Washington, D.C. – Senator Cynthia Lummis (R-WY), Chair of the Senate Western Caucus, today celebrated the passage of the One Big Beautiful Bill, highlighting numerous provisions that she and other Senate Western Caucus members championed that will benefit Wyoming and western states.
“The Senate passage of the One Big Beautiful Bill represents a tremendous victory for the west,” said Lummis. “As Chair of the Senate Western Caucus, I’m proud that our members’ relentless efforts secured critical wins that will further unleash American energy, strengthen rural economies, simplify coal leases, foster healthy forests, enhance wildfire prevention, increase on and offshore oil and gas production, and bring practical approaches back to federal land oversight. President Trump understands that a strong America starts with a strong American West – I’m looking forward to seeing him sign this bill into law.”
Background:
- In January, Senate Western Caucus Chair Cynthia Lummis sent a letter to Senate Majority Leader John Thune (R-SD) about the critical importance of addressing western priorities in any potential upcoming budget reconciliation legislation, along with a list of member priorities to include in the bill.
- The Senate Western Caucus is composed of 29 Senators west of the Mississippi committed to upholding the fundamental western principles of self-reliance, local decision-making, love of the land and the pioneer spirit.
Senate Western Caucus Wins:
Energy and Natural Resources
- Expands onshore and offshore oil and gas leasing with mandatory minimum lease sales and extends drilling permit validity from 3 to 4 years.
- Mandates six lease sales over ten years in the National Petroleum Reserve in Alaska.
- Increases revenue sharing from offshore drilling for Gulf of America states.
- Enhances revenue sharing from Cook Inlet oil and gas leases for Alaska.
Land Management and Conservation
- Strengthens wildfire management and prevention capabilities through expanded timber sales on public lands.
- Introduces optional expedited environmental review process under NEPA, allowing project sponsors to pay fees for faster timelines (one year for Environmental Impact Statements, six months for Environmental Assessments).
Agricultural Support
- Provides reimbursement programs for livestock losses due to predator attacks.
- Expands producer access to the livestock forage disaster assistance program.
- Establishes supplemental agricultural trade promotion initiatives.
Tax Relief for Family Operations
- Extends and enhances estate tax exemptions with higher thresholds and permanent provisions to facilitate intergenerational transfer of family ranches.
- Allows full expensing of certain business property, enabling ranchers to immediately deduct equipment and infrastructure investments.
- Provides special depreciation allowances for qualified production property, offering larger and accelerated deductions for ranch growth and resilience investments.
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