Counties can't veto bison transfers in Montana

Counties won't get veto power over transfers of bison by the state of Montana as Gov. Steve Bullock on Monday vetoed Senate Bill 284.

The bill would have required approval of county commissioners before wild bison are released into a county. It would not have included transfers to tribal land.

It prompted a government powers debate at the Legislature.

In a letter explaining the veto, Bullock, a Democrat, said the bill would set a dangerous precedent by supplanting the state's management of fish and wildlife with county regulation.

"Montana's wildlife is held in trust for all citizens of the state, not just those citizens of a particular county," Bullock wrote.

Montana Fish, Wildlife and Parks already must follow a comprehensive and public process in determining if and where brucellosis-free bison could be transplanted, Bullock said.

Transmission of brucellosis from bison to cattle was a concern that prompted the bill.

Steve Forrest, a Defenders of Wildlife senior representative for Rockies and Plains, said the bill would have undercut efforts to restore bison in Montana by giving politicians authority to block wild bison restoration instead of leaving decisions to FWP biologists.

"We thank Governor Bullock for listening to the majority of Montanans who strongly support bringing bison back to their historic home on the Great Plains," Forrest said.

Nancy Ereaux, secretary of the Montana Community Preservation Alliance, which supported the bill, said she was angry the governor "doesn't have respect for the senators and representatives that we have elected."

The bill passed the House by 60 percent, and the Senate by 64 percent, she said. A similar bill was presented in 2013 and it passed the House by 63 percent and the Senate by 64 percent, she said.

"This bill would not have taken any management powers away from the FWP for those counties that wanted wild bison, it would not have impacted the tribes and reservations that want to have bison, it simply would have allowed for our county commissioners to have been able to say yes or no whether wild bison would be elsewhere in their county," Ereaux said. "We don't want the government telling us what we have to live with."

The state is creating a long-term management plan for bison restoration in Montana. That could include transfers of bison to locations in the state where they've been gone for decades, which is opposed by ranching interests and supported by wildlife groups that support restoring bison to the plains.

Reach Tribune staff writer Karl Puckett at 406-791-1471, 1-800-438-6600. Twitter: GFTrib_KPuckett.