Iron Range lawmakers demand DNR swap — not sell — 80,000 acres in BWCA to feds

The proposed sale of 80,000 acres of state-owned school trust land in the BWCA for an as of yet still undisclosed sum to the federal government has largely proceeded below the radar of the media and public. But the arrangement has come under fire from Iron Range lawmakers who claim the proposed sale may be illegal and shortchanges the school trust fund that public schools benefit from statewide.

“While the price of the proposed sale is still not known, any one-time payment pales in comparison to ongoing revenues that would be generated for the Permanent School Fund if these lands are exchanged for federally owned lands where economic activity may occur,” Rep. Roger Scraba, Rep. Ben Davis, Rep. Spencer Igo, Sen. Justin Eichorn, and Sen. Robert Farnsworth–all Republicans–said in an August letter to DNR Commissioner Sarah Strommen.

The original plan to swap state parcels for federal property to be be designated school trust land outside the wilderness area was scrapped by the US Forest Service and DNR. State officials claim a land exchange couldn’t be worked out, announcing the sale would move forward toward completion in 2026.

“The state’s school trust lands are designated to maximize long-term economic return for the Permanent School Fund and provide a continual source of funding for every K-12 public school district in the state,” said Sarah Strommen, Commissioner of the Minnesota DNR. “This important land transaction ensures that the DNR can fulfill its fiduciary responsibility to the school trust.”

In their letter, however, the Iron Range delegation insists that a straight-up sale between the state and federal governments would violate federal statute over such land transactions. They also maintain the DNR has no authority to complete the deal without authorization by the state legislature.

“This section of law reads as follows:

…State-owned land or privately owned land shall be exchanged for federally owned land in the same state of approximately equal value under authorities available to the Secretary of Agriculture.”

Therefore, the proposed purchase is in violation of federal law and a land exchange should be pursued instead.”

The Duluth News Tribune noted that environmental groups couldn’t be more pleased with the change of plans that leaves 80,000 more acres of land under federal government control.

The proposal to sell the state land replaced a plan introduced in 2012 that would have seen the state give the land to the federal government in exchange for federal land outside the BWCAW that the state would then use as school trust land.

While environmental groups hailed the decision to sell, some mining and logging interests wanted a total land exchange to transfer more federal land into state control, potentially easing access for mining and logging companies.

The important thing, according to the supervisor of the Superior National Forest, is that the sale will eliminate the administrative issues the county, state and feds have faced for years.