Bureau of Land Management: FY2022 Appropriations

The Bureau of Land Management (BLM), in the Department of the Interior (DOI), manages 244 million acres of federal land, nearly all in the West. Under its multiple-use mission, BLM manages lands for diverse purposes, including livestock grazing, energy development, recreation, and conservation. The agency also administers onshore federal energy and mineral resources generally.

On March 15, 2022, FY2022 appropriations for BLM of $1,410.9 million were enacted in P.L. 117-103, Division G. (Also for FY2022, P.L. 117-43 provided BLM with $1.2 million in emergency supplemental appropriations to address certain natural disasters.) From the start of FY2022 on October 1, 2021, until regular appropriation were enacted, Congress had provided BLM with continuing appropriations at the FY2021 level.

The FY2022 BLM appropriation of $1,410.9 million was $101.3 million (8%) over the FY2021 appropriation of $1,309.6 million (in P.L. 116-260, Division G). It was less than the FY2022 amounts requested by the President, passed by the House, and included in a draft released by the Senate Appropriations Committee Chair. The President requested $1,620.5 million. On July 6, 2021, the House Appropriations Committee reported H.R. 4372 (H.Rept. 117-83) with $1,594.6 million for BLM. On July 29, 2021, the House passed H.R. 4502, an omnibus appropriations measure, with the same amount. On October 18, 2021, the Chair of the Senate Appropriations Committee released a Senate Committee Majority Draft (SCMD) bill and draft explanatory statement with $1,541.0 million for BLM. On October 20, 2021, S. 3034 was introduced reflecting the SCMD text; no further action was taken on the bill.

BLM discretionary appropriations are provided in Title I of Interior, Environment, and Related Agencies appropriations laws. Mandatory (permanent) appropriations are provided to BLM under various statutes within the jurisdiction of authorizing committees. The Department of the Interior estimated BLM mandatory appropriations at $541.7 million for FY2022. This total does not include $95.0 million for BLM deferred maintenance (discussed below).

For FY2022, issues for Congress included determining the amount of funding to provide BLM accounts and activities and the terms and conditions of such funding, as well as whether to enact related Biden Administration proposals.

Appropriations Accounts

For each BLM account, Table 1 shows FY2021 enacted amounts and FY2022 amounts requested by the Biden Administration, passed by the House, included in the SCMD, and enacted.

Management of Lands and Resources. The largest account—Management of Lands and Resources—funds diverse programs including energy and minerals, wild horses and burros, rangelands, wildlife and fisheries, facility maintenance, law enforcement, and recreation. The FY2022 appropriations law included $1,257.6 million for this account—6% over FY2021. The President's request, House, and SCMD supported higher increases for FY2022. (Program comparisons below do not reflect an FY2021 general rescission of $13.0 million.)

The Biden Administration expressed that increases proposed for FY2022 were intended to support several goals. These goals included enhancing restoration and conservation of BLM lands, fostering conservation of 30% of the nation's lands and waters by 2030, addressing climate change, improving equitable access to the outdoors, and strengthening the economy, in part by creating jobs (The Interior Budget in Brief, Fiscal Year 2022, p. BH-7).

The FY2022 appropriations law, Administration's request, House, and SCMD contained increased funding (by differing amounts in most cases) for most programs, including rangelands, recreation, national conservation lands, and others addressed below. The FY2022 enacted amounts generally were lower than the FY2022 amounts supported by the Administration, House, and SCMD.

For wild horse and burro management, the FY2022 appropriation was $137.1 million—18% over the FY2021 level of $115.7 million. The Administration requested $152.6 million, the House approved $162.1 million, and the SCMD contained $151.6 million. There are 82,384 wild horses and burros on BLM lands, more than triple the appropriate management level (AML)—the level that the range can support, as determined by BLM—of 26,785. BLM manages an additional 58,942 animals off-range. The explanatory statement for the FY2022 enacted bill specified that up to $11.0 million of the total was for reversible fertility control, as part of a population control strategy. It also directed or encouraged BLM to remove excess animals from the range, secure less costly and longer-term off-range facilities to care for animals, and leverage funding through public-private partnerships, among other actions.

