News & Updates

StateTrustLands.org

Sonoran Institute's Western Lands and Communities program launched statetrustlands.org in 2012 as the “go to” information source for state trust lands with resources and tools to assist state trust land managers and engaged stakeholders – maps, information about the history and legal theories of state trust lands, individual state trust land summaries, research and policy analyses, tools and publications.  Visit the statetrustlands.org web site.

Trust Lands and Education Funding Reports

The Children’s Land Alliance Supporting Schools (CLASS) and the Lincoln Institute of Land Policy - Sonoran Institute Joint Venture investigated the mechanisms by which revenues derived from state trust lands are distributed to educational institutions in the western United States. Published in late 2008, this series of reports, organized into state-specific information, seeks to clarify the role of state trust land revenues in meeting educational needs in various states. Read the reports.

Arizona State Trust Land Reform

A coalition of conservation-minded organizations and individuals joined together to put state trust land reform on the 2008 ballot in Arizona.  Secretary of State Jan Brewer, however, declared 158,883 of the gathered signatures invalid, leaving the initiative nearly 20,000 short of qualifying for the ballot. Supporters of the measure “Our Land, Our Schools” challenged the secretary’s petition check, but a trial judge and the Arizona Supreme Court both ruled that supporters missed the deadline to challenge. A similar effort in 2006 failed due to a competing ballot measure that left many voters confused. Coalition leaders maintain that efforts at state trust land reform will continue.

Superstition Vistas

The Superstition Vistas project represents an unprecedented opportunity to create a model for sustainable smart growth in an arid environment.  Superstition Vistas comprises 275 square miles of mostly vacant state trust land in Pinal County, Arizona, in the path of metro Phoenix growth. The parcel also borders thousands of acres of public lands, including the Superstition Mountains Wilderness Area. Read more about Superstition Vistas.