Block Mgt hits almost 7 million acres in 2026

[Ben Lamb]

In 2025, MT had about 6.2 million acres enrolled in Block Mgt. In 2026, that number has grown to approximately 6.8 million. That's an impressive amount of growth for the program.

Hunters Gain Access to 7 Million Acres as Montana Releases 2026 Block Management Details

Montana Fish, Wildlife & Parks has released updated maps and guides for the fall hunting season, granting access to nearly 7 million acres through its Block Management Program. Hunters are encouraged to review regulations carefully to maintain cooperation with landowners and ensure ethical...

www.montanaoutdoor.com

 

[Stone_Ice_1]

Curious where the increase in lands comes from, which area? The areas I keep tabs on the past 2 years there has been a pretty significant decrease in spots that are in the program.

 

[Ben Lamb]

Not sure where the growth came from. The FWP website has it broken down by region & acres enrolled. R7 continues to be the highest enrollement with almost 2 million acres. According to PLPW and FWP, the number of enrollees is going up, while the average property size enrolled is decreasing.

 

[Nick87]

Not sure where the growth came from. The FWP website has it broken down by region & acres enrolled. R7 continues to be the highest enrollement with almost 2 million acres. According to PLPW and FWP, the number of enrollees is going up, while the average property size enrolled is decreasing.

Lots of issues with that program, that said a lot better program than other states have for sure.

 

[Ben Lamb]

Lots of issues with that program, that said a lot better program than other states have for sure.

Any program is going to have warts and they take constant care & watering. I can't think of another state that offers public access to damn near 7 million acres of private land though so to me, the warts are worth it.

 

[Nameless Range]

Absolutely fantastic.

Just for perspective, juxtaposed against the 30ish million acres of public land in Montana, the addition of Block Management lands expands the baseline of huntable lands available to the public by over 23%. Of course, some of that BM is type 2 and limited, but the majority isn't. The positive effect on reducing crowding, putting meat in the freezer, and providing the quality experiences that are derived from the privilege of getting to walk on someone's private property with a weapon and a quarry is a hell of a thing.

It's a program we should continue to protect and improve.

 

[Nick87]

Any program is going to have warts and they take constant care & watering. I can't think of another state that offers public access to damn near 7 million acres of private land though so to me, the warts are worth it.

Agreed.

 

[Treeshark]

In 2026, that number has grown to approximately 6.8 million. That's an impressive amount of growth for the program.

The same source you cited claims that 2025 enrolled average was also 6.8 million.

 

[Ben Lamb]

The same source you cited claims that 2025 enrolled average was also 6.8 million.

Agency was saying 6.2 million in 2025:

Montana FWP Block Management program opens millions of acres of private land for hunters across the state

Montana FWP's Block Management program partners with landowners to open 6.2 million acres of private land to hunters. Enrollment ends June 1.

www.kbzk.com

 

[Treeshark]

Agency was saying 6.2 million in 2025

I don’t believe that is accurate. Their own Budget Information Guide states 6.8 in 2025:

Page 35

 

[Treeshark]

@Ben Lamb- if the 6.2m number was an accurate denominator, that would be roughly 10% increase.

That would no doubt be very noteworthy- wouldn’t it also be odd that there was no mention of that growth in the article you posted?

 

[Ben Lamb]

@Ben Lamb- if the 6.2m number was an accurate denominator, that would be roughly 10% increase.

That would no doubt be very noteworthy- wouldn’t it also be odd that there was no mention of that growth in the article you posted?

Maybe it isn't accurate. I've only seen the numbers through 24.the 2025 budget would kick in for fy 26 & 27, so there's also a potential that those acres enrolled weren't opened just yet but the contracts were in place.

Good catch. I'll dig around on it a bit more.

 

[Treeshark]

The discrepancy could be based on what they’re measuring: private land enrolled vs total land opened (which could include public land becoming accessible).

I may me wrong as well, but a 10%+ movement would be very surprising.

 

[Bulldog0156]

Any program is going to have warts and they take constant care & watering. I can't think of another state that offers public access to damn near 7 million acres of private land though so to me, the warts are worth it.

Ben, we need to talk about how you deal with your warts...

 

[Ben Lamb]

Ben, we need to talk about how you deal with your warts...

 

[Salmonchaser]

I’ve somehow managed to hunt Montana almost every year for the last 35, didn’t draw this year. Regardless, my experience with block management has been very favorable warts and all. For the most part those sections I’ve seen removed from the program, you could see it was going to happen. Guys not following the rules kind of thing. I’ll keep applying to Montana, at 70 I kinda like just walking around out there.

 

[Ben Lamb]

The discrepancy could be based on what they’re measuring: private land enrolled vs total land opened (which could include public land becoming accessible).

I may me wrong as well, but a 10%+ movement would be very surprising.

Following up here. I spoke with some folks at FWP and you are correct, the jump didn't happen. Someone did put out a wrong number that didn't get corrected. Here's a Block Mgt summary from 1996 to 2024: https://fwp.mt.gov/binaries/content...-block-man-summaries-acre_cooperator_year.pdf

The 2025 numbers track with 2024. The interesting piece of the discussion was that they have changed how they count public lands enrolled, or not enrolled. There was an increase of about 268,000 acres for the 2026 hunting season, not 700,000. Also, that 268K increase was across all access programs, not just block management.

Another item of interest, last session PLPW reccomended an enforcement network to be put in place for landowners to help eliminate bad actors from the program, rather than just from indiovidual properties. That turned in to BS 441, which was widely supported by Ag, Outfitters and Hunters. In it's first year, 830 landowners and 550 properties were enrolled.

New Montana FWP Block Management Enforcement Network aims for better policing of rules

Starting this year, 830 landowners across 550 BMAs are participating in the Block Management Enforcement Network, a new opt-in system of reinforcing landowner rules for access.

billingsgazette.com

PLPW met last week to discuss a lot of items, one of which being a survey of landowners on what they'd like to see in return for increased access. The two largest requests for increased improvements, more enforcement & non-transferable licenses/permits. I don't have the study in hand, but you can watch the presentation here when it uploads: https://www.youtube.com/@MontanaFWP/streams

Once I can find the study, I'll post it up. Pretty interesting stuff.

 

[Beignet]

Ben - As an example of the above, it seems to me like they started counting some conservation easements that came with access provisions, but haven’t been conventionally considered Block Management as BMA’s.

 

[Ben Lamb]

Ben - As an example of the above, it seems to me like they started counting some conservation easements that came with access provisions, but haven’t been conventionally considered Block Management as BMA’s.

Some of the CE's are enrolled in Block Management as a form of hunter management, and as a way to get data like how many hunters hit a spot, etc. It usually depends on how the CE or lease was negotiated as it relates to access. The agency has a goal of 500,000 acres in the short term lease program, so I'd wager a large number of the increase comes from that. Landowners have responded favorabily to the new leasing arrangement.

That's not to say there wasn't loss either. The average size of BMA continues to drop, while the number of properties enrolled is increasing. Looking that spreadsheet over though, the program really rocketed in cost after the 21 session where the top end payment was increased, and the dollar per hunter day jumped.