State of Montana Newsroom
Governor Gianforte Welcomes BLM Decision Restoring Multiple-Use Management
HELENA, Mont. – Governor Greg Gianforte today welcomed the Bureau of Land Management’s (BLM) final decision to rescind the Biden administration’s Conservation and Landscape Health Rule, which sought to undermine grazing, recreation, timber, and energy development on public lands.
“This decision by BLM is a win for public land users, our rural communities, and the rule of law,” Gov. Gianforte said. “For years, Montana has raised concerns that this rule would undermine multiple-use land management and threaten productive uses of public lands. I’m grateful to President Donald J. Trump, Secretary Doug Burgum, and BLM for listening to Montanans, fellow governors, and restoring common sense to federal land management.”
The Conservation and Landscape Health Rule, finalized under the Biden administration, sought to elevate conservation to an equal status with uses of public lands, including grazing, recreation, timber, energy, and mineral development. Since the rule was first proposed in 2023, Gov. Gianforte has opposed it, arguing it would depart from the Federal Land Policy and Management Act’s (FLPMA) requirement that BLM manage its lands for “multiple use and sustained yield.”
In June 2023, Gov. Gianforte joined western governors in urging then-Secretary Deb Haaland to withdraw the proposed rule and work with states, local governments, and stakeholders on land management policies that enhance active management and actual conservation within the framework of multiple use and sustained yield.
In November 2025, Gov. Gianforte wrote BLM in strong support of rescinding the rule, stating that the FLPMA “directs that public lands be managed for ‘multiple use and sustained yield,’ meaning ‘the combination that will best meet the present and future needs of the American people’ across grazing, minerals, recreation, wildlife, and timber uses.”
In the same letter, the governor warned that the rule risked tilting federal land management decisions toward non-use, even where productive uses are consistent with the land’s capabilities. He also raised concerns that the rule significantly expanded Areas of Critical Environmental Concern, allowing temporary management restrictions without the full procedural safeguards typically required, including robust public input as well as state and local consultation.
The action on FLPMA follows BLM’s final decision last week to cancel grazing permits previously issued to the American Prairie Reserve for the non-profit’s rewilded, conservation bison herd. The governor has consistently urged federal agencies to follow the law, coordinate with state officials, and protect Montana’s number one industry.
You can view the June 2023 letter here and the November 2025 letter here.
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