Trump reduces size of 2 national monuments in Utah as Republicans reshape land management
https://apnews.com/article/trump-bears-ears-grand-staircase-escalante-69f14749f13a7ac6fb6ee07ce4cd84bfBy MATTHEW BROWN and SAVANNAH PETERS
Updated 7:49 PM EDT, July 13, 2026
President Donald Trump on Monday sharply reduced the size of two national monuments in Utah, undoing protections established by his Democratic predecessors on public lands that
are sacred among many Native Americans.
Bears Ears and Grand Staircase-Escalante national monuments in southern Utah have ancient cliff dwellings, petroglyphs and scenic canyons, as well as coal and uranium deposits that
state officials want made available for development.
Trump, a Republican, issued proclamations under the Antiquities Act to reduce their size by about 90% each. He took similar actions during his first term, but those were reversed by
President Joe Biden, a Democrat.
The latest move comes as Trump and other Republicans have drastically reshaped the management of vast taxpayer-owned lands concentrated in Western states. Trump administration officials and congressional Republicans have sought to
expand drilling,
mining and
logging on public lands, while
removing protections for imperiled species and rolling back
rules for conservation.