FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Jan. 7, 2025

MCV: “Zinke and Downing failed Montanans by voting against keeping public lands in public hands”

(HELENA, Mont.) – Montana Conservation Voters (MCV) released the following statement from Executive Director Whitney Tawney in response to the U.S. House’s approval of a rules package that reintroduces a provision making it easier for lawmakers to transfer federal public lands: 

“By voting to make it easier to privatize our public lands, Congressmen Ryan Zinke and Troy Downing failed Montanans. Nearly one-third of our state is protected for the public good, and any attempt to privatize this outdoor legacy is a direct attack on the livelihoods of Montanans who rely on these lands for their way of life. Their vote threatens the values that define our state and jeopardizes the future of our communities.”