Frank Szollosi - Montana Wildlife Federation

Now is the time to speak up for Montana’s backcountry, wildlife & fisheries

September 8, 2025September 7, 2025 by Frank Szollosi

The administration gave the public just three weeks to weigh in on a proposal that will negatively impact the management of 6 million acres of Montana backcountry. The proposal threatens to disrupt elk distribution, compromise the headwaters of our blue-ribbon trout streams and clean drinking water, and fragment habitat for Montana’s wildlife that depend on undisturbed backcountry, such as bighorn sheep, mountain goats, grizzly bears, lynx, wolverines, Harlequin ducks, bull trout, and more. Three weeks simply isn’t enough time for hunters, anglers, local communities, and conservationists to have our say.

Here’s what we need to do right now:

1. Ask the USDA to extend the public comment period, which is scheduled to end on September 19th. Submit your comment directly through the Federal Register here. Tell USDA to keep the Roadless Rule in place, extend the comment period, and protect the public lands and wildlife that define our way of life.

2. Call Montana’s congressional delegation. Tell them to stand up for YOUR backcountry and headwaters and Montana’s wildlife.

Senator Steve Daines (406-245-6822)

Senator Tim Sheehy (202-224-2644)

Representative Ryan Zinke (202-225-5628)

Representative Troy Downing (202-225-3211)

You can also use the form below to send a note to your Congressional delegation and demand they take action.

Your federal elected officials are also influenced by Montana’s County Commissioners. Use this link to look up the contact information in your county, and ask your County Commissioners to take action.

Now is the time to speak up to keep Montana’s backcountry open, intact, and teeming with fish and wildlife.

Here are some facts to counter misinformation.

Opposition to the Roadless Rule comes from misinformation that roadless areas “lock up” these areas and prevent management. This is false. Here are the facts about USFS roadless areas in Montana:

The Roadless Rule was enacted in 2001 after 430 public meetings with more than 23,000 people attending. More than 1.6 million public comments were received, and 95% of these comments supported roadless lands protection.

Since the 2001 roadless rule went into effect, more than 188,393 acres of hazardous fuels treatments have been conducted in roadless areas in Montana. This is 20% of the hazardous fuel treatments in Montana since 2001.
93% of summer elk habitat is within roadless areas. These roadless lands are critical to the health of our elk populations in Montana. Roadless lands provide secure habitat that allows us to have 5-week elk seasons in Montana. Withdrawing the roadless rule will require the shortening of Montana’s elk season to the detriment of all elk hunters.
Many roadless areas are open to motorized trails and use by ATVs and other such motorized uses. In fact, 32% of the motorized trails on USFS lands in Montana are in roadless areas.
Roads negatively impact trout and trout streams through sediment, pollution, and altered stream channels. 79% of roadless lands in Montana are home to native trout like Westslope cutthroat trout, bull trout, and Yellowstone cutthroat trout.
Roadless lands provide secure areas from human-caused forest fires because 78% of human-caused fires on USFS lands occur within a half-mile of a road. 85% of all wildfires are human-caused.
Grazing allotments are an important factor in Montana roadless areas. 2.2 million acres of grazing allotments occur in roadless areas in Montana – this is 33% of all grazing allotments on USFS lands in Montana.
More than 90% of roadless areas in Montana are recognized as having low or very low potential for energy development. The 2001 roadless rule recognizes valid existing rights for oil and gas development, and it does not prohibit new leases.
There are already more than 370,000 miles of existing roads on National Forest lands. The USFS currently has $8.6 billion in deferred maintenance on existing USFS roads. This means the USFS cannot come close to maintaining all the roads they currently have, never mind building new roads.

Use the form below to send a message to Steve Daines, Tim Sheehy, Ryan Zinke, and Troy Downing

Elk photo credit: Mathew Schwartz

Oppose White House Budget “Gut-Punch” to American Public Lands

June 2, 2025 by Frank Szollosi

Hunters, Anglers and Montanans Call on Senators Daines and Sheehy to Rally Opposition to White House Budget “Gut-Punch” to American Public Lands

Call 202-224-3121 and ask Senator Daines and Senator Sheehy to Oppose The White House Flip-flop on the Land and Water Conservation Fund & Devastating Cuts to American Public Lands

Late last Friday night, The White House released more details of its federal budget proposal, which would devastate American public lands, National Parks, and public land managers across Montana. Among the most significant concerns is the President’s flip-flop on the Land and Water Conservation Fund, which was permanently authorized in 2020 by Senator Steve Daines’ Great American Outdoors Act (GAOA) and is administered in the state by the Montana Department of Fish, Wildlife and Parks. The GAOA, which was signed into law by President Trump during his first term, requires funds to be spent on acquiring new public land, rather than being siphoned for maintenance.

