State Land Board previews five‑year strategic plan, seeks feedback on revenue diversification and land stewardship

The Colorado State Board of Land Commissioners on a virtual April workshop previewed a draft five‑year strategic plan intended to guide the agency through 2031 and asked staff to return to the board in May with a revised packet for formal action.

Director Nicole Rose Marino told commissioners the session was intended to “provide the board and the public with a preview of this important planning effort in advance of the May board workshop and meeting where the board will take formal action on the plan.” She asked stakeholders and members of the public to submit written comments by April 30 so staff could incorporate feedback ahead of the May 13 workshop and the May 14 business meeting.

Consultants from Government Performance Solutions summarized an engagement that included roughly 100 interviews, focus groups and staff workshops and presented a strategy map built around a concise tagline — “resilient lands, enduring revenue, better schools for Colorado.” The draft plan sets three primary goals: enduring revenue, resilient land and connected people (staff capacity and partnerships).

Under the enduring revenue goal, staff and consultants proposed five strategic objectives: optimize asset performance; diversify revenue streams across the trust; align asset‑management decisions using an asset allocation model; pursue strategies that increase the trust’s long‑term earning power (including consideration of the permanent fund); and expand partnerships and markets. That section prompted pointed questions from commissioners about the pace and feasibility of replacing mineral (petroleum) revenue with other sources.

“Crude oil is what, about $100 a barrel right now? If it gets down to 55–60 bucks a barrel, it’s no longer economical to drill,” Commissioner Harvey said, urging the board to run scenarios that show how quickly and under what assumptions renewable or other revenue streams could replace fossil‑fuel income. Several commissioners asked staff to run price and replacement scenarios and said the plan should explicitly recognize mineral revenue as a depleting asset and the implications for building the permanent fund as a buffer.

On land stewardship, Commissioners pressed the plan to use more explicit constitutional language and to elevate climate resilience. Commissioner Heath read from the board’s mandate and argued the plan should “protect and enhance the beauty, natural values, open space and wildlife habitat” as part of ensuring long‑term economic productivity. Commissioners asked for clearer expectations and accountability for lessees’ land‑management practices, more monitoring and adaptive management to demonstrate improvements in land health, and additional emphasis on biodiversity and ecosystem work.

Staff and consultants presented several implementation tools intended to translate strategy into action: an asset allocation process to guide acquisition, development, conservation or disposition decisions; targeted project teams to implement objectives; and a governance cadence for annual business planning and progress reporting to the board. Director Rose Marino and Deputy Director Nick Massie said the strategic goals and objectives will be folded into annual work plans and board cover sheets so future decisions can be assessed against the plan.

Commissioners also urged clearer language in the objectives and subheads. Several asked that the plan explicitly reference agriculture and lessees, that an active verb such as “invest” be used for staff capacity and technology commitments, and that the plan include measurable milestones and a yearly reporting cadence so the board can track implementation.

Staff outlined next steps: incorporate board feedback, accept written public or stakeholder input through April 30, circulate a revised draft by May 6, present the revised plan at a May 13 board workshop, and bring the plan for approval at the May 14 business meeting. Director Rose Marino and staff said they will follow up with stakeholders identified during the engagement and will use the plan to guide outreach, partnership building and annual business planning.

The workshop ended with the board thanking staff and consultants for the effort and confirming the timeline for revisions and public comment ahead of the May meetings.