Senator Tester was in Bozeman yesterday. Some good time spent with him, walking some great public land habitat and discussing a lot of access and public land issues.
Lights, camera, action.
A walk to discuss examples of what good habitat and forest management means to wildlife.. And focusing on the great economic value of public access and what that economy represents to Montana. Complete agreement on both sides.
If you don't have a sense of humor, you're not gonna have much fun around me. Especially when I am talking politics.
Making the case for public access; both additional public access and preserving/conserving what we already have. A great discussion. I can tell you that Senator Tester is not one of the guys you need to "get up to speed" on the importance of access. He is already up to speed.
After hearing my case, he asked me, "I want to hear from hunters on all things related to public access, including deals like the Fort Belknap water settlement; are hunters willing to meet with the tribes and the many other interests at the table on this issue?"
Answer, "When and where?"
His final comment to me. "Tell your audience that contacting us makes a difference; a big difference. Hunters and anglers are one of my largest constituents. I want to hear from them. Please give them my
email links."
Here is that email link -
http://www.tester.senate.gov/?p=email_senator
Here is a link to all Senators -
http://www.senate.gov/general/contact_information/senators_cfm.cfm
Here is a link to all Congressmen/women -
http://www.house.gov/representatives/find/
The beauty of the platform provided by this show and this website is that it has a big impact on policy leaders. Trust me, his staff is often aware of what is being discussed here, as are many other national leaders on land and conservation policy.
I intend to continue using this platform to make a difference for access. I think that meeting yesterday, just the Senator and me, walking the public lands and talking about the value of these lands to hunters, makes a big difference.
Will it necessarily change the outcome on this issue? Not sure, but I do think it is a great start. Having his attention and close contact with his staff is an effective way to convey our concerns.
I learned that this deal is only at its beginning point. I gave him some ideas I think could keep the land and still get the deal completed. There will be a lot of negotiation before it gets finalized, if it ever does get finalized.
And, he heard another of Randy's long rants about how important it is that we keep the Land and Water Conservation Fund (LWCF) in tact. Though the House has zeroed out the LWCF program in their budget, the Senate has proposed $400 million. And, since he agrees with me on LWCF access funding, I guess it was probably not too much of a rant.
The Senator stated he wants LWCF fully funded and reauthorized. As he and I both commented, a deal was struck whereby the royalties collected under the LWCF program would be used for access and mitigation of habitat, not diverted to other pet programs in DC. If all those funds were actually kept in the LWCF accounts for access, the program would be funded to the tune of $900 million per year. That can create/preserve a lot of public access.
Where we were standing, we were looking over the Gallatin and Madison Ranges, which if not for the use of a few million dollars of LWCF money in the mid to late 1990's about 300,000 acres of public access would have been lost. Hard to imagine living in SW MT; being an elk, deer, or bear hunter, and having huge tracts of the Gallatin and Madison Ranges be off limits. That is what would have happened without LWCF money and the hard work of many groups.
I know many younger hunters are not aware of how the LWCF program protected their hunting access in this location, and in millions of acres across the country. If you ever have time, try to learn more about the LWCF program and how it has been "the" best access-producing program we have ever had benefit of.
All photo credit goes to Ben Lamb. All video credit goes to Warm Springs Productions.
