FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
April 2, 2020

MCV responds to Senator Daines’ call to suspend source of LWCF funding
‘It’s repulsive our junior Senator is taking advantage of a worldwide pandemic’

(BOZEMAN, Mont.) – Montana Conservation Voters released the following statement from Deputy Director Whitney Tawney in response to a letter sent by Montana U.S. Senator Steve Daines urging Interior Secretary David Bernhardt to suspend or reduce federal royalty payments for oil, gas and coal production on federal lands:

“Senator Daines knows public lands conservation is funded by offshore oil and gas royalties through the Land and Water Conservation Fund, not taxpayer dollars. By asking to suspend or reduce royalty payments, Senator Daines is prioritizing oil and gas company executives at the expense of our outdoor way of life and Montana’s economy. It’s repulsive our junior Senator is taking advantage of a worldwide pandemic to line the pockets of his oil and gas friends, yet again breaking his promise to support our public lands.”

For months, MCV has asked Senator Daines to use his influence as a member of the party in control of the Senate’s agenda and a member of the Appropriations Committee, to secure full funding for the LWCF through a series of tactics including a statewide TV ad, website, a private label batch of Montana-sourced spirits, yard signs, newspaper ads, online newspaper homepage takeovers and petitions signed by hundreds of Montanans.

First established by Congress in 1965, LWCF has been funded by offshore oil and gas royalties, not taxpayer dollars, providing hundreds of millions of dollars in funding to protect public lands and increase access to outdoor recreation. LWCF has invested nearly $600 million in the Big Sky State. The fund supports Montana’s outdoor recreation economy, which sustains 71,000 Montana jobs and generates more than $7 billion in economic activity in Montana each year.

MCV will remain vigilant in educating all Montanans about important developments concerning Montana’s public lands, clean air and clean water through the ongoing coronavirus crisis.

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Montana Conservation Voters is a statewide non-partisan membership organization that is dedicated to fighting for Montana’s air, water, open spaces, wildlife and public health. MCV provides voter participation services to over 72,000 Montanans. Visit mtvoters.org for more details.

CONTACT
Whitney Tawney
Montana Conservation Voters
whitney@mtvoters.org
406-254-1593