Montana Wildlife Federation Executive Director Frank Szollosi issued the following statement:

“We stood shoulder to shoulder with Senator Daines in his fight to permanently authorize LWCF, which has helped fund nearly 800 projects across Montana over the past 60 years. We stood with Senator Daines at Roosevelt Arch to celebrate when President Trump signed the permanent authorization into law in 2020. And we look forward to standing with him again today in opposition to the White House’s gut-punch to Montana hunters, anglers, and communities. The President can’t go back on his word.”

“Take a look at the Blackfoot River. It has $20 million in current pending projects slated for funding that would be lost, as would critical projects along the Rocky Mountain Front and in the Lolo National Forest. These are among the key wildlife habitats and outdoor recreation areas in the queue for LWCF, providing access for sportsmen and women throughout the state and bolstering our local rural economies, protecting Montana’s way of life. If this proposal goes forward, these vital places will be needlessly damaged.”

Per an analysis by the Center for Western Priorities, the White House budget would also be responsible for the following cuts:

National Park Service

$897 million (34%) from park management
5,518 full time equivalent (FTE) positions (40%)

Bureau of Land Management

$45 million (75%) from national monuments and national conservation areas
$114 million (77%) from wildlife habitat
$45 million (67%) from transportation and facilities maintenance
$45 million (63%) from recreation management
$156 million (52%) from land resources
$30 million (53%) from water resources
$57 million (36%) from resource protection
1,157 FTE positions (22%)

Bureau of Indian Affairs

$140 million (25%) from public safety

National Forest System (U.S. Forest Service)

4,636 FTE positions (33%)

4 week federal permitting puts Montana lands & wildlife at risk

April 24, 2025 by Frank Szollosi

Montana hunters & anglers object to ignoring rules & public comment to fast-track oil & gas extraction

Call on Senators Daines & Sheehy & Representatives Zinke & Downing to defend working & public land & public input

Reacting to the announcement of the U.S. Department of the Interior’s “emergency” plan to change permitting processes for mining, oil and gas, and other select minerals and energy sources, the Montana Wildlife Federation issued the following statement, attributable to Executive Director Frank Szollosi.

“The only emergency that Montana’s hunters and anglers can discern is chaotic decision-making by the federal government. Secretary Doug Burgum swore to uphold the Interior Department’s mission to “protect and manage the Nation’s natural resources.” When oil and gas production is already at a record high, it marks an extreme move to cut Montanans from decisions about where industry drills.

This sop to special interests will negatively impact public land, Montana farms and ranches, Montana rivers and streams, and our wildlife. A federal emergency declaration could overrule private property rights and greenlight extractive drilling on private lands where oil and gas resources are federally owned without consulting landowners. Our families, wildlife, and communities deserve a balanced approach that respects responsible development and local expertise.

Montanans know our lands best, and we should maintain our rightful role in determining where and how development occurs on our public lands. We call on our delegation, especially Senator Daines and Senator Sheehy, who supported Burgum’s confirmation earlier this year, to defend public input and working and public lands across Montana.”

Background from the Natural Resources Defense Council:

Under the guise of a “National Energy Emergency,” the department is slashing permitting timelines and overriding safeguards under the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA), Endangered Species Act (ESA), and National Historic Preservation Act (NHPA).

These changes will sideline the public, short-circuit Tribal consultation, and open public lands and oceans to drilling, mining, and other industrial development with minimal oversight.

No legal basis: The administration’s move to bypass environmental law is unprecedented and legally dubious. It directly conflicts with decades of established policy and practice under NEPA, ESA, and the NHPA.
Rubber-stamp approvals: Projects that once required thorough environmental review and public engagement will now bypass critical protections, reducing permitting to a hollow, rubber-stamp process.
Public silenced: The rule slashes—and in some cases eliminates entirely—public comment windows and short-circuits Tribal consultation processes, minimizing the role of communities, scientists, and local governments.
Endangered species and cultural sites at risk: By gutting Endangered Species Act and National Historic Preservation Act safeguards, the policy leaves wildlife, habitat and sacred cultural sites vulnerable to destruction.
All for extraction: Despite being pitched as energy-neutral, this change overwhelmingly benefits oil, gas, coal, and mining companies—opening public lands and waters to dangerous exploitation under the cover of emergency.

MWF Supports Public Land and Wildlife Professionals

February 20, 2025February 17, 2025 by Frank Szollosi

The Montana Wildlife Federation roots trace back to 1936 when hunters, anglers and other conservationists joined landowners to address the loss of Montana’s natural lands, healthy waters and abundant wildlife. Since then, MWF has championed scientific wildlife management and fought to conserve the great natural resources found in this state and wildlife populations have rebounded. This legacy is maintained through our dedicated staff and volunteers, and our steadfast support of wildlife and habitat professionals within both the public and private sectors.

