In recent months, threats to dispose of public lands have escalated rapidly in Montana and nationally. Federal layoffs and funding freezes create the potential for limiting the ability of public land management agencies to do their jobs and create a rationale for state takeover. There is also an increasing interest in developing public lands to ease the affordable housing crisis. And finally, there is rhetoric around treating public lands as assets that do not take into account the value to communities, recreationists, and local businesses.
Public lands managed by the federal government constitute about 30% of Montana’s landmass. These federal public lands – managed by the U.S. Forest Service, the Bureau of Land Management, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, and the National Park Service – draw people from across the state, country, and world. Montana’s federally managed public lands are vital to the state economy, as they support a robust outdoor recreation economy, tourism, and spending in surrounding communities.
Wild Montana will work to lift up the value of public lands across the state and build bipartisan opposition to cuts that harm public lands management, community safety, and the economy. The organization will work to lift up local voices and demonstrate broad public opposition to agency layoffs and public lands transfer. Working hand-in-hand with other conservation-minded organizations and the business community, they will demonstrate the economic value of keeping public lands in public hands.
