Gov. Gianforte: “It’s Time To Return Grizzly Management to the State” CHOTEAU, Mont. – Governor Greg Gianforte and Montana Fish, Wildlife & Parks (FWP) Director Christy Clark today met with landowners in Choteau to discuss grizzly bear populations along the Rocky Mountain Front and underscore the state’s petition to delist the grizzly in the Northern Continental Divide Ecosystem (NCDE). “The recovery of the grizzly bear in the NCDE is a success story thanks to the hard work and sacrifices of Montanans over decades,” Gov. Gianforte said. “With the bear now recovered and its territory expanding to areas not seen in over a century, it’s time for the state to take over management of this iconic American species.” Grizzly bears were listed as threatened under the Endangered Species Act in 1975. At the time, the population of grizzly bears in the lower 48 states was estimated to be in the hundreds. Today the bear population in the NCDE alone is estimated at approximately 1,300. As grizzly bear populations have increased in the NCDE, conflicts have increased with farmers, ranchers, recreationists, and residents. “Larger grizzly population means increased odds of conflict, and Montana needs more tools to manage this species. If we don’t get those tools, our communities, families, farmers, ranchers, and recreationists will continue to bear the burden of federal regulation and having to worry about encounters,” the governor said. “With a statewide management plan in place and our decades of on-the-ground experience, Montana is ready to take over management of grizzly bears. It’s time to get them delisted,” FWP Director Clark said. Before the community event, the governor and director flew in an FWP helicopter to survey the Choteau area for bears. Flying over the Rocky Mountain Front, the group spotted a sow in the stream, within one hundred yards of grazing cattle. Hearing from landowners at the city park in Choteau, the governor and director listened to growing concerns about grizzly bear activity in the community. Choteau resident John Long, a man who recently encountered a problem grizzly bear while foraging for mushrooms on his property, just two miles from the city park. “She got out where she could see us, stood on her hind legs, dropped down, turned around and checked her cub. I thought, well here’s the part where she takes off. She didn’t do that,” Long said. “She started kind of trotting toward us. And at this point, she’s about 70 yards away, and she kind of comes inside that circle of 30 yards and lays her ears back and just coms up on us as fast as she could.” John was one of nearly 50 community members who came to the park to hear from the governor, Director Clark, and USFWS and to share stories about close encounters with problem bears near their homes. Joining the governor and director at the event was Josh W.D. Coursey, of the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS). A Wyoming native, Coursey was recently sworn into to serve as Senior Advisor to USFWS Director Brian Nesvik. “I was sworn in May 1st, and I can tell you our highest priority is this issue right here. That’s why I took this job,” Coursey said. In December 2021, Gov. Gianforte petitioned the federal government to delist the grizzly bear in the NCDE. The petition outlined that NCDE grizzly bears are within a distinct population, have far surpassed population recovery goals, and that FWP has the structure in place to successfully take over full management of this iconic native species. FWP monitors grizzly bears in Montana with the best available science and a team of dedicated specialists. Although grizzly bears in the lower 48 states have remained under the jurisdiction of USFWS, much of the day-to-day management is done by FWP’s specialists who work with landowners and the public to address conflicts and increase safety and education in bear country. (fb)

A Montana backdrop for an energy fight After a multi-year fight against former President Joe Biden’s energy, climate and environmental policies, Montana Attorney General Austin Knudsen has corralled 18 other Republican attorneys general to back President Donald Trump and his energy policies. Knudsen, who has led the Montana Department of Justice since 2021, is attempting to enter the judicial ring in a constitutional fight over three executive orders Trump issued earlier this year to “unleash America’s affordable and reliable energy and natural resources.” In May, 22 young Americans — including 10 involved in the Held v. Montana constitutional climate lawsuit the state Supreme Court decided in the plaintiffs’ favor late last year — filed a lawsuit to undo the executive orders. The lead plaintiff is Eva Lighthiser, a 19-year-old Livingston resident. In May, Lighthiser said Trump is “waging war” on her and her co-plaintiffs, who are “fighting back with the Constitution.” More specifically, the plaintiffs argue in the 126-page lawsuit they filed in the U.S. District Court in Missoula that Trump is threatening their rights to life and liberty. They also invoke a separation-of-powers claim, a constitutional argument frequently cited in the hundreds of lawsuits that have arisen in response to Trump’s aggressive second-term agenda. “President Trump’s EOs falsely claim an energy emergency, while the true emergency is that fossil fuel pollution is destroying the foundation of Plaintiffs’ lives,” Lighthiser and her co-plaintiffs contend in their request that judges toss the orders out. “Plaintiffs’ lives are presently harmed by the ‘unleashing’ of fossil fuel pollution, and their injuries will get worse as the directives continue to be implemented.” In his motion to intervene, Knudsen argued that states like Montana are uniquely positioned to enter the legal arena to defend Trump’s energy agenda. “The State of Montana has an interest in this case because it will directly impact the business done in the energy sector within its borders, as well as the employment implications and development implications involved that will impact so many of its citizens,” the filing reads. “Only the State Intervenors have the capacity, competency, and incentives to represent their unique interests not shared by the Federal Defendants.” In a statement about Montana’s bid to join the litigation, Our Children’s Trust argued that fear is motivating the red states’ move to intervene. Over the last decade and a half, the Oregon-based nonprofit has filed dozens of lawsuits to force the government to act on climate change. “Since President Trump returned to office, over 450 lawsuits have been filed challenging executive orders or the agency actions taken to carry them out. Out of all of those cases, only one has triggered a coalition of 19 states and a U.S. territory to intervene — this one. That speaks volumes,” Our Children’s Trust Chief Legal Counsel Julia Olson said in the press release. “Their intervention confirms what we already know: this constitutional rights case is vitally important, urgent, and it is exposing unlawful policies they are desperate to defend.” Both sides would likely agree that the Treasure State is a fitting backdrop for a fight over energy development: Montana has an abundance of the types of resources — coal, natural gas, copper and rare earth elements — that the White House is set on extracting. (See “Public Comment,” below.) —Amanda Eggert To view the public comment and further hyperlinks from this story please check out our September 2025 newsletter by going to: (fb)