Fighting for Montana's Share

I serve as a commissioner in a county where nearly 50 percent of the land is federally owned. There are some Montana counties, such as Mineral and Sanders Counties, where the federal government owns more than 80 percent of the lands.

While we all value our public lands and how they afford us our unique way of life, the issues that rural counties face is that, because so much of our land is public, it’s left off the tax rolls. Every year we have to fight for Montana counties’ share of funds to offset the loss of these funds. This is a vital issue for rural Montana counties and an issue w...