President Signs Resolution Reversing Mineral Leasing Ban in Minnesota Forests

Note: Single-source report; awaiting corroboration.

On April 27, 2026, the President signed H.J.Res. 140 into law. This resolution disapproves a 2023 Bureau of Land Management (BLM) Public Land Order that had withdrawn about 225,504 acres of National Forest System lands from mineral and geothermal leasing for 20 years. These lands are located in Cook, Lake, and Saint Louis Counties in Minnesota. The law reverses the BLM’s withdrawal, allowing mineral and geothermal leasing to proceed again on these lands.