Historic lands bill could pass

Montana’s Congressional delegation announced last week they have come together on an agreement for a major land-use bill that rolls several pieces of key Montana conservation legislation into a defense spending bill.

The combined bill passed the House last week and is expected to pass the Senate this week, although conservative lawmakers are calling it a land grab.

In a conference call Dec. 3, Sens. Jon Tester and John Walsh and Rep. Steve Daines said the North Fork Watershed Protection Act, the Rocky Mountain Front Heritage Act, the Cabin Fee Act and more than 80 other land-use bills would be merged into the defense spending bill.

“Today is an historic day for Montana,” Tester said.

The North Fork Watershed Protection Act would ban all future energy leases on about 430,000 acres of federal land in the North Fork and Middle Fork of the Flathead River.

The one-page bill has been held up in Congress for several years and is seen as a critical piece of legislation to protect the western and southern boundaries of Glacier National Park. Several years ago, the British Columbia provincial government passed a law banning mining and energy exploration in the North Fork drainage north of the border.

The Rocky Mountain Front Heritage Act has also been on Congress’ plate for several years. It would add about 67,000 acres of wilderness to the east side of the Bob Marshall Wilderness Complex and protect another 208,000 acres of nearby federal land from further development, while preserving traditional uses like grazing.

Daines said the historic effort “breaks through the partisan gridlock” in Washington.

“In Montana, we know the importance of rolling up our sleeves and working together to get things done,” Daines said. “By coming together and finding common ground, Sens. Tester and Walsh and I are advancing eight bipartisan lands and resources bills that together address the concerns of Montanans from across our state — from ranchers and sportsmen to our tribes and natural resource industry.”

Tester called the effort “an example the entire Congress can learn from.”

“Our state is ‘the last best place’ because of our special places to hunt, fish and recreate, and by responsibly ensuring future generations can enjoy the Rocky Mountain Front and the North Fork, we preserve our outdoor heritage and traditions while strengthening our outdoor economy,” Tester said. “I was proud to fight for these bills and get them included in this package.”

Walsh said the effort reflects all the work accomplished by Montanans from all walks of the political spectrum.

“They brought these bills to us,” he said. “Thanks to all of the people in Montana.”

Polls showed that both the North Fork Watershed Protection Act and the Rocky Mountain Front Heritage Act had broad public support.

The North Fork bill alone brought stiff opposition from some Republican senators earlier this year, but Tester said he’s optimistic the legislation will pass.

“We believe we’ve got that (opposition) ironed out,” he said. “We’re confident but not absolutely sure we can get this done.”

The detractors are common Tester foes. Sen. Ted Cruz, R-Texas, called the big bill a “land grab,” and Sen. Tom Coburn, R-Oklahoma, also objected to the bill. The two senators squashed earlier attempts to pass the North Fork bill as a stand-alone measure earlier this year.

Among the eight bills in the package is the Cabin Fee Act, which will provide more certainty for about 700 Montana cabin owners on Forest Service land by establishing a fair and predictable system for setting cabin fees.

Paul McKenzie, the lands and resource manager for F.H. Stoltze Land and Lumber Co., applauded the joint announcement.

“Stoltze is happy to see progress made on the North Fork Watershed Protection Act, and we look forward to similar progress being made on the issue of active management of our public lands for multiple use benefits,” McKenzie said.

The overall package drew praise from some conservation groups across Montana, including the Wilderness Society, which was founded by Bob Marshall in the 1930s. But the group expressed concern about including the Resolution Copper Mine expansion in Arizona, which would transfer more than 2,000 acres of federal land to a private copper mining company.

Forty-eight environmental groups, including the Swan View Coalition of Kalispell, Wilderness Watch of Missoula, Alliance For The Wild Rockies of Helena, Montana Environmental Information Center of Helena and Friends Of The Wild Swan of Swan Lake sent a letter to the U.S. Senate in opposition to the bill.

The Dec. 7 letter specifically cites six sections of the defense bill that they oppose, including removing two wilderness study areas in Eastern Montana in exchange for protecting land in the Rocky Front act, which the groups called a “stealth provision.” They urged the Senate to remove the public lands provisions from the defense bill.