FAQs

When Wyoming became a state in 1890, the federal government granted approximately 4.2 million acres of land to the State of Wyoming. School trust lands are held in a trust to produce revenue for Wyoming’s public schools and other state institutions named in the original grant. The State Board of Land Commissioners is the trustee.

The Office of State Lands and Investments (OSLI) manages state trust lands to produce income to support public schools and other public institutions. The OSLI is the administrative arm of and reports to the State Loan Investment Board (SLIB) which oversees the permanent land funds. The SLIB approves all uses, acquisitions, de-acquisitions, and exchanges of state lands. The SLIB is composed of the Governor, Secretary of State, State Auditor, State Treasurer, and Superintendent of Public Instruction.

Temporary Use Permits are issued to organizations or businesses who request use of State-owned land for a temporary duration. The Teton County Commissioners, CRUSL, and other local non-profits believe that the permittees should have been considered under long-term special use permits that require more oversight and that OSLI misused (willfully or not) the mechanism of the temporary permits to sanction high-income, high-impact lease applications not appropriate for temporary uses and not allowed under the Wyoming Statutes.  

Basecamp’s TUP clearly states that the “permittee shall observe all state, federal, and local laws and regulations.” Basecamp has failed to obtain any building, electrical, and fire code permits from Teton County. There has been no County oversight or inspection of construction, or of the septic system that Protect Our Water Jackson Hole believes is inadequately sized and in danger of impacting the headwaters of Fish Creek, an already threatened watershed. Unsuspecting guests in these plastic, uninspected domes are being put at risk. The facility is using gas-fired heaters and structures that have not been approved for occupancy by Teton County. Additionally, 11 open gas fire pits and one wood-burning fire pit create a wildfire risk for all residents adjacent to this very windy section of the Valley.

See the Advocacy page.

CRUSL’s long-term goal is to conserve the open space and the historic agricultural use on the 640-acre “Teton Village State Land Parcel” while preserving the value of these lands for the benefit of current and future generations of Wyoming school children, Wyoming residents, and visitors. This parcel is surrounded by conserved open space and is a much-loved scenic gateway to the Grand Teton National Park.  The area is a habitat for wolves, coyotes, bears, moose, and elk - all of which have been actively using this parcel for generations. 

CRUSL understands the need to generate funding for Wyoming’s school-age children from this parcel of State land and seeks to pursue a conservation solution that will generate significant revenue while preserving open space, wildlife habitat, and agricultural uses. We are working with local and national partners to achieve this goal.

In the short term, CRUSL is taking legal action to protect local control over the unregulated and unlawful development by the State of Wyoming on State Lands. This action will ultimately benefit all Wyoming Counties.  

CRUSL will file an amicus brief with the Wyoming Supreme Court in the case brought by the State Board of Land Commissioners against Teton County to make sure our concerns are in the record when a decision is made on this landmark case, perhaps as soon as this fall.

Separately, CRUSL filed a complaint on December 27, 2023, in Teton County District Court against Basecamp LLC for failure to comply with local land use regulations and zoning as required by their permit. We believe that without County oversight, the operation is a threat to public safety, health, and welfare of all residents and visitors to Teton County.  Basecamp’s Motion to Dismiss was granted by the district court on July 9, which CRUSL is appealing to the Wyoming Supreme Court.