[{"_1":2,"_100":-5,"_101":-5},"loaderData",{"_3":4,"_26":27},"root",{"_5":6,"_17":10,"_18":19,"_20":21,"_22":10,"_23":-5,"_24":-5,"_25":10},"user",{"_7":8,"_9":10,"_11":10,"_12":-5,"_13":-5,"_14":15,"_16":-5},"roles",[],"isAuthenticated",false,"isPremium","planName","subscriptionStatus","featureFlags",{},"insightsBudget","isDevelopmentHost","userPreferences",{},"recaptchaSiteKey","6LcvOJcUAAAAAHsB-gPGfGktcRlKpH7OTIU_dMTD","isImpersonating","impersonation","affiliateStatus","isFreedomPortal","routes/v2/article/layout",{"_28":29,"_30":31},"notFound",true,"relatedArticles",[32,76,88],{"_33":34,"_35":36,"_37":38,"_39":40,"_41":42,"_43":44,"_45":46,"_47":48,"_49":50,"_51":52,"_53":54,"_55":56,"_57":58,"_59":60,"_61":62,"_63":64,"_65":66,"_67":68,"_69":70,"_71":72,"_73":74,"_75":74},"mediaId",6625962,"mediaKeyId","2755244-a96f3304c3a3e7c26511d1f61cb232e3","parentId",2755244,"title","Bill would restore lessee—rights for longstanding cabins on state trust lands","audioSeconds",1103,"startMs",289000,"endMs",1392000,"viewUrl","/Search/View?dp=1&key=2755244-a96f3304c3a3e7c26511d1f61cb232e3&start=289&end=1392","thumbnailUrl","https://assets.pipeline.soar.com/2755244-a96f3304c3a3e7c26511d1f61cb232e3/thumbnail_289000.jpg","articleUrl","/articles/6625962/Montana/Bill-would-restore-lesseerights-for-longstanding-cabins-on-state-trust-lands","mediaUrl","https://secure.pipeline.soar.com/6625962-968b732e403fbfc9f937c12fe14066d7/orig.mp4?Expires=1771204472&Signature=n6Rk3f3muOrbDzK3MhM6YPzFKeXsKHHPcEThpR63wNGXa1C-OMumkMeej8AmmSxm31r~TsV7MzAjqohr646c2DfL7goDJXJo0KaI1kEAq-soNcUK9ZTKZyReCQ7EPGgNqsCfCoDjvILxTg~bSzPJFr33ApuPfRbAkZ~6fNzpELOwMAW3h2wd9VEKt6PHJ5sLAXxpY3IWegCUIsh2VaS0yLTXbJqp5fGB0z4eQvnvGyotKRIx4VMxpsWWZAQtFmj0rZir391MXoFtoZfzDUTwwodalubdRVsZ5esIHp~Y3ff0qJn8dGc-YvjOaPXgVYdrqzQOFHIJjwHF6CV3UacXEw__&Key-Pair-Id=KUT5TJCACFTXG","author","Montana Legislature","date","2025-03-24T00:00:00Z","article","Sen. Laura Smith introduced Senate Bill 500 to restore a prior process that lets longtime lessees of state trust cabin or home sites match the highest bid when the state solicits those leases for sale.

Smith said the bill would return the sale process to how it operated previously and protect \"legacy family\" cabins that have been in families for generations. \"That's why I call this bill the Montana Family Legacy Cabin Act,\" she said.

The sponsor said the bill responds to people who worry they could be \"priced out\" of land where they have lived and improved a cabin, and said she believes the current statute may discourage lessees from entering the voluntary sale program.

Opponents emphasized the State Land Board's fiduciary duty to obtain the full market value of school trust lands. \"The full market value,\" said an opponent testifying on behalf of the State, citing Article X and the trust duties that govern state trust lands. He told the committee that nine parcels that went to competitive bid produced almost $450,000 more than the minimum bids required and argued that there is no requirement that a lessee put a lease into the sale process.

