HELENA — Montana’s governor has vetoed a bill he says he says would have created a task force to study the transfer or sell-off of public lands.
Democratic Gov. Steve Bullock on Monday vetoed the act that would create a public land task force to study state and federal land management. It was the only major public lands management bill that made it through the 2015 Legislature.
Republican Rep. Kerry White of Bozeman originally introduced the bill as a “transfer of public land feasibility task force,” but the final version removed that overt language.
Bullock says he believes the intent was still the same.
White and other lawmakers have worked with the Utah-based American Lands Council on transfer issues. Council President Ken Ivory said Tuesday his group will continue to try to educate people about the issue.