State Officials Urge SEC to Reject Plan to Privatize Public Lands
• Thirty state officials signed a letter urging the SEC to reject a proposal allowing "Natural Asset Companies" (NACs) to privatize public lands and trade them on the stock market • They argue NACs would reduce economic activity, rely on unsuitable accounting methods, and present national security risks by allowing foreign interests to hamper US economy • NACs could be "catastrophic" for rural areas by restricting mining, ranching, drilling on large swaths of land, per an Alaskan official • The proposal lacks controls on foreign investment in NACs that could let adversaries effectively take productive public lands out of use • Republican lawmakers are already probing the SEC policy over concerns about impacts on access to critical resources and private interests controlling public lands