State of Nevada, Ex Rel. Nevada State Board of Agriculture v. United States of America

The federal government owns approximately 88 percent of the land within the borders of the State of Nevada, according to the uncontroverted allegations of the State in this case. Prior to 1964, private settlement of federally owned lands in Nevada was permitted under various federal statutes including the Homestead Act, 43 U.S.C. §§ 161-302 (1976), repealed by Pub.L. No. 94-579, Title VII, §§ 702, 703(a), 90 Stat. 2743 , 2787-91 (1976), the Desert Land Act, 43 U.S.C. §§ 321-339 (1976), and the Pittman Underground Water Act, 43 U.S.C.A.§§ 351-360 (West 1964), repealed by Pub.L. No. 88-417, § 1 , 78 Stat. 389 (1964). In 1964 then Secretary of the Interior Udall, with state consultation and approval, imposed a moratorium on such settlement pending completion of a study of water availability. Revision of Application Procedures for Public Lands, 29 Fed.Reg. 7294 (1964).

In 1978, the State of Nevada filed this action seeking to enjoin the moratorium and to have it declared unconstitutional. The suit can be characterized as one aspect of the movement which has come to be known as the “Sagebrush Rebellion,” protesting federal ownership of land in western states. See Leshy, Unraveling the…