Cornyn, Thornberry introduce bills to resolve Red River land dispute

Press Release

U.S. Sen. John Cornyn (R-TX) and U.S. Congressman Mac Thornberry (R-Clarendon) introduced legislation today in the U.S. Senate and House, S. 1153 and H.R. 2130 respectively, to protect private property rights along the Red River from federal ownership claims. By providing legal certainty to landowners, the Red River Private Property Protection Act seeks to end questions about the federal government's ownership of disputed land along the Red River.

"Many of these affected Texans have owned land along the Red River for generations, but are now caught up in the confusion and clouded titles due to the BLM's claims. This commonsense legislation establishes a process to resolve the uncertainty, and protects these taxpayers' property rights from improper federal claims," Cornyn said.

Many landowners and other public officials are alarmed that BLM actions might result in disputed claims of ownership. Since concern first arose in December 2013, Cornyn's and Thornberry's offices have held multiple meetings, phone calls, and other correspondence with landowners, as well as local and state officials, to coordinate action. The legislation they introduced this week has been adjusted from the bill they introduced in the last session of Congress. The new legislation reflects the input they received by listening to landowners, the Texas General Land Office, and many others.

"Private landowners deserve absolute clarity from the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) and a fair resolution to this issue. Until that happens, we will not let up in our efforts to assure landowners that their private property rights along the Red River will be protected," Thornberry said. "Our bills should be a signal that Republicans in the House and Senate will continue to fight the federal government's intrusion into people's private property. This type of overreach seems to be happening more often, but we will fight it every step of the way."

Cornyn and Thornberry have been pressing the case with BLM locally and with the agency's leadership in Washington. In 2013, the agency said there are thousands of acres along the Red River on the border between Texas and Oklahoma that may be considered public domain. The stretch of land is located in Wilbarger, Wichita, and Clay counties.

"Strong property rights are a cornerstone of our most basic freedoms. Unfortunately, BLM continues to seek control of privately-owned lands along the Red River. We must protect landowners from federal overreach, and I am proud to once again join Sen. Cornyn and Congressman Thornberry in introducing legislation that will prevent the federal government from unlawfully encroaching upon private property rights," Sen. Cruz said.

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