Letter To The Editor

Dear Editor,

On Friday, SB 284 was signed by the Speaker of the House and the President of the Senate. I expect it will land on the Governor's desk Monday. The governor plans to veto it, just as he did two years ago, and his successor did two years before that. So far the bill has passed both houses in 2011 (House 68 percent; Senate 54 percent), 2013 (House 63 percent; Senate 64 percent), and 2015 (House 60 percent, Senate 64 percent).

The bill requires the FWP to get the approval of County Commissioners before releasing bison in a county. This is exactly the procedure that was followed on the reservations. FWP met with the local elected representatives of the Tribal Government and got their approval before making any releases. The bill states very clearly in several places that County Commissioners CAN NOT make the decision about bison releases ON RESERVATIONS in their counties. That is up to the Tribal Government. The bill does not affect the reservations in any way; it only provides for equal treatment of citizens on and off the reservation.

You can call the governor at (406) 444-3111. You can e-mail the governor at http://governor.mt.gov/Home/Contact/shareopinion.

PLEASE. Tomorrow (and every day after that until he vetoes it) see if you can make time to call or e-mail the governor and ask for his signature. Share this with anyone you think might be interested and encourage them to take part. Maybe together we might be able to change Governor Bullock's mind.

Sincerely,

Sierra Stoneberg Holt

Valley County