On July 10, the Obama administration designated three new national monuments totaling more than one million acres; the monuments provide new conservation status to the existing public lands. The Administration has now used the Antiquities Act to establish or expand 19 national monuments protecting 260 million acres, more than any other president. The largest of the new monuments, the Basin and Range National Monument, encompasses more than 700,000 acres of Bureau of Land Management (BLM) lands in east-central Nevada. The Berryessa Snow Mountain National Monument protects recreational access and working landscapes on 330,000 acres of both BLM and Forest Service lands in northern California. The Waco Mammoth National Monument in northeast Texas protects 107 acres with the largest concentration of Columbian mammoth fossils in North America and will be managed by the National Park Service.

"This area is a spectacular expanse of rugged public lands that tell the proud story of the West, from the ancient rock art of our First Americans to the early homesteaders looking for opportunity on the open range," said Interior Secretary Sally Jewell about the Basin and Range National Monument. "Today's action builds on local efforts to preserve and protect this special place, while also allowing traditional ranching practices, recreational opportunities, future scientific study and national security exercises. The President's action ensures that this area will remain a beloved resource for generations to come."

However, the designations immediately angered some Members of Congress. Congressman Rob Bishop, Chairman of the House Committee on Natural Resources, condemned the action in a committee press statement. Bishop and other members are working to pass legislation that would curb executive powers under the Antiquities Act including H.R. 1459, the Ensuring Public Involvement in the Creation of National Monuments Act, along with new legislation that is rumored to be under development. In addition, language was added to the 2016 EPA-Interior appropriations bill to stop funding for new national monuments.