Taylor Grazing Act of 1934

History

During the administration of President Herbert Hoover, it became clear that federal regulation of public land use was needed to address the root causes of the Dust Bowl. Since vast portions were used for livestock grazing, the importance of range management loomed large.

The advocacy of John Francis Deeds, chief of the Agricultural Division of the Geological Survey and deputy director of the Department's Grazing Division, was influential in bringing about the benefits of the Taylor Grazing Act.

Congressman Don B. Colton of Utah introduced a bill to create grazing districts, but the bill failed to pass the US Senate. In 1933, Edward T. Taylor, a representative from Colorado, reintroduced the Colton bill as the Taylor bill. This bill set up the grazing bureau, or service in the Department of Interior, to administer the range lands. The Grazing Service was merged with the United States General Land Office in 1946 to form the Bureau of Land Management.

Case studies by Phillip O. Foss on the role of local grazing advisory committees established by the Taylor Grazing Act in regulating the grazing of livestock on federal public lands found that such committees were often dominated by the same ranchers and cattlemen whose activities were supposed to be regulated, indicating that grazing regulation had been "captured" by the regulated interests.

A 2022 study found the law, which demarcated property rights, led to greater land productivity in large grazing districts in the Western US.

Amendments to 1934 Act

U.S. Congressional amendments to the Grazing Act of 1934.

References

References

1. http://www.publiclandscouncil.org/CMDocs/PublicLandsCouncil/Taylor%20Grazing%20Act%20-%201934.pdf{{dead link. (January 2018). 43 ''U.S. Code'' §§ 315-316o
2. "The Dust Bowl" (2016, February 18) Retrieved from https://www.loc.gov/teachers/classroommaterials/presentationsandactivities/presentations/timeline/depwwii/dustbowl/
3. Peffer, E. Louise. ''The Closing of the Public Domain: Disposal and Reservation Policies, 1900-50'' Stanford University Press, 1951, pp. 203-15.
4. Steen, Harold K. ''The United States Forest Service A History'' University of Washington Press, 1976, p. 205 {{ISBN. 0-295-95523-6
5. Foss, Phillip O. ''The Grazing Fee Dilemma''. University, AL: University of Alabama Press, 1960.
6. Foss, Phillip O. ''Politics and Grass''. Seattle: University of Washington Press, 1960.
7. Foss, Phillip O. ''The Battle of Soldier Creek''. University, AL: University of Alabama Press, 1961.
8. Bühler, Mathias. (2022). "On the other side of the fence: Property rights and productivity in the United States". Journal of the European Economic Association.