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Show ANDRUS INVITES NEVADA TO 60 TO COURT Secretary of the Interior Cecil Andrus has announced that he has the Justice Department De-partment to invite Nevada to litigate its claim of public lands ownership in a lawsuit law-suit the state brought against the Department of Interior regarding the management of wild horses on public lands. Nevada's ownership was alleged in a 1979 Nevada Ne-vada statute which claimed title to all UJS. BLM lands in the state. Andrus said,"Ever since the Nevada Legislature passed this so called Sagebrush Sage-brush Rebellion law, the state has made up' all sorts excuses why it hasn't brouht a court challenge to BLM's continued management man-agement of federal public lands." "This issue belongs in the courts. We're confident confi-dent the courts will find that Nevada cannot now, 116 years after statehood, go back on the promise it made then not ever to claim ownership own-ership of the federal lands in the state." The lawsuit, which was filed in Reno UJS. District Court in August, 1979, asks that Nevada be allowed to manage the wild horses on BLM lands In the state. Nevada's Ne-vada's complaint doesn't rely specifically on the 1979 law's claim. At Interior's request, the Justice Department Depart-ment is formally asking Nevada Ne-vada to specify whether it claims ownership of the public pub-lic lands. Nevada will have 30 days to respond. Andrus' move Is an attempt at-tempt to bring legal resolution resolu-tion to what is commonly known as the "Sagebrush Rebellion." At issue Is who owns the public lands in the Western States. |
