BLM says Alaska's last 3.8 million statehood acres are the hardest

Alaska's outstanding statehood land entitlement fell to about 3.8 million acres after Interior transferred about 1.4 million acres along the Dalton Utility Corridor to the state on May 6, the Bureau of Land Management said July 23.

The state still has roughly 12.6 million acres in active selections. That is far more than the 3.8 million acres it can ultimately receive, because the state is allowed to select more land than its entitlement covers.

BLM says many of those selected lands are "top-filed" on currently unavailable lands, an option provided to the state under ANILCA. Those lands may be unavailable because of a withdrawal, because they are selected but not yet conveyed under the Alaska Native Claims Settlement Act or the Native Allotment Act, or because of some other land status that could change.

"In short, the remaining entitlement is the hardest, most complex work left to do under this land transfer authority," BLM said.

The agency says it is working with the State of Alaska on prioritizing that work and unraveling the complex top-filed selections that remain.

Gov. Mike Dunleavy and the state argue federal land orders unlawfully block land Alaska is owed.