Federal Workforce Under Attack

Earlier this month, the Montana Wildlife Federation sent a letter to our four-person federal delegation, voicing concern for federal workers, especially those who provide valuable services supporting wildlife, habitat and public access.

ince then, thousands of federal employees have been terminated from key agencies, including the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, National Park Service, U.S. Forest Service, Bureau of Land Management, and departments that assist farmers, ranchers, veterans, tribes, and rural communities. These are the people who manage our public lands, protect endangered species, restore habitat, and ensure outdoor access for Montanans—and their absence is already having dire consequences.

Fortunately, the judicial branch has intervened in multiple cases, preventing further erosion of federal law, the U.S. Constitution, and the integrity of our public workforce. However, the damage is already being felt on the ground.

Conservation Efforts Stalled

In addition, conservation projects in Montana have already been negatively impacted by the Administration’s freezing of federal funding, in abject contradiction to acts of Congress. Governor Greg Gianforte has issued a statewide temporary stop work order through the Montana Department of Natural Resources and Conservation: 20250211_Temporary Pause on Federally Funded DNRC Projects_Letter (002) (1) (1)

We repeat our call for Montana’s federal legislators to step up, act to protect science and our federal workforce and provide Congressional oversight.

As of February 17—President’s Day—we have only received a response from Senator Steve Daines. His response ignores our concerns about how politicians, unelected billionaires, and their unqualified minions are threatening and bullying federal agencies and federal employees.

MWF’s Four Core Asks of Our Congressional Leadership:

1 Insist that the federal civil service remain non-partisan and that political operatives not be inserted into career civil service positions.

2. Defend the impartiality of public service.

3. Promote a positive work environment where employees are not subject to threats to their employment that have nothing to do with job performance.

4. Conduct appropriate oversight of political or self-dealing tampering with career civil service jobs and hiring and firing of government employees.

Attached is our letter and the Daines response.

We’ll gladly share responses from Senator Sheehy and Representatives Zinke and Downing should we receive them.

MWF letter in support of career federal employees (1)

Contact Montana’s Congressional Delegation:

It is critically important that every one of us who cares about Montana SPEAK UP TO OUR CONGRESSIONAL REPRESENTATIVES to help our friends and neighbors who work for agencies and are now being fired and whose careers are at an end. Please call and tell them what you think and ask that they reverse this destruction of our agencies and our Montana way of life.

Senator Steve Daines: 202-244-3121 DC or 406-453-0148 Great Falls

Senator Tim Sheehy: 202-224-2644 DC or 406-452-9587 Great Falls

Representative Ryan Zinke: 202-225-5628 DC or 406-413-6720 Bozeman

Representative Troy Downing: 202-225-3211 DC or in-state 406-413-6720

Protecting Montana’s Public Lands from Utah’s Land Grab

November 18, 2024November 18, 2024 by Frank Szollosi

Utah politicians have a history of trying to sell off public land to benefit the real estate developers and extractive industries that fund them. Recently, the State of Utah filed a lawsuit in the United States Supreme Court, aiming to seize control of 18.5 million acres of America’s public lands within the state’s borders. And now 13 other states have joined in support of it. But not the State of Montana. Thanks, Governor and Attorney General, let’s keep it that way.

While Utah claims it only wants to manage these lands, history shows that—when given the opportunity—it opens the door to massive sell-offs of public lands to private interests. Let’s not mince words: Utah’s ultimate goal is to sell off all federal public lands to the highest bidder at the expense of wildlife, habitat and public access. If this effort succeeds, it could jeopardize the future of public lands everywhere, especially across the West and here in Montana.

Utah’s lawsuit claims the federal government can constitutionally only own property for military bases and the nation’s capital. By that logic, the federal government couldn’t own any Bureau of Land Management lands, national forests, national parks, monuments, or wildlife refuges across the United States.

The consequences would be devastating. Ranchers could find grazing fees much, much higher. Our state budget would be burdened with millions of dollars in new obligations for fire suppression and extractive industry permitting. Rural communities would face even greater disruption as prized parcels get sold to and developed by absentee landowners. Wildlife habitat and migration routes would be further compromised. And the access to public lands and waters we treasure here in Montana could be lost forever.

This is our call to action. Sign this petition encouraging Montana Governor Greg Gianforte and Montana Attorney General Austin Knudsen to stand firm and reject Utah’s public land heist.

We’ll make sure your voices are heard. The petition will be delivered to Montana’s Governor and Attorney General, shared with all 150 incoming Montana State Senators and Representatives convening in Helena in January 2025, and sent to our new Congressional delegation and the incoming Trump Administration.

We’ll also keep you posted on the latest developments of this extraordinary test of character of Montana elected officials.