Believing that efforts to sell off public lands, and what they see as the privatization of wildlife and abandonment of scientific management threaten residents’ livelihoods, two Cowboy State outdoors enthusiasts have come together to create a Political Action Committee (PAC) with the primary goal of taking the sale of public lands off the table.

“Protect Wyoming is by Wyoming people, for Wyoming people. We are not being organized by out-of-state money or by political money seeking to use these issues and sportsmen for their own purposes,” the two-man team of Zach Lentsch of Cody and Chris Allen of Clearmont said in their initial press release. “Protecting public land and public wildlife is foundational to our state, and we believe it is the responsibility of the people to hold these resources in trust and to protect them.”

Lentsch, a mountain guide, said the PAC is “led by Wyoming hunters on behalf of all Wyoming residents.”

“Chris and I have been paying attention to anti public lands legislation in the state of Wyoming for a while now and then, really honed in on some problematic legislation that we saw in the last session, a lot of which didn’t pass,” Lentsch said Tuesday morning in a phone interview. “But we still have deep concerns that Wyoming’s interests aren’t being represented well in the Legislature with regards to public lands and public wildlife.”

The PAC supports appropriate land transfers that increase access and make management of public lands easier, but it does not support wholesale transfers of public land to the state or private entities. Lentsch and Allen also refuse to support the privatization of wildlife through “transferrable landowner tags,” or the monetization of wildlife for private profit. They support the North American Model of Wildlife Management, and believe “biologists, through the Game & Fish Department and Commission, should make wildlife management decisions, not politicians.”

“Our goal is to educate and mobilize voters to ensure those who represent us in Cheyenne represent our values: public lands, public wildlife and science-based management,” Lentsch said. “We intend to help every eligible Wyoming voter understand which elected leaders, and which candidates, will stand up for those values, and to vote appropriately in the 2026 election cycle.”

The organizers

As the son of Worland Game Warden Matt Lentsch, one of Zach’s first memories as a child was getting stuck in a blizzard while elk hunting near Lost Lake in the Bighorns. 

“I’ve been an avid outdoorsman ever since and I’ve had the privilege of hunting, fishing, and exploring the great state of Wyoming my entire life. I am also the owner of Wyoming Mountain Guides, a climbing guiding company based in Cody,” Lentsch said. “Both as a Wyomingite who is deeply in love with the wild parts of this state, and as a business owner whose livelihood depends on good stewardship of the places we guide, I abhor politicians’ attempts to privatize our public lands and wildlife. Our leaders need to be held to a higher standard of protecting these invaluable resources so my kid can grow up in a wild Wyoming like I did.”

Lentsch has been part of conversations about wildlife even since he was a “kiddo.” Now he and Chris are ready to stick their necks out to help save the landscapes they love.

“We just started asking questions about what can we actually do about these issues that we care about? We started by asking amongst our networks who would actually be willing to stick their neck out and stand on business, so to speak, on these issues, and Chris and I were ones that that were willing to step up,” Lentsch said.

Allen’s family owns and operates a horse breeding operation on their ranch near Clearmont.

“When I am not working and managing our place, I’m scouting and hunting for elk and deer, fishing high mountain lakes, and packing with the horses. I am a lifelong hunter, fisherman and horseman, and public lands have shaped my way of life,” Allen said.

His passion is defending public lands for the resources they provide, the landscapes they preserve, and the generations who deserve access to them.

“I strive to be a voice for everyday people whose concerns are too often dismissed, and who want these wild places protected and enjoyed now and into the future,” he said.

Not an advocacy group

Lentsch made sure to assure that their intent is “not to create another advocacy group.”

“We are lucky to have so many sporting advocacy organizations that do incredible and vital work protecting public lands, wildlife and promoting scientific management,” he said.

Instead, they hope to help shape the 2026 election cycle so that candidates who support public lands, public wildlife and science-based management “have the strongest opportunity to succeed,” he said.

The PAC will not be coordinating with candidates or their campaigns, political parties or elected officials. “Our plan is to talk to other sportsmen and women and fellow Wyoming residents who share our values,” Lentsch said.

The effort is statewide, but doesn’t include the state’s national representatives. They will focus on the statewide elections, particularly the primary in August, and competitive races in the general.

“We’re not focused on any of the federal races, the House or Senate races in Wyoming, it’s strictly state races we’re getting involved in,” he said.

Funding

The PAC hopes to find others who share their concerns and to raise funding for educational and lobbying efforts. For more information or to donate: protectwyoming.org.