HELENA — Earlier this year, Montana leaders adopted a new policy, putting a pause on requests to graze bison on state trust lands. On Thursday, the main organization affected by that policy made its case to a state judge, arguing the decision wasn’t made properly.
American Prairie has filed suit against the Montana Land Board – which includes the governor, secretary of state, attorney general, state auditor and superintendent of public instruction. At a hearing in Helena, they asked District Judge Chris Abbott to block the board’s moratorium on new bison grazing.
(Watch the video to hear more from the hearing.)
In February, the Land Board directed the Montana Department of Natural Resources and Conservation not to approve bison grazing requests, until the state completes new rulemaking for how grazing permits are handled. American Prairie argues that decision was itself effectively a new rule, and that it should have gone through the full rulemaking process required under the Montana Administrative Procedure Act, or MAPA.
“It's not about the Land Board's discretion to manage lands,” said Matt Cochenour, an attorney representing American Prairie. “They do have discretion. They have discretion to do some of the things that they're contemplating; they have to do it through the process.”
But attorneys representing the state said the Land Board made a reasonable decision. Dale Schowengerdt told the judge the board didn’t have another option when they determined there wasn’t a specific rule in place on how to treat bison grazing requests. He argued their previous procedure – approving bison grazing on the same basis as cattle grazing based on longstanding practice – doesn’t comply with state requirements either.
“That more arguably violates MAPA than a pause saying, ‘We're not going to make these decisions based on informally applied methodology,’” said Schowengerdt. “That’s the purpose of rulemaking, and that's what due process requires.”
American Prairie is a nonprofit that seeks to build a large nature reserve in north-central Montana to restore the historic grassland ecosystem. Bison grazing on private and public land has been part of their plans. The organization currently manages about 940 bison in their Phillips County properties.
American Prairie has long been controversial with ranchers and other neighbors in the area, particularly because of their management of bison. Opponents have warned that bison would have a greater impact on public grazing lands than cattle, and they’ve argued federal and state grazing permits should be granted only to production livestock herds – rather than to American Prairie’s which they see as primarily focused on conservation.
American Prairie says their bison have successfully grazed on federal lands for years without issue. Their attorneys argued Thursday that the state’s decision appears “arbitrary” and specifically targeted against them.
Cochenour said DNRC has had a history of “slow-walking” American Prairie’s requests for bison grazing permits, and that the Land Board’s moratorium means the organization is stuck.
“We have so much delay going on – we can't get a denial, we can't get a grant, we can't get a decision,” he said.
Schowengerdt said this isn’t a permanent ban, just a delay while rulemaking continues.
“American Prairie’s going to participate in that process – they’ve said they’re going to participate in that process,” he said.
Abbott took no immediate action Thursday, but said he intended to rule as quickly as he could.
“I do recognize, since the case is about delays, that there's a desire to get something out quickly,” he said.
This case only covers the state’s actions. However, American Prairie is also dealing with a federal government decision to revoke their permits for grazing bison on BLM land. This week, the Western Watersheds Project announced it would appeal of what it called a politically motivated decision.
