingBill Received from House for Enrolling
- Mar 5, 2026HouseHouse/ signed by Speaker/ sent for enrolling
- Mar 5, 2026HouseHouse/ received from Senate
- Mar 5, 2026SenateSenate/ to House
- Mar 5, 2026SenateSenate/ signed by President/ returned to House
- Mar 5, 2026SenateFloorSenate/ passed 2nd & 3rd readings/ suspension
- Mar 5, 2026SenateSenate/ uncircled
- Mar 4, 2026SenateSenate/ circled
- Mar 4, 2026SenateSenate/ 2nd & 3rd readings/ suspension
- Mar 2, 2026SenateSenate/ placed on 2nd Reading Calendar
- Mar 2, 2026SenateSenate/ committee report favorable
- Mar 2, 2026SenateSenate Comm - Favorable Recommendation
- Feb 27, 2026SenateCommitteeSenate/ to standing committee
- Feb 27, 2026SenateIntroducedSenate/ 1st reading (Introduced)
- Feb 27, 2026SenateSenate/ received from House
- Feb 26, 2026HouseHouse/ to Senate
- Feb 26, 2026HouseFloorHouse/ passed 3rd reading
- Feb 26, 2026HouseHouse/ floor amendment
- Feb 26, 2026HouseHouse/ 3rd reading
- Feb 23, 2026HouseHouse/ 2nd reading
- Feb 23, 2026HouseHouse/ committee report favorable
- Feb 23, 2026HouseHouse Comm - Favorable Recommendation
- Feb 17, 2026HouseCommitteeHouse/ to standing committee
- Feb 13, 2026HouseHouse/ received fiscal note from Fiscal Analyst
- Feb 12, 2026ReleasedLFA/ fiscal note publicly available for HB0546
- Feb 12, 2026Version SponsorLFA/ fiscal note sent to sponsor for HB0546
- Feb 11, 2026HouseIntroducedHouse/ 1st reading (Introduced)
- Feb 11, 2026HouseHouse/ received bill from Legislative Research
- Feb 11, 2026Legislative Fiscal AgencyLFA/ bill sent to agencies for fiscal input for HB0546
- Feb 11, 2026Legislative Fiscal AnalystLFA/ bill assigned to staff for fiscal analysis for HB0546
- Feb 11, 2026Legislative Research and General CounselNumbered Bill Publicly Distributed
- Feb 11, 2026Legislative Research and General CounselBill Numbered but not Distributed
Version history
Only one version on file - nothing to compare yet. As later stages (committee substitute, engrossed, enrolled) are captured, the redline appears here.
View official text →Lobbying Activity
No state lobbying filings in our records match this bill. Federal lobbying reports (LDA) cover Congress, so they are not listed on state bills.
Full breakdown
Who this bill affects and the strongest case for and against it, written only from the bill’s own text.
Sponsors
Discoveries
Patterns POLISCOPE noticed across the record. These are observations to investigate, not conclusions.
Codification of State Land Jurisdictional Claims
The legislation pairs administrative mapping mandates with formal statutory assertions of state police power over 35 million acres of federal proprietary interest lands.
Connected Entities
Sources
le.utah.gov
Analysis Score
0–100- Significance65How much this matters to a regular citizen
- Controversy75Intensity of disagreement among stakeholders
- Entertainment10Compellingness for a non-policy-wonk reader
- Buzz35Current news / social attention level
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