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Mesa, Arizona, May 14 - Republican Congressman Jeff Flake, who represents Arizona’s Sixth District, today applauded the decision to uphold recreational shooting practices on the public lands included in the Sonoran Desert National Monument in Arizona.

         The Bureau of Land Management (BLM) announced that the final environmental impact statement for the monument will retain hunters’ rights to engage in recreational shooting across the nearly half-million-acre monument. The decision came after Congressman Flake’s Recreational Shooting Protection Act, H.R. 3440, passed the House as part of the Sportsmen’s Heritage Act, H.R. 4089.

“I’m pleased that the BLM will allow recreational shooters to continue to engage in their sport on these public lands,” said Flake. “This is the right thing to do and the Administration should do the same in the Ironwood Forest National Monument.”

          The Recreational Shooting Protection Act requires congressional approval for any recreational shooting restrictions proposed by the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) on BLM-managed national monument lands, like the 129,000 acres of the Ironwood Forest National Monument the BLM is currently proposing to close to recreational shooting.  In 2010, the BLM closed 400,000 acres of publicly-owned, national monument lands across three states to recreational shooting activities.  The Recreational Shooting Protection Act also directs the BLM to manage national monument land in a manner that supports, promotes, and enhances recreational shooting opportunities. The Recreational Shooting Protection Act is endorsed by the National Rifle Association (NRA), the National Shooting Sports Foundation, and the Arizona Sportsmen for Wildlife.