Montana lawmakers proposed several bills designed to shape bison management in the state.
The bills include hot-button issues such as the movement of bison throughout the state without a state health certificate, requiring county approval to relocate bison, and the clarification of wild versus domestic bison.
Bison in the state have been a contentious issue with the transmission risk of brucellosis to livestock. The Montana Department of Livestock mitigates this disease’s spread and has implemented systems and practices to control and prevent its spread.
Bison in Yellowstone National Park are managed under the Interagency Bison Management Plan, which regulates the park’s population and prevents wild bison from transmitting brucellosis to livestock. The plan includes strict rules on the transportation of animals in the state to avoid any transmission of the disease.
House Bills 311, 312
House Bill (HB) 311 and 312, sponsored by Rep. Marvin Weatherwax (D-15-Browning), proposes to ease the regulatory hurdles of transferring bison to Indian reservations.
HB 311 proposes that a state health certificate or permit from the Montana Department of Livestock is not required when transporting bison from “national parks, preserves, or another reservation unless the department shows clear and convincing evidence the animal is a significant danger to the public health” to tribal land in the state.
HB 312 states a certification from the state veterinarian that a bison is brucellosis-free is not required when the animal is transferred from a federal agency to a tribal entity for quarantine.
According to the Bozeman Daily Chronicle, Weatherwax stated HB 312 clears barriers preventing more bison from being quarantined in corrals at the Fort Peck Indian Reservation. Weatherwax asserted the USDA’s Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service already tests bison thoroughly, so state certification is unnecessary.
The Montana Farm Bureau and Montana Department of Livestock oppose the bills, stating the state has “worked hard to implement systems and practices to control and prevent” the spread of brucellosis.
The department has a quarantine facility near Yellowstone National Park within the state’s designated surveillance area (DSA), where bison are held and tested to ensure the animals are brucellosis free. Once they are deemed safe, the animals are transferred to tribal lands or other parts of the state.
“We agree with the Department of Livestock’s process that already works,” Rachel Cone, director of state affairs with Montana Farm Bureau (MFB), told WLJ. “Disease prevention and control of all the risks associated with brucellosis is very important to us, from spreading it to other wildlife to spreading it to livestock, even to the public. We want to ensure that Montana can keep its brucellosis-free status by keeping the DSA.”
Gilles Stockton, president of the Montana Cattlemen’s Association (MCA), told WLJ in an email they are not opposed to tribes managing bison within the jurisdiction boundary of their reservation. “But that jurisdiction stops at the reservation’s borders, and any bison outside of the reservation are considered to be livestock and are subject to the various laws that govern the movement of livestock. This is as it should be.”
Ervin Carlson, a member of the Blackfeet Nation and director of the Blackfeet Buffalo Program, spoke in support of HB 311 at the hearing before the Agriculture Committee. Carlson said the genetic health of the tribe’s herds depends on the importation of bison from other herds and decreasing the burden of transfers helps to “ensure our buffalo and our people stay as healthy as possible.”
HB 302
Introduced by Rep. Joshua Kassmier (R-27-Fort Benton), HB 302 would require county approval to relocate wild bison or buffalo even if the animals are certified brucellosis free. A county commission would have to authorize any transplant proposed by the state.
Stockton stated HB 302 has more potential to solve the concerns over the management status of bison. Although it is uncertain if counties have the authority, some counties have already passed ordinances regulating bison along with a position opposing wild bison within their county.
“It would perhaps be more effective if the state of Montana passed a law prohibiting the establishment of wild bison anywhere within the state’s jurisdiction,” said Stockton. “That too would be challenged in courts, but a strong case could be made why this is necessary and why the state has that authority.”
The bill was scheduled to be heard by the Agriculture Committee on Feb. 23.
HB 318
HB 318, sponsored by Rep. Kenneth Holmlund (R-38-Miles City), seeks to clarify the definition of wild bison or wild buffalo and whether the per-capita fee applies to certain domestic bison. The bill defines “wild bison” as animals that have “not been reduced to captivity,” never been owned by a person and have never been subject to the per-capita fee. The bill also says the state may not impose a per-capita fee on “bison owned by a tribal member and located on fee land or tribal land within the boundaries of a reservation.”
MFB and MCA support the bill, but Stockton stated it is a “good attempt but a circuitous way to go about it.”
Stockton said there are two loopholes in the bill. The first is “bison under the age of 9 months, born of a domestic bison, but never handled—wild or domestic? The per-capita fee is not levied on bison under 9 months of age, so that clause in HB 318 does not pertain.” The second loophole concerns whether bison termed as wild and raised on a reservation under management conditions are still considered wild off the reservation.
“MCA has no objection to anyone or any organization from establishing herds of bison on their private land and managing them as they wish. As long as they recognize that under the statutes of the state of Montana, these bison are legally considered to be livestock,” said Stockton.
The bill passed the Agriculture Committee on Feb. 19 on an 11-6 vote. A similar bill passed by the 2019 Legislature was vetoed by then-governor Steve Bullock (D). Stockton believes Gov. Greg Gianforte (R) will sign the bill, but “this bill may be challenged in court.”
Lastly, Senate Bill 255, sponsored by Sen. Pat Flowers (D-32-Belgrade), would establish an auction for wild bison tags to manage the animals. An approved wildlife conservation organization would conduct the auction of one license per individual each year, with the organization retaining 10 percent of the fees collected for expenses. The balance would go towards managing wild bison, similar to programs for other big game species such as bighorn sheep or elk. — Charles Wallace, WLJ editor
