Heinrich, Sheehy to launch bipartisan public lands caucus

The caucus will focus on "science-based solutions" to conservation issues.
E&E DAILY |Senate Energy and Natural Resources ranking member Martin Heinrich and Sen. Tim Sheehy will launch the Senate Stewardship Caucus next week, focusing on bipartisan efforts to conserve public lands.
Heinrich, a New Mexico Democrat, and Sheehy, a Montana Republican, will co-chair the new caucus, which is set to debut at an event next Monday.
It will “advance bipartisan efforts to conserve the nation’s lands and waters — keeping them healthy, productive, and accessible for future generations,” according to a release from the group Nature is Nonpartisan.
Heinrich is the top-ranking Democrat on the Senate committee with jurisdiction over federal lands. Sheehy, a Republican who was elected in 2024, has sought to carve out a lane as a top public lands defender.
In a statement to POLITICO’s E&E News, Heinrich said the caucus has a “unique opportunity and responsibility to build on our nation’s rich history of conserving wild spaces and promoting public lands and waters.”
He added that the goal of the caucus was to "create long-lasting, science-based solutions to address the conservation issues that face this nation in partnership with this community.”
He added, “Together, we can work to protect and expand access to public lands, recover wildlife, restore habitat, and make sure that the places that inspire us can continue to inspire future generations.”
Sheehy's office did not respond to a request for comment about the new caucus.
Both lawmakers succeeded in killing an attempt by ENR Chair Mike Lee (R-Utah) to sell off millions of acres of public lands in the West. Sheehy was one of a band of Republican senators who threatened to vote against the One Big Beautiful Bill Act unless Lee’s provision was removed.
Members of the House earlier this year launched the Public Lands Caucus, which works to “bring lawmakers from both sides of the aisle to advance practical, consensus-driven public lands policy that conserves natural resources while supporting recreation, local economies, and public access,” according to a press release from a co-chair, Rep. Ryan Zinke (R-Mont.).
That caucus is led by Zinke, along with co-chair Gabe Vasquez (D-N.M.), Vice Chair Debbie Dingell (D-Mich.) and Vice Chair Mike Simpson (R-Idaho).