Public Lands

Colorado loves our public lands. They should be protected for future generations.

Coloradans are proud of our state’s beautiful natural landscapes and overwhelmingly support protections to ensure we maintain these stunning lands for future generations. Senator Hickenlooper was influential in President Biden’s designation of Camp Hale as a national monument to honor the historic 10th Mountain Division and protect other landscapes, including the Continental Divide, the Thompson Divide, and the San Juan Mountains. In addition, Senator Hickenlooper co-sponsors the CORE Act, which will grow our already-booming outdoor recreation economy and protect over 400,000 acres of public land in Colorado. He has also championed legislation to expand the Sarvis Creek Wilderness, establish a National Conservation Area in the Dolores River area, and permanently protect key portions of the Gunnison Basin and surrounding regions – all to protect critical watersheds and wildlife habitat. Senator Hickenlooper also supported the name change of Colorado’s Mount Evans to Mount Blue Sky, which recognizes the Cheyenne and Arapahoe people, and continues to advocate in Congress for the name change of the surrounding wilderness.

Senator Hickenlooper has been outspoken against the Trump administration’s cuts to National Parks and Forest Service staffing and led an effort against the admin’s attempts to overturn the Bureau of Land Management’s Public Lands Rule. When MAGA Republicans proposed to sell off more than three million acres of public lands in President Trump’s “One Big Beautiful Bill,” Senator Hickenlooper led the fight against the proposal and successfully got the provision stripped from the legislation. He continues to fight the Trump administration’s attempts to sell off our public lands at every turn, including being the first senator to publicly oppose Trump’s pick to lead the BLM, Steve Pearce, a proponent of public land sales.  

Our public lands and National Parks power our rural economies in Colorado. As governor of Colorado, he opened one of the first statewide offices of outdoor recreation in the country. In his role on the Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee, Senator Hickenlooper helped advance several pieces of legislation to protect these lands and increase access for Coloradans and visitors to enjoy these treasured landscapes. He also chaired a field hearing of the Senate Small Business and Entrepreneurship Committee in Denver to draw attention to the strain the outdoor recreation industry has faced under the Trump administration’s chaotic and illegal tariffs.