The Civilian Marksmanship Program is a federally created nonprofit organization with an emphasis on training youth gun safety. Under the Recreation and Public Purpose Act, CMP submitted an application to the BLM in February 2024 for a land conveyance to construct and manage a public shooting range facility and ancillary infrastructure at West Mountain in Utah County. If approved, the site would be leased or patented to CMP and would include an outdoor range for shotgun, rifle, and pistol as well as an indoor range for archery and air rifles, according to their project description.
The BLM held a public open house for West Mountain residents on July 11 in Payson. Dozens of residents showed up, many with concerns about the sounds of a gun range essentially in their backyards. Ashley Snipes, Public Information Officer for the BLM’s Utah West Desert District said the BLM has so far received more than 600 public comments on the proposal and due to the 'passionate' interest, they are extending the public comment period to Friday, July 19, and will hold another public meeting in the coming months.
“We want to be sure the public knows we want these comments, we are listening to them, we are hearing them. This is specifically what the scoping period is for, is for them to submit these comments for us to consider,” Snipes said.