Ryan Weiss, deputy administrator for State Trust Lands at the Department of Natural Resources and Conservation, described the cabin-site sale program the 2013 Legislature created. He said the process is voluntary, typically takes \"between nine and 12 months on average,\" requires an appraisal and land board approval, and includes a preliminary approval with a set minimum bid at the appraised value, followed by an auction and final sale. Weiss said the lessee who nominates a lot may become the high bidder in many cases and that lessees who think the appraisal is too high can withdraw before competition or request an administrative hearing. Weiss gave recent sale counts: 29 lots sold in 2023, seven in 2024 and two so far this year.

Committee members questioned when a lease becomes a sale and whether lessees keep compensation for improvements; both Weiss and the sponsor confirmed lessees receive credit for improvements and that the current statutory process includes appraisal and a minimum bid. Committee members also asked how frequent competitive overbids had been; Weiss said many lessees who nominate lots were the high bidders and that some nominated lots did not sell when lessees withdrew over appraised values.

No action was taken on SB 500 during the hearing. The committee closed the public hearing after opponents and staff finished answering questions.

Votes/Action: Hearing only; no committee vote or formal action recorded.

Speakers quoted or cited in this report are drawn from the hearing record: Senator Laura Smith (sponsor); an opponent who spoke \"on behalf of the State\" (opponent representative); and Ryan Weiss, deputy administrator, State Trust Lands, Montana DNRC.

Ending: The committee closed the hearing on SB 500 and proceeded to the next bill on the calendar.","mediaType","Video","parentTitle","House Natural Resources - Mar 24, 2025 16:15 - 19:15","oneSentenceSummary","Sen. Laura Smith introduced Senate Bill 500 to restore a prior process that lets longtime lessees of state trust cabin or home sites match the highest bid when the state solicits those leases for sale.","taxTitle","2025 Legislature MT, Montana","taxId",77694,"location","Montana","headline","","shortSummary",{"_33":77,"_35":36,"_37":38,"_39":78,"_41":79,"_43":80,"_45":81,"_47":82,"_49":83,"_51":84,"_53":85,"_55":56,"_57":58,"_59":86,"_61":62,"_63":64,"_65":87,"_67":68,"_69":70,"_71":72,"_73":74,"_75":74},6625953,"Hearing on bill to ban geoengineering pits public-health concerns against cloud-seeding and snowmaking interests",3710,2498000,6208000,"/Search/View?dp=1&key=2755244-a96f3304c3a3e7c26511d1f61cb232e3&start=2498&end=6208","https://assets.pipeline.soar.com/2755244-a96f3304c3a3e7c26511d1f61cb232e3/thumbnail_2498000.jpg","/articles/6625953/Montana/Hearing-on-bill-to-ban-geoengineering-pits-public-health-concerns-against-cloud-seeding-and-snowmaking-interests","https://secure.pipeline.soar.com/6625953-b239520574447347fd28c018a9855adf/orig.mp4?Expires=1771204472&Signature=L~A9ngT2fa99lMy0b99Q-81Wyh-ddrQUNeQSOgVLu9o8JMc6QlBosVKvQIqqIN5DptUJkoLO~bX7T~RAA1NIJMtGzmJYiE33n8cdMv1Yq2MH8HlC3OvczhpBEAWxj6NHhT3E3GsgOH1i2wppL3EXS8pQSry~fqzDF3DV~ZNrAsbUch27NMp4IW~ZY6fc8uli~fTAqmNaWUyHyFOGEE2txPld4MzyF03tg5nprEvmmH2uakps5WhvS32yF7Cjs8FDuoxC~bnqK9u3OGfqjh47lxwZpRhb2T95KmSHl8Yg31rgXuFxJBvY9Z0r-ntMbyDiKziC4CY8eOWS~KOT88LAdw__&Key-Pair-Id=KUT5TJCACFTXG","Sen. Bob Phelan opened a hearing on Senate Bill 473, which would prohibit certain forms of geoengineering in Montana. Proponents described suspected atmospheric aerosol operations and urged a statutory ban; opponents — including the ski industry, agricultural and water-rights groups and DNRC — said the bill as drafted would curtail cloud seeding and operational snowmaking and hamper drought-response tools.

