To exercise exclusive Legislation in all Cases whatsoever, over such District (not exceeding ten Miles square) as may, by Cession of particular States, and the acceptance of Congress, become the Seat of the Government of the United States, and to exercise like Authority over all Places purchased by the Consent of the Legislature of the State in which the Same shall be, for the Erection of Forts, Magazines, Arsenals, dock-Yards, and other needful Buildings;
The constitution only gives the federal government authority over District of Columbia and places such as forts, magazines, arsenals, dockyards and other needful buildings.
The national parks should indeed be handed over to the states, as should the ‘wilderness areas’.
Many States have State Forests, so they can readily absorb the management tasks.
Thanx. Haven’t even started to review the authority/legal histroy.
However, the Second Paragraph of Section 3, Article IV of the US Constitution states in part: “The Congress shall have Power to dispose of and make all needful Rules and Regulations respecting the Territory or other Property belonging to the United States;”
At the time, that was mostly the Northwest Territory, but later other Territories came to belong to the United States. An interesting question is: By what Constitutional authority did those other Territories come to belong to the United States?
In the case of many (not all) states beyond the first thirteen, said states were formed from the territories which were owned by the United States. Not the United States Federal Government, the United States.
Bearing that in mind, in many cases all of the territory/land/property within the bounds of a newly formed state was not granted to the State upon it’s Statehood. Some was retained by the United States.