Celebrating the 2025 State Legislative Sessions

by Claire Cutler | CDTC Trail Policy Specialist

As state legislatures along the Continental Divide Trail convened earlier this year, National Parks, National Forests, and trails across the country faced unprecedented challenges as changes in the federal government brought new uncertainty to the future of public land management and visitation. With activity in Washington D.C. drawing the attention of hikers, hunters, anglers, and all outdoor enthusiasts, it was easy to overlook state-level successes for trails, outdoor access, and public lands. Now that the legislative session has concluded in each of the CDT states, we want to celebrate these victories for trails, public lands, and rural communities! 

Colorado

CDTC celebrated Colorado Public Lands Day at the Colorado state capitol with a Rally for Public Lands. Outdoor enthusiasts heard from several speakers and learned how to take action in support of Colorado’s public lands.

The Colorado General Assembly established itself as a national leader for public lands in March, when it passed Joint Resolution 25-009: Protection of Colorado’s Public Lands. This resolution, championed by public lands groups from across the state, celebrates Colorado’s public lands and their significance to the state’s economy and cultures, and declares the General Assembly’s support for keeping national public lands under the management of federal agencies. In the face of nationwide threats of privatization and sale of public lands, the Colorado General Assembly opposed these actions. The resolution passed unanimously in the Colorado Senate and with a vote of 59-5 in the House of Representatives, demonstrating overwhelming bipartisan support for Colorado’s treasured public lands. 

Colorado’s General Assembly also took critical steps towards ensuring that individuals from all backgrounds across the state can experience public lands and outdoor recreation through passage of House Bill 25-1215: Redistribution of Lottery Fund. Colorado’s Outdoor Equity Grant Program (OEGP) provides funding for programs that improve access, representation, and meaningful participation in the outdoors for youth from across the state. The OEGP was previously funded at $3 million per year by proceeds from the Colorado Lottery. Passed with strong support in both chambers of the Colorado General Assembly, House Bill 1215 increases funding for the OEGP in years when revenue from the Colorado Lottery exceeds a specified amount. Each year, applications for Outdoor Equity Grants far exceed the available funding, and this increased funding is a meaningful step towards closing that gap. As a result of this bill, more youth across the state will experience and benefit from the state’s natural landscape.

Wyoming

During the 2025 session, the Wyoming State Legislature considered, and defeated, two bills that would have had huge impacts on management of public lands in the state. In a state with a supermajority in both chambers, these successes showcase the bipartisan nature and unifying ability of public lands. 

Senate File 105: An Act to Preserve State Territorial Sovereignty would have required landowners to obtain consent from the state legislature to sell or transfer interest in their property to the federal government, including easements and rights-of-way. Easements are a crucial tool for completing the CDT (especially in areas with checkerboarded land ownership patterns, like Wyoming), and this bill would have created new challenges in that process. However, the Wyoming Senate failed to consider Senate File 105 by a critical deadline, defeating the bill. 

Senate Joint Resolution 2: Resolution Demanding Equal Footing requested that the federal government dispose of all national public lands in Wyoming (except for Yellowstone National Park), which would have included sections of the CDT, and establish state control of these lands. The 2025 Conservation in the West poll found that 58% of Wyomingites opposed giving the state government control over national public lands, a sentiment that was not reflected in Joint Resolution 2. After a dramatic lifecycle that included a tied vote, defeat of the bill, and a reconsideration vote, Joint Resolution 2 was narrowly defeated, ensuring that national public lands in Wyoming will remain under the purview of federal land management agencies. 

CDTC staff rallied at the Montana state capitol in Helena alongside other local organizations to demonstrate their support for public lands and the funding and staffing of land management agencies.

Montana 

By defeating Senate Bill 307: Reallocate Montana Marijuana Tax Revenue, the Montana State Legislature maintained essential funding for trails across the state of Montana. Senate Bill 307 proposed to remove an allocation of marijuana tax revenues from the state’s Recreational Trails Program, which would have eliminated over $33 million in funding to trails every two years. Losing this critical source of funding would have hampered local organizations’, volunteers’, and conservations corps’ abilities to conduct on-the-ground trail work, leading to degraded trail conditions for hikers across Montana. The bill died in process after missing critical deadlines, preserving this essential funding for trails and the local organizations that steward them. 

New Mexico 

This year, CDTC kicked off a collaborative effort with the National Religious Partnership for the Environment to connect communities to dark skies across southern New Mexico, and to better understand the relationship between faith, communities, and dark sky protection. This work coincided with the introduction of Senate Bill 34: Outdoor Lighting Requirements and Exemptions, which proposed updates that would modernize New Mexico’s Dark Sky Protection Act. CDTC believes that dark skies are an essential part of the character of New Mexico, the experience of the Continental Divide Trail, and the culture of local communities. Although Senate Bill 34 was tabled by the Senate Conservation Committee, CDTC is optimistic about the strength of the coalition of organizations working to protect New Mexico’s night sky, and is eager to see the future of dark sky protections in new legislative sessions to come.

As CDTC grows, we’re becoming more involved in state-level policy and advocacy, and we’re grateful to have been able to engage with each of these bills. We also know, though, that we still aren’t able to follow closely or engage deeply with every state legislature along the CDT. We’re deeply appreciative of each of the organizations working in New Mexico, Colorado, Wyoming, Idaho, and Montana to celebrate and uplift public lands through state legislation.