Phelan read the state constitutional provision on environmental protection and said he is introducing the bill to prohibit geoengineering in Montana. \"This is why we are to ban the geoengineering over the state of Montana,\" he said during opening remarks.

Proponents who spoke in favor included Robin Richardson, who described concerns about heavy metals and \"aerosolized aluminum and barium compounds\" settling into soil and water; Anne Hallowell, who told the committee she had evidence she said showed federal programs or international actions; and multiple residents who testified they had observed persistent streaks or grids of aircraft trails and reported health and garden impacts. Witness Aaron Nelson, an engineer, quoted EPA descriptions of particulate-matter health risks and cited academic discussion that stratospheric aerosol injection could change concentrations of tropospheric ozone and particulate matter.

Opponents urged caution and narrower drafting. Jim Hagenbarth (handout materials) and others described cloud seeding as a distinct, localized weather-modification tool and provided studies and Idaho examples showing cloud-seeding programs intended to increase mountain snowpack. Amy Grama, speaking for the state ski-area organization, said the bill's language would ban ordinary snowmaking operations and asked the committee not to remove that tool; Brian Thompson of the Senior Water Rights Coalition and Parker Cardwell (a cloud-seeding practitioner) warned that the bill could eliminate scientific, site-specific cloud-seeding projects used to increase water supply.

Parker Cardwell and other technical witnesses explained the distinction the committee members had repeatedly raised: cloud seeding operates in low-altitude cloud layers (often between roughly 3,000 and 15,000 feet) and requires the presence of supercooled liquid water in clouds; stratospheric aerosol injection or \"geoengineering\" has been discussed in research settings at much higher altitudes and would be a global-scale intervention intended to alter incoming solar radiation. Cardwell said cloud seeding is local, low-altitude and targeted to watersheds.

Michael Downey, DNRC's drought program coordinator, told the committee that Montana has not run cloud-seeding programs in decades: \"Not since, '92, '93,\" he said, adding that a 1993 enactment (SB 72) imposed an environmental review process and a large bond requirement that effectively prohibited cloud-seeding programs. Downey said he was not aware of any federal geoengineering program operating over Montana.

Committee members and witnesses also debated amendments and drafting: the sponsor acknowledged an amendment was intended to exempt agricultural operations and said the senate had considered related language shortly before transmittal; there was confusion in the hearing record about which amended text was available to the committee at the time of the House hearing. Several witnesses urged the committee to distinguish between solar-radiation-management research and operational cloud-seeding or snowmaking activities.

No committee vote was recorded during the hearing.

Speakers quoted or cited in this report are drawn from the hearing record: Senator Bob Phelan (sponsor); proponents Robin Richardson, Anne Hallowell, Aaron Nelson, Cheryl Ross and others; opponents Jim Hagenbarth, Amy Grama (Montana ski areas), Brian Thompson (Senior Water Rights Coalition), Parker Cardwell (cloud-seeding practitioner), Jeff Lucas (Trout Unlimited), Sheridan Hoyer (Montana Chamber of Commerce); and Michael Downey (DNRC drought program coordinator).

Ending: The committee closed the hearing after extended testimony and debate over drafting and the distinction between geoengineering and localized cloud-seeding; members requested clarification of amendments and statutory language before any executive action.","Sen. Bob Phelan introduced SB 473 to prohibit geoengineering in Montana. Supporters described alleged aerosol spraying and local health and environmental harms; opponents said the bill confuses \"geoengineering\" with cloud seeding and snowmaking, and warned an overly broad ban would remove tools used to augment snowpack and water supply. DNRC and",{"_33":89,"_35":36,"_37":38,"_39":90,"_41":91,"_43":92,"_45":93,"_47":94,"_49":95,"_51":96,"_53":97,"_55":56,"_57":58,"_59":98,"_61":62,"_63":64,"_65":99,"_67":68,"_69":70,"_71":72,"_73":74,"_75":74},6625958,"Bill would set minimum 10-year primary term for mineral leases on state trