Estimated read time: 3-4 minutes
- Kathleen Sgamma, an oil and gas advocate, was nominated to lead the Bureau of Land Management.
- Her nomination drew criticism from environmental groups, citing concerns over her industry ties.
- Supporters argue Sgamma will balance energy development with environmental protection on public lands.
WASHINGTON — A longtime industry representative and advocate for independent oil and gas producers in the West, Kathleen Sgamma, was tapped to head the national Bureau of Land Management.
Sgamma has long chafed at federal policies that delay or even deter producers who try to navigate what she has frequently characterized as hostile policies that send companies to private lands for their product — coming at the expense of states dominated by federal land management.
Sgamma said on social media she was honored to be nominated.
She said she greatly respects the agency's work to balance multiple uses for public lands — including energy, recreation, grazing and mining — with stewardship of the land. "I look forward to leading an agency that is key to the agenda of unleashing American energy while protecting the environment," she wrote on LinkedIn.
In particular, Utah operates on a roughly 70%-30% margin, with the majority of its lands under federal land management control.
Sgamma has testified multiple times at congressional hearings explaining the untenable burden of bureaucratic decisions, and shelved quarterly lease-sales put Utah at a disadvantage.
She is often forceful and blunt but is known for attacking agency policies and not retaliating at congressional members who take offense at her assertions.
Sgamma joined Western Energy Alliance in March 2006. Previously, she spent 11 years in the information technology sector, including establishing the European consulting practice and a German subsidiary for a software vendor, and three years as a military intelligence officer in the U.S. Army.
She holds a bachelor's in political science/defense and arms control studies from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology and a master's in information technology from Virginia Tech.
Her nomination brought some harsh criticism from environmental groups.
Southern Utah Wilderness Alliance's D.C. director, Travis Hammill, had this to say:
"Anyone who loves Utah's redrock wilderness and our nation's wildest public lands should be appalled by fossil fuel enthusiast Kathleen Sgamma's nomination for BLM director. The agency is mandated by Congress to bring a balanced and holistic approach to its management of federal public lands — not the extractive, destructive, and short-sighted approach that Sgamma has so enthusiastically advocated time and time again."
The Center for Western Priorities was equally outraged.
"Kathleen Sgamma is an inappropriate choice to run the Bureau of Land Management. She has consistently misrepresented the industry's impact on public lands, always putting oil and gas companies' interests above those of all Americans. "This appointment will hand the keys to our public lands over to oil and gas companies," said policy director Rachael Hamby.
But Sgamma did find support.
"President Trump has made a fantastic selection of Kathleen Sgamma as the director of the Bureau of Land Management, as she knows our public lands and their untapped resources as well as anyone," said Rep. Lauren Boebert, R-Colo.
"I've had the opportunity to work closely with her on several efforts to responsibly manage our lands while also allowing our oil and gas industry to thrive and bring back American energy dominance. This is a major win for Coloradans and I look forward to supporting her and her team in any way possible," Boebert said.
