SALT LAKE CITY — On Wednesday, Southern Utah Wilderness Alliance filed a lawsuit challenging the State of Utah’s public lands lawsuit.
In a post on Facebook, SUWA said that the Utah public lands lawsuit violates Utah’s constitution. Article Three of the state constitution says that Utah does not have a claim over lands owned by native tribes or the federal government.
The U.S. gained ownership of the land comprising Utah at the end of the Mexican-American War in 1848. In the initial filing, Utah acknowledged that it has never owned the lands at the center of the lawsuit. It asks the Supreme Court of the United States if the federal government can hold unappropriated lands indefinitely.
Alongside the filing, the state began an ad campaign known as Stand for Our Land.
In a media advisory, SUWA called the ad campaign propaganda.
During Wednesday morning’s press conference, SUWA Legal Director Steve Bloch said …