State Republicans are selling off public lands

The results of our poll from Friday are in.  Almost a thousand people voted and the “winner” of the worst bill of the session goes to…..

SB 215, Senator Jennifer Fielder’s bill to transfer and sell Montana’s public lands.

Senator Fielder, a Republican from Thompson Falls, has been the GOP spokesperson for transferring and selling off Montana’s public lands at the 2015 Montana Legislature. She’s introduced multiple bills with this goal in mind, and she even hired a legislative aide, paid by state dollars, who was also a registered lobbyist for the Americans Lands Council, a nationwide group dedicated to transferring and selling federal lands.

While her bills have been defeated at every turn and over 500 citizens rallied at the Capitol in February to show their disapproval, Senator Fielder and the Montana GOP don’t seem to be listening. The transfer and sale of public lands remains an official plank in the Montana Republican Party’s platform.

The GOP assault on public lands won’t end until they start paying for these irresponsible bills on Election Day.

The fight for the makeup of the 2017 Montana Legislature has already begun. Please help MDLCC ensure more Democrats win in 2016, and Senator Fielder’s bills never see the light of day again.

—Matt McGovern