NORTH LAS VEGAS, Nev. (AP) — Congressional officials meeting in North Las Vegas are discussing how to reduce hurdles to developing federally owned lands in urban areas.

Members of the House natural resources committee, including Republican Rep. Cresent Hardy, met Tuesday at North Las Vegas City Hall.

Elected officials heard from government agencies such as the Clark County Regional Flood Control District that lease federal land through the Bureau of Land Management.

Representatives testified that they have to jump through bureaucratic hurdles to put their land to use, and prefer to own it outright.

Congressmen criticized the BLM and said its regulations hamper economic growth.

Critics with the Nevada Conservation League called the hearing a sham, saying it's a cover-up for an effort to transfer large amounts of public land to private developers for a profit.