Must be your lawyering skills, here I was starting with what I presume is the Taylor Grazing Act itself....
http://www.law.cornell.edu/uscode/text/43/315Only time payment for cancelled grazing leases is specified in that section was when the military takes over the land. Interestingly, one cannot take over another's grazing permit unless you pay the previous guy the fair value of any improvements they may have made. Didn't find anything about buying and selling of permits between private individuals.
Birdwatcher,
I have no idea where it is spelled out in the law. But I can show you several instances where either BLM or USFS permits have been sold and purchased between individuals locally. All such transactions are monitored closely by the supervising agency.
I also know that some permits are put up for auction by the agencies occasionally. It made the news a few years ago when anti cow (supposed to be environmental groups) started bidding for and buying such permits. Then the grasses became over grown and our perennial fire problems became much worse.
The BLM had to start demanding a grazing plan before accepting bids for permits. The enviro/whackos screamed bloody murder at that development.
The ranchers make good use of the Taylor Grazing permits. And the range lands do actually need to be harvested. Since wild bison are far too destructive to be turned loose to do the job, it can be fairly stated that the range actually NEEDS the cows.
No other animal can do the job the bison used to do. The bison migrated across the continent grazing the green grasses as they moved from South to North in the spring and back in the fall.
Cattlemen put cows out to graze when grass is plentiful and move them over the range to keep them on good feed. When the range grass is properly harvested, they bring the cows into the feed lots and home pastures.
