News – Sheridan Media
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Congresswomen Harriet Hageman (R-WY) and Julie Fedorchak of North Dakota, introduced the Landowner Easement Rights Act Wednesday. According to information from Congresswoman Hageman’s Office, the bill would prohibit the Department of the Interior from entering into new conservation easements exceeding 30 years and empower landowners to renegotiate terms, renew agreements, or buy back conservation easements at fair market value.
This does not prevent Americans from entering into conservation easements or force them to renegotiate easements they wish to continue, but instead provides optionality to those seeking to change their agreements, an option not currently available.
Hageman said under the current system of perpetual conservation easements, the devil is in the details. Americans seeking new means of conservation and financial returns on their land enter conservation easements and soon discover they’ve ceded some of their most important private property rights, including development rights and management decisions, to third parties who increasingly work more as government agents than with the landowner. Hageman added that this bill ends the current policy and allows a landowner to enter into time-limited conservation easements, thereby ensuring that each generation can make decisions regarding their property.
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Last modified: April 10, 2025