For wildlife and aquatic habitat management, the FY2022 appropriation was $197.7 million. This appropriation was 5% over the FY2021 level of $188.5 million and included an increase for threatened and endangered species. The Administration sought $237.0 million, the House passed $232.7 million, and the SCMD contained $219.8 million.

For energy and minerals management, the enacted appropriation was $216.5 million, an increase of 9% over the FY2021 level of $198.6 million. The increase was primarily for oil and gas management, with no less than $22.1 million for "legacy" well remediation, according to the explanatory statement. The Administration requested $248.9 million, the House approved $241.2 million, and the SCMD contained $243.5 million.

For deferred maintenance (DM) of BLM assets, FY2022 funding was relatively flat (at nearly $35 million). However, under the Great American Outdoors Act (GAOA; P.L. 116-152), BLM (and other agencies) receive mandatory appropriations for DM through the National Parks and Public Land Legacy Restoration Fund. BLM's mandatory appropriation for FY2022 was $95.0 million (the annual amount assuming maximum revenue to the fund). The FY2022 appropriations law and explanatory statement set out an allocation of the funding among BLM projects. BLM estimated its total DM at $4.4 billion in FY2021, about four times the FY2019 estimate ($1.1 billion).

The FY2022 appropriations law, like the Administration's FY2022 request, House-passed bill, and SCMD, contained provisions related to programs in this account. For instance, one provision would prohibit funding for the destruction of healthy wild horses and burros or for sales of animals that result in processing into commercial products. Another provision extended by one year, to October 1, 2023, the authority in the Federal Lands Recreation Enhancement Act (FLREA; 16 U.S.C. §§6801 et seq.) for BLM (and other agencies) to charge, collect, and use fees for recreation on agency lands. For FY2022, BLM estimated $27.0 million in recreation fee collections.

Land Acquisition. BLM typically receives appropriations from the Land and Water Conservation Fund (LWCF) to acquire lands. Under the GAOA, BLM land acquisition (and other LWCF programs) receive mandatory appropriations. For FY2022, the mandatory appropriation for BLM was $67.4 million; the FY2022 appropriations law and explanatory statement set out an allocation of the funding. The allocation included funding for eight specified acquisition projects, acquisitions that generally foster access to BLM lands for recreation, and other purposes. The mandatory appropriation for FY2021 was $66.1 million. (The FY2021 appropriations law also rescinded $5.4 million in unobligated discretionary appropriations.)

Oregon and California Grant Lands. This account funds management of more than 2 million acres of forested lands in Western Oregon, primarily for timber production. The FY2022 appropriation was $117.3 million for this account, a 2% increase over FY2021. The President's request, House, and SCMD supported higher appropriations.

Range Improvements. The Range Improvements account funds rehabilitation, protection, and improvement of BLM rangelands. The FY2022 enacted amount was $10.0 million. This was the same as the FY2022 requested, House-passed, and SCMD amounts and the FY2021 enacted total. Under law, 50% of grazing fees collected on BLM lands or $10.0 million—whichever is greater—are credited to a Range Improvement Fund. Through the Range Improvements account, BLM typically receives an annual appropriation of $10.0 million for the fund.

Service Charges, Deposits, and Forfeitures. This account allows BLM to use monies paid to the agency for certain activities, such as processing rights-of-way and energy and mineral authorizations. Appropriations for the account typically are offset entirely by collections, as for the FY2022 enacted appropriation and the amounts proposed for FY2022 by the Administration, House, and SCMD. The FY2021 appropriation of -$20.0 million reflected a rescission of unobligated funds from earlier years.

Miscellaneous Trust Funds. This account appropriates contributions made to BLM (e.g., from individuals, businesses, and states). The FY2022 enacted amount was $26.0 million, the same as the FY2022 requested, House-passed, and SCMD levels and the FY2021 appropriation.