FILE - In this June 22, 2016, file photo, the "House on Fire" ruins are shown in Mule Canyon, near Blanding, Utah. President Joe Biden will expand two sprawling national monuments in Utah, the governor said Thursday, Oct. 7, 2021. President Donald Trump's administration in 2017 significantly downsized Bears Ears National Monuments and Grand Staircase-Escalante in southern Utah. (AP Photo/Rick Bowmer, File)

Poll Shows Desire To Protect National Monuments

(St. George, UT) — A majority of Utahns hope the new presidential administration will honor current protections for the state’s national monuments. That’s according to a recent poll by New Bridge Strategy, which asked voters about the importance of public lands. Three-quarters are in favor of the president’s ability to protect those lands, including designating national monuments. This includes Bears Ears and Grand Staircase-Escalante, which were downsized during President Trump’s first term in office. The original monuments were restored thanks to President Biden in 2021.