Governor Gianforte Leads Western Governors In Opposition To BLM's Efforts To Change Grazing Policies

On Nov. 30, leading a group of western governors, Governor Greg Gianforte opposed an attempt by the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) to change its grazing policies without collaboration and urged them to pause changes immediately.

In a letter to BLM Director Tracy Stone-Manning, Gov. Gianforte and four other western governors expressed their frustration with the BLM’s various attempts to change policy without collaboration, eroding the public’s trust.

“It is disappointing and frustrating to exclude cooperators from regulatory policy discussions, and then requesting that they spread the good word about BLM’s changes,” the governors wrote. “We share in the frustration of our fellow cooperators who have been anxious to offer feedback, particularly given that these policy changes have potential to impact the livelihoods of our farmers, ranchers, and others who rely on federal lands for their way of life.”

The governors continued, “From our perspective, these critical stakeholders have been unnecessarily excluded from the process. We do not mince words when we say that the actions of your agency have eroded the public’s trust.”

Highlighting the BLM’s increasing failure to hold transparent and collaborative processes, the governors wrote, “A frustrating pattern is emerging at the BLM. Meaningful coordination on important decisions within the agency, from rulemakings to land use plans, is treated as an afterthought or disregarded entirely, especially for our states.”

The governors’ request comes after multiple attempts to collaborate with the Biden administration on proposed rule changes and processes.

Led by Governor Gianforte, additional signatories to the letter include Governors Brad Little (ID), Joe Lombardo (NV), Spencer Cox (UT), and Mark Gordon (WY).

The governors’ letter to Stone-Manning may be viewed: https://governor.mt.gov/LETTER_231130_blm_grazing_rule.pdf.