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By Kathleen Shannon - Producer, Contact - News
Big Sky Connection - Advocates for public lands worry about the impacts the U.S. Senate’s reconciliation bill would have on national parks and the communities that rely on them. Proposals include nearly $270 million in cuts and requirements to push oil and gas leasing on Western public lands. Comments by Daniel Hart, director of clean energy and climate policy, and Michelle Uberuaga [YOU-buh-RAH-ga], Greater Yellowstone senior program manager, both with National Parks Conservation Association.
Kathleen Shannon
June 19, 2025 - The U.S. Senate's answer to the House Republicans' "One Big Beautiful Bill Act" includes proposals that advocates for public lands say would "decimate" the National Park Service and those that rely on it, including some Montana towns.
The reconciliation bill proposes dropping nearly $270 million earmarked for the National Park Service in the Inflation Reduction Act. That comes after a 17% reduction in collective park staff since 2023.
Michelle Uberuaga, Greater Yellowstone senior program manager with the National Parks Conservation Association, said stress is high in her Yellowstone-centric town.
"Little rural gateway communities like ours not only are really dependent upon Yellowstone for our economy, but our friends and neighbors are employed in the parks on public lands," she explained. "And so, yeah, people are really concerned and upset."
In a letter to the Montana congressional delegation, the Gardiner Chamber of Commerce noted that tourism brought in more than $260 million in non-resident spending to Park County in 2023, a significant chunk of the state's $5.8 billion industry.
More than 4.7 million people visited Yellowstone last year, the second-highest number on record. While she's confident that Yellowstone staff will serve visitors well, Uberuaga said she worries about them.
"They're spread thin. Morale is low," she continued. "And they really need people and Congress to stand up for national parks and to make sure they have the funding, the resources, and the staff to continue to be America's treasures."
Vice President J.D. Vance has said he expects a version of the mega-bill to be passed by the July 4th recess.
Daniel Hart, director of clean energy and climate policy with the National Parks Conservation Association, pointed out to another concern he has with the Senate bill.
"There's a requirement to basically push for as much oil and gas leasing in the Western United States on public lands as possible, which could cause extreme problems environmentally to the national parks, but also can cause problems with visitation," he said.
Plus, the Senate bill proposes selling off public lands in 11 states, although Montana isn't one of them.
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PNS - Thursday, June 19, 2025 - Hurricane Helene mobilized the North Carolina community of Marshall in unexpected ways, giant data centers powering AI want cheap rural land but can face community pushback, and ceramics made by Cherokee potters honor multiple generations.
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PNS - Thursday, June 19, 2025 - Israel, Iran trade strikes as Trump weighs U.S. involvement in conflict; Challenge to ND gender-affirming care ban in play, despite SCOTUS ruling; 'Jubilee Day' was honored before Juneteenth in 1800s Indiana; Ohio urged to restore $61M for foster care in final budget talks.
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By Kathleen Shannon - Producer, Contact - News
Big Sky Connection - Gray wolves will get their time in a Missoula federal court starting today (Wed., June 18), after 10 conservation groups brought a lawsuit against the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service. The agency determined last year that gray wolves in the West do not need protections under the Endangered Species Act, despite its conclusion that Montana’s approach is “at odds with modern professional wildlife management.” Comments by Erik Molvar, executive director, Western Watersheds Project.
Click on the image above for the audio. In its most recent report, Montana Fish, Wildlife and Parks estimated the state's 2023 wolf population numbered 1,096 individuals. (Michal/Adobe Stock)
Kathleen Shannon
June 18, 2025 - Most gray wolves in the U.S. are protected under the federal Endangered Species Act, but not those in the Northern Rockies. A federal judge in Missoula will hear arguments Wednesday over the validity of the exception.
In the Northern Rockies, state wildlife agencies are in charge of managing wolf populations, even though the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service last year determined some state regulations are "at odds with modern professional wildlife management."
Erik Molvar, executive director of the Western Watersheds Project, one of 10 plaintiffs in the case, said gray wolves have not received a "fair shake" under either the Biden or Trump administrations.
"We're hoping that having the court step in and really dive into the best available science and the facts of the matter will help get the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service past its political impasse in blocking wolf protections," Molvar explained.
According to its 2024 analysis, the federal agency said gray wolves are "not at risk of extinction in the Western United States, now or in the foreseeable future." But Molvar countered wolf populations there are struggling and genetic diversity is taking a hit.
The plaintiffs argued human-caused wolf mortalities through legal practices, including hunting, trapping, baiting and even hitting wolves with vehicles, were not adequately reviewed by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service in last year's decision. Molvar added the agency failed to use the best available science in population estimate methodologies.
"We are hoping the judge will highlight the fact that the aggressive wolf-killing policies are so extreme that they cannot be relied upon as a conservation framework for rare species, like wolves," Molvar emphasized.
He added the presiding judge has decided wolf cases before and acknowledged deliberations may take months.
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