Feds Want to Hear from You on Coal

What: The third in a series of five listening sessions on the federal coal program will be held in Gillette, Wyoming.

When: Thursday, August 13, 2015, 1:00 – 4:00 p.m. MDT

Where: Campbell County Library, 2101 South 4-J Road, Gillette, WY 82718

Background: U.S. Secretary of the Interior Sally Jewell called for a dialogue on federal coal program in remarks at the Center for Strategic and International Studies earlier this year. True to this promise, Secretary Jewell announced that the Bureau of Land Management will host a series of listening session on the federal coal program to seek information from the public about hot the BLM can best carry out its responsibility to ensure that American Taxpayers receive a fair return on the coal resources managed by the federal government on their behalf.

Listening sessions have been held in Washington, D.C., and Billings, Montana. Listening sessions will also be held in Colorado and New Mexico. These sessions are designed to further robust discussions about reforms to the federal coal program, including potentially raising the royalty rate applied.

The BLM currently manages 310 active coal leases covering about 475,000 acres in 10 states. Roughly 40 percent of the coal produced in the United States comes from federal coal resources.

For those unable to attend the session, a livestream option is available for individuals to participate remotely at www.blm.gov/live.