Release Date: February 24, 2026
Media Contact: Emily Thompson
Former National Park Leaders Sound the Alarm on Steve Pearce’s Nomination to Lead Bureau of Land Management
Washington, DC — Ahead of tomorrow’s hearing on the nomination of Steve Pearce to lead the Bureau of Land Management, former National Park Service leaders are urging the United States Senate to vote no. Pearce, a former member of Congress representing New Mexico, spent his career pushing to roll back protections for national monuments and parks.
Emily Thompson, Executive Director of the Coalition to Protect America’s National Parks, issued the following statement:
“Confirming Mr. Pearce to oversee 245 million acres of America’s public lands would be a disaster for our public lands and national parks across the United States. Mr. Pearce has long opposed the designation of national parks and monuments and championed rollbacks for existing protections. As a New Mexico representative, he sponsored legislation to allow federal public lands to be sold off to private interests and opposed the designation of the Organ Mountains-Desert Peaks National Monument — betraying the wishes and needs of his own constituents back home. Mr. Pearce has not been a supporter of national parks or public lands and has vowed to ‘reverse this trend of public ownership of lands.’
“Tomorrow’s hearing marks a critical turning point for our national parks and public lands. Senators must use this opportunity to speak up for their constituents by emphasizing the importance of national parks and the surrounding public lands to their communities’ health and livelihoods. Mr. Pearce should not be allowed to lead our nation’s largest land management agency. Senators must make this clear tomorrow and vote no on Pearce.”
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