The U.S. Supreme Court has rejected Utah's lawsuit seeking control of 18.5 million acres of federal land. Why it matters: State officials put on a costly campaign of TV ads and other marketing, to encourage SCOTUS to take up the case.

The Supreme Court is turning back a push by the state of Utah to wrest control of vast areas of public land from the federal government

The Supreme Court on Monday declined to hear Utah's bid to gain control over millions of acres of federal land, dealing a blow to the state's efforts to assert greater authority over its natural resources.