Utah is at a crossroads. The places that define us, the Wasatch peaks above our homes, the red rock canyons of the south, the plateaus and open spaces that shaped generations, face growing pressure. What we choose in the next few years will determine whether these lands are protected for our children and grandchildren or carved up, sold off, and lost.
My vision is clear: permanent protection for the Central Wasatch by passing the Central Wasatch National Conservation and Recreation Area Act and wilderness safeguards for Southern Utah’s Red Rock country by passing the America’s Red Rock Wilderness Act. As a Member of Congress, I will proudly sponsor these bills and work to pass them into law. But my focus won’t stop there. I will defend the Bears Ears and Grand Staircase–Escalante designations; ensure we have a real partnership with Tribes; and support a stronger outdoor recreation economy built on access, stewardship, and respect for the landscapes that make Utah extraordinary.
This vision stands in stark contrast to Senator Mike Lee’s long-running push to sell or transfer millions of acres of public land to private developers or state control. His proposals would open the door to large-scale privatization, harm Utah’s outdoor economy, shut Utahns out of places they’ve hunted, hiked, and explored for generations, and undermine the very idea of public lands as a shared inheritance. Utahns from every political background rejected those plans. And they were right to. Everyone of us is a public land owner.
Protecting Utah’s future requires more than symbolic gestures. It requires the ability to bring people together, negotiate hard problems, and deliver results that last. I’ve done that work.
As Salt Lake County Mayor, I convened 35 partners, cities and counties on both sides of the Wasatch, federal agencies, ski resorts, transportation planners, recreation groups, and conservation organizations, to negotiate the Mountain Accord. For decades, the Wasatch was a flashpoint of conflict. The Accord transformed it into a national model for collaboration, establishing a science-based plan to protect watersheds, preserve open space, restore habitat, and improve trail access. To ensure that work endured beyond any single administration, I helped create the Central Wasatch Commission—a permanent, transparent body responsible for advancing the Accord’s long-term vision.
In Congress, I continued to deliver where it mattered. I was the only member of Utah’s congressional delegation to vote for the Great American Outdoors Act, securing permanent funding for the Land and Water Conservation Fund and billions to repair national parks. Utahns are now benefiting from improved trails, better campgrounds, restored infrastructure, and expanded access across our public lands.
I also authored legislation to modernize century-old oil and gas leasing rates that allowed private companies to develop public land at deeply discounted prices. Those reforms, now federal law, ensure Utah taxpayers receive a fair return and that more revenue flows to our schools, infrastructure, conservation projects, and outdoor recreation.
These accomplishments didn’t come from social media posts or slogans. They came from doing the unglamorous work: negotiating, building trust, and staying at the table until solutions emerged. Many candidates talk about protecting public lands. I welcome their passion. But passion alone doesn’t pass legislation, forge agreements, or protect a single acre of wilderness. Experience and results do.
There is still work ahead. The Central Wasatch is threatened by enormous pressure from development interests and needs permanent protection and a unified management plan with a vision that balances shared uses. Southern Utah’s Red Rock country deserves permanent wilderness protection. Bears Ears and Grand Staircase–Escalante must be defended. Wildlife corridors and watersheds, from our high alpine basins to the Great Salt Lake, need stronger safeguards. These challenges are urgent, but they are solvable with the right leadership.
I’m running for Congress to finish this work. To protect the landscapes that shaped my childhood adventures and now anchor the memories I make with my own kids. To ensure Utah’s wild places remain open, healthy, and accessible for every generation to come.
These lands deserve real leadership, not theatrics, not privatization schemes, and not empty promises. They deserve the strength, seriousness, and results this moment demands. And that’s exactly what I intend to deliver.