Washington, D.C. – During yesterday’s Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee markup, U.S. Sen. Jeff Flake (R-AZ) spoke about the Department of the Interior’s failure to work proactively with the state of Arizona and non-federal entities to preserve access to public lands during the government shutdown.

“It seems – I don’t know what other conclusion you can come to – that they’re making it more difficult than it has to be, and not looking proactively at ways to keep the forests open, to keep public access there,” said Flake.

“We stand ready to work with [the Department of the Interior], recognizing they are in a difficult position. I’m sorry they’re in this position. I hope we can get the government opened up quickly, but as long as it remains closed, we need to make the best of a bad situation.”
 
In addition, last Friday, Flake and U.S. Sen. John McCain sent a letter to Interior Secretary Sally Jewell urging her to immediately review the Department of the Interior’s refusal to work with state and private entities to keep the Grand Canyon National Park open.

Flake and McCain wrote to Jewell: “We are certain that you share our hope that the current government shutdown is resolved as soon as possible. In the meantime, however, we fail to understand why the Department and the National Park Service would dismiss the efforts of Arizonans trying to proactively address this situation.”

The text of the Flake-McCain letter is below.

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