Senate Confirms Trump's Bureau of Land Management Director as Drilling Expands

The Senate confirmed Steve Pearce, a former Republican Representative from New Mexico, as Bureau of Land Management director on May 19, 2026, by a vote of 46-43. The Bureau of Land Management oversees 250 million acres of public lands and 700 million acres of underground minerals. The Trump administration has opened millions of acres of public lands for mining and drilling and canceled conservation strategies from the Biden administration.

Pearce Senate confirmation

• ▪The Senate confirmed Steve Pearce as Bureau of Land Management director on May 19, 2026, by a vote of 46-43.
• ▪Steve Pearce is a former Republican Representative from New Mexico.
• ▪Steve Pearce is a former fighter pilot and Vietnam War veteran.
• ▪Steve Pearce testified during his February 2026 confirmation hearing that he grew up on a family farm where conserving land and water was a necessity.

BLM leadership responsibilities

• ▪The Bureau of Land Management has about 10,000 employees who manage roughly 10% of land in the United States.
• ▪The Bureau of Land Management oversees the management of a quarter-billion acres of public lands.
• ▪The Bureau of Land Management is responsible for 700 million acres of underground minerals, including major reserves of oil, natural gas and coal.

Trump administration drilling expansion

• ▪Trump and Republicans in Congress have been unraveling regulations from former President Biden's administration that are viewed as burdensome to industry.
• ▪The Trump administration has opened millions of acres of public lands for mining and drilling.
• ▪The Trump administration canceled land plans and conservation strategies formulated under President Biden.

Pearce congressional voting record

• ▪Steve Pearce advocated for ranchers when parts of Lincoln National Forest were closed to protect the endangered New Mexico meadow jumping mouse.
• ▪Steve Pearce served seven terms in the U.S. House representing a district that spans oil fields, including portions of the Permian Basin and vast tracts of other public land.
• ▪Steve Pearce had a conservative voting record in Congress.
• ▪Steve Pearce urged the Interior Department to reduce the size of the Organ Mountains-Desert Peaks National Monument outside Las Cruces, New Mexico, as part of a nationwide review of monument designations during Trump's first term.

Environmental opposition

• ▪Democrats and environmental groups were strongly opposed to Steve Pearce's nomination as Bureau of Land Management director.
• ▪The Center for Western Priorities said Steve Pearce's confirmation was part of a broad assault by Trump and Republicans on public lands.
• ▪The Democratic Party of New Mexico has called Steve Pearce an outright enemy of public lands, suggesting Steve Pearce is beholden to the oil and gas industry.

Local control philosophy

• ▪Steve Pearce testified that the security and economic health of the country, especially the Western states, rests squarely with the Bureau of Land Management.
• ▪Steve Pearce vowed as Bureau of Land Management director that he would ensure local input would be part of his decision-making process.
• ▪Steve Pearce said his time in Congress and visits to constituents showed him that the federal government had become an absentee landlord.

Perspective of Democrats and environmental groups

• ▪The Center for Western Priorities said Steve Pearce's confirmation was part of a broad assault by Trump and Republicans on public lands.

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