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JOINT RESOLUTION NO.
INTRODUCED BY
(Primary Sponsor)
A JOINT RESOLUTION OF THE SENATE AND THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES OF THE STATE OF MONTANA URGING THE UNITED STATES SECRETARY OF THE INTERIOR AND THE DIRECTOR OF THE NATIONAL PARK SERVICE TO IMPOSE WILDLIFE CONSERVATION FEES AT GLACIER AND YELLOWSTONE NATIONAL PARKS TO PROTECT WILDLIFE AND BENEFIT VISITORS.
WHEREAS, Yellowstone National Park and Glacier National Park are rich in wildlife and attract millions of visitors each year; and
WHEREAS, the wildlife in Yellowstone National Park and Glacier National Park migrate throughout the year within and outside the boundaries of the parks and across adjacent public, private, tribal, and state lands; and
WHEREAS, a significant portion of the winter and transitional habitats of these wildlife, in particular the habitats of big game animals and large carnivores, are provided by these adjacent lands; and
WHEREAS, fish and wildlife agencies in the states adjacent to Yellowstone National Park and the Montana Department of Fish, Wildlife and Parks and the Blackfeet Nation Fish and Wildlife Department adjacent to Glacier National Park are financially responsible for managing their wildlife, protecting wildlife migration corridors and wildlife habitats, and mitigating wildlife-related impacts; and
WHEREAS, these states and the Blackfeet Nation are also financially responsible for improving human safety, reducing wildlife-vehicle collisions, and resolving conflicts with big game animals and large carnivores that migrate to and from Yellowstone and Glacier National Parks; and
WHEREAS, federal support for state fish and wildlife management through funds provided through the Dingell-Johnson and Pittman-Robertson Acts have a proven track record of building federal-state partnerships and underwriting critically important wildlife management programs; and
WHEREAS, the wildlife viewing opportunities that millions of visitors from around the nation and the world enjoy in Yellowstone and Glacier National Parks are dependent on the wildlife management programs taking place on adjacent state and tribal lands; and
WHEREAS, states request the assistance of all Yellowstone and Glacier National Park visitors to pay a fee to protect and mitigate impacts to wildlife and the public within and outside the boundaries of the parks; and
WHEREAS, the imposition of a wildlife conservation fee is important to the benefits and services provided to visitors; and
WHEREAS, the wildlife conservation fee will be prioritized to address the responsibilities described above but will allow the states to utilize a portion of these wildlife conservation fees for general wildlife management in their states and on the Blackfeet Reservation; and
WHEREAS, the Wyoming Legislature overwhelmingly passed a resolution asking the Department of the Interior and the National Park Service to impose a wildlife conservation fee for Yellowstone and Grant Teton National Parks that complements this resolution.
NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED BY THE SENATE AND THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES OF THE STATE OF MONTANA:
That the Montana Legislature requests the United States Secretary of the Interior and the Director of the National Park Service to enter into an agreement with the States of Montana, Wyoming, and Idaho to impose a wildlife conservation fee at Yellowstone National Park and with the State of Montana and the Blackfeet Nation to impose a wildlife conservation fee at Glacier National Park.
BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED, that the agreements provide that the revenue collected from the fee be transferred back to the states and the Blackfeet Nation for wildlife conservation programs.
BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED, that the secretary of state transmit copies of this resolution to the Montana Congressional Delegation, to the United States Secretary of the Interior, to the Director of the National Park Service, to the Governors of Wyoming, Montana, and Idaho, and to the chairman of the Blackfeet Tribal Business Council.
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Latest Version of LC 2941 (LC2941.01)
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