Branson School District RE-82 v. Romer
United States Court of Appeals for the Tenth Circuit
161 F.3d 619 (1998)
When Colorado joined the Union, Congress granted it public lands to be managed for the benefit of its public schools, historically requiring the state's land board to seek the highest possible returns. Concerned about potential sales of environmentally sensitive land, Colorado voters passed Amendment 16, redirecting the land board toward achieving reasonable, sustainable income over time rather than maximizing short-term returns. Rural school districts and students (plaintiffs) sued to overturn the amendment as violating the federal trust terms set when Colorado entered the Union; the district court dismissed the suit, and the plaintiffs appealed.
Whether the voters of a state may alter the management principles governing the state's trusteeship of federally granted public lands without violating the terms of the trust Congress established when the state entered the Union.