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WASHINGTON — At a time of national crises, the Senate has been able to come together on a topic both parties celebrate: the great outdoors. While the country copes with the coronavirus, an economic downturn and a reckoning over racism, lawmakers have reached bipartisan agreement on an election-year deal to double spending on a popular conservation program and devote nearly $2 billion a year to improve and maintain national parks. If approved by Congress and signed by President Donald Trump, the Great American Outdoors Act would be the most significant conservation legislation enacted in nearly half a century. The bill,

The U.S. Secretary of Agriculture, Sonny Perdue, came to Missoula on Friday to issue a wide-ranging memorandum that directs the Forest Service to “expedite environmental reviews to support active management” and “increase the productivity of national forests and grasslands.” Perdue was joined by Montana Republican gubernatorial candidate and U.S. Rep. Greg Gianforte and a host of other officials and representatives from various agencies and industries, including the Montana Stockgrowers Association and a timber company. U.S. Sen. Steve Daines, R-Montana, sent a statement of support from Washington, D.C. as well. The theme of the day was “cutting red tape” and “reducing

The U.S. Senate is moving toward passage of a major conservation bill. This week, federal lawmakers are considering the Great American Outdoors Act, which would provide $900 million annually from oil and gas royalties to conservation projects and would allocate $9.5 billion over five years to deferred maintenance on public lands. The Senate is expected to vote on the legislation soon. Montana Sens. Steve Daines and Jon Tester, both bill sponsors, have spoken in favor of its passage. On Tuesday, Daines stood on the Senate floor next to photos of the Yellowstone River and of his dogs in the Beartooth

As national parks begin reopening their gates amid public health concerns, many visitors seeking a respite from the urgency of a global pandemic may find their parks beset with crumbling roads or deteriorating buildings — problems that the U.S. Senate is poised to address this week. Americans emerging from lockdown are eager to explore their public lands, and a bipartisan coalition of senators has announced a conservation initiative that dedicates more than $9.5 billion to conserving and maintaining those public lands while improving national parks. On June 8, the U.S. Senate held a procedural vote to advance the Great American

PUBLIC LANDS PACKAGE ON THE MOVE: The Senate can formally begin debate over a massive public lands package, H.R. 1957 (116), after the measure cleared a key procedural hurdle Monday evening, 80-17. The bill, championed by Sens. Cory Gardner, Steve Daines and Joe Manchin, would permanently provide hundreds of millions of dollars annually for the Land and Water Conservation Fund and billions for the nation to repair its crumbling public lands. Amendment suspense: Majority Leader Mitch McConnell hasn’t revealed whether the chamber will consider amendments to the package, even as backers ask for a clean up-or-down vote. But he praised the bill in floor remarks Monday. “This bill has unusually broad,

If there’s one thing that unites Montanans, it’s our two iconic national parks, countless public lands, recreational sites and historical landmarks. It’s our duty to protect our state’s natural beauty. In Montana and all over the country, our national parks have fallen into disrepair. The National Parks Service has a deferred maintenance backlog of almost $12 billion, and in Montana specifically, has a backlog of more than $325 million. When our parks suffer, our environment does too. As of 2019, Glacier National Park alone brings in $484 million in local economic benefits, and Yellowstone keeps towns like Cooke City and