With new bill, GOP lawmaker is emphatic: Idaho public lands are not for sale

Sarah Cutler, The Idaho Statesman on Jan 21, 2026

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Idaho state Sen. Ben Adams took an “unconventional” approach with his proposal to preserve public lands, he told fellow lawmakers.

In August, months before the 2026 legislative session, Adams publicly proposed to amend the state’s constitution to prevent Idaho from selling off lands it acquired from the federal government. The Nampa Republican proposed to create a public lands trust fund to distribute revenues from any such lands to outdoor facilities and public schools in rural communities.

“I wanted feedback,” he told members of the Senate State Affairs Committee on Wednesday. “I wanted a lot of feedback, because it dealt with and deals with a very personal matter for every Idahoan, and that is our public land here in Idaho.”

He got what he hoped for. Since August, he’s had thousands of conversations with Idaho residents about his proposed language. The gist of his written proposal stayed the same, though he made tweaks that “cleaned it up,” he said

“The beauty of this is it didn’t lose the heart of this amendment,” he told committee members.

Adams initially floated his plan after U.S. Sen. Mike Lee, a Utah Republican, proposed in June to sell off millions of acres of public land, including in Idaho.

Rep. Rod Furniss, R-Rigby, told the Idaho Capital Sun at the time that his mailbox had “exploded” with messages from people opposed to the idea. In response, protecting public lands emerged as a rare point of consensus among Idaho lawmakers across the political spectrum.

Lee’s plan was shelved, at least for now. But in Boise, the state Senate committee voted unanimously to introduce Adams’ bill, which will allow it to receive a full committee hearing with public testimony.

Unlike a bill, which needs only a simple majority to pass both chambers, amending the Idaho Constitution requires the support of two-thirds of both the state House and Senate. If Adams’ amendment secures those votes, it would appear as a ballot measure for voters on the November 2026 general election ballot.

The Idaho Conservation League is “excited” about the proposal, said John Robison, the organization’s public lands and wildlife director.

The league has questions about the specifics of how the public fund would be managed, he told the Idaho Statesman, but appreciates the measure as a “big conversation-starter.”

“There might be more ideas coming our way,” Robison said.

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