DOI clears Utah GOP lawmaker accused of trying to cut Grand Staircase–Escalante NMon for own benefit
SALT LAKE CITY (AP) — There is no evidence that a former Utah lawmaker sought to reduce the size of the Grand Staircase-Escalante National Monument for personal gain, an investigation revealed.
Mike Noel, the recently retired legislator from Kanab, owns a ranch in Johnson Canyon, where 0.06 square miles (0.16 square kilometers) had been inside the original monument boundaries, the Salt Lake Tribune reported .