Federal grazing programs managed by the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) and U.S. Forest Service (USFS) cost taxpayers more than $100 million annually in direct costs. Studies estimate that indirect costs related to rangeland improvements and restoration of livestock-affected land and water resources could add between $100 to $800 in million to this cost annually.

U.S. livestock producers operating on federal lands make up only three-percent of our nation’s beef supply — a small proportion for the massive cost this program places on taxpayers. Federal grazing programs need to be significantly reformed in order to stem this waste of taxpayer funds.

Read the Latest:

    * GAO Concludes that Grazing Program Cost Taxpayers $123 million in FY2004 (LIVESTOCK GRAZING: Federal Expenditures and Receipts Vary, Depending on the Agency and the Purpose of the Fee Charged)

    * BLM Announces Availability of Draft Environmental Impact Statement On Proposed Grazing Rule; Sets Public Meetings 

    * Interior Secretary Announces Proposed Grazing Rule 

    * Congressmen Shays and Grijalva request GAO study into cost of Federal Grazing Program (Congressmen Shays and Raul Grijalva request GAO study into cost of Federal Grazing Program)

    * Announcement of Advanced Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (ANPR) on Proposed Amendments to the BLM’s Grazing Administration Regulations 

In fiscal year 2002, the BLM spent $80.6 million on rangeland management and range improvements. However, the agency only generated $12.8 million in revenue from grazing fee receipts in the same year. Of this, only 9.6 million was retained by the federal government. See a chart detailing these costs. (Direct Costs of the Federal Grazing Program for FY 2003)

The current federal grazing fee of $1.35 per animal unit month (AUM) does not cover taxpayers costs to administer the federal range management program. The National Agricultural Statistics Service notes that in 2001, market rates for private, non-irrigated grazing lands ranged from $7.00 per AUM to $20.60 AUM.

Given that the federal grazing program contributes such a minute percentage to the domestic livestock industry nationally, there is virtually no justification for taxpayer dollars to be spent on the management of federal grazing programs.

Resources:

    * TCS Grazing Fact Sheet: The Federal Grazing Program: A Stampede of Taxpayer Handouts (The Federal Grazing Program: A Stampede of Taxpayer Handouts)

    * Taxpayers for Common Sense: Public Statement on Proposed Amendments to the BLM’s Grazing Administration Regulations (TCS Comments on Proposed Amendments to the Bureau of Land Management’s (BLM) Grazing Administration Regulations Anticipated Notice of Public Rulemaking)

    * Congressional Research Service: Grazing Fees and Rangeland Management