Rehberg listens to variety of viewpoints on Tester bill

Standing in front of a podium with a wireless microphone on Saturday afternoon in Libby, U.S. Rep. Denny Rehberg shared a couple of stories, offered a few viewpoints and even told a joke.

But the primary purpose of Rehberg’s hastily-arranged gathering was to listen … take note of the pros and cons of Sen. Jon Tester’s Forest Jobs and Recreation Act. And northwestern Montana residents took advantage of the opportunity to speak out.

During an interview following the 90-minute event in Libby High School’s Ralph Tate Gymnasium, Rehberg (R-Mont.) said he wanted to “let those who support it tell me why and those who oppose it tell me why and we’ll go from there.”

The congressman, who drove straight to his residence in Billings immediately following the event, said he added Libby to his circuit of communities to visit on the issue because of Three Rivers Challenge. A number of people contacted Rehberg urging him to give Lincoln County a chance to air their views.

“There’s a difference between collaboration and consensus and a lot of people said ‘the Three Rivers process was collaborative but we don’t feel they came to the conclusion that we would like to see them have,’” Rehberg said. “I don’t know whether that’s true or not but I said, ‘OK, if you feel you were left out of the process, I want to open up the process.’”

The majority of those taking turns at the mic showed opposition to the bill and seemed to draw the loudest applause. A fair number of supporters also had their chance to impress their views upon Rehberg.

Libby represented the 22nd public meeting for the congressman since the beginning of the year on the subject of wilderness designation. Late last week, Tester sent a letter to Rehberg with an invitation to sit down with him to discuss the issue.

“I appreciate you taking an interest in the Forest Jobs and Recreation Act, and I appreciate you holding listening sessions across Montana over the past few days,” Tester wrote in his letter to Rehberg. “As you know, I hosted a number of public listening sessions and meetings for input and feedback on the bill this past year. Like your events, they were well-attended, and I heard many different opinions on the legislation.”

When asked if there was any one component of the bill that scared him the most, Rehberg said he has not yet formulated an opinion.

“Sen. Tester sent me a letter that I did not receive until this morning asking me to come over and sit down and go over our notes together,” Rehberg said. “I’ll be happy to do that. I just want to put my notes together. I don’t want to draw any early conclusions because I wanted people to really have their say.”

During the listening session, Rehberg did say that the only guarantee he could see in the legislation was for wilderness but not the other components.

A group of individuals involved with the Three Rivers Challenge lauded the bill to Rehberg.

“It was wonderful to see you say this isn’t necessarily about saying no to legislation but getting to a place where we all say yes to it,” said outfitter Tim Linehan. “I appreciate every piece – the timber piece, the recreation piece and the wilderness piece. … Having said that, I get a sense that many feel it isn’t perfect. Let’s keep working.”

Libby resident Charlie Decker, one of the co-founders of the Rocky Mountain Elk Foundation, said he appreciates the effort to find answers for the region’s future.

“I think we do need some sort of bill for common ground … I would like to see something happen to break this gridlock,” Decker said.

Lincoln County commissioner Tony Berget expressed the desire for a bill that could put limitations on lawsuits.

“The chance of litigation is still there,” Berget said. “I’ve heard a lot about how you can’t get rid of that option and yet Tom Daschle was able to do it in South Dakota, so it can’t be impossible.”

State Rep. Chas Vincent (R-Libby) was another voice with concerns.

“We are not getting anything different with this legislation that has not already been tried in the past,” Vincent said. “And without some changes, we’re not going to see a difference.”

Click here for video from Rehberg's visit to Libby on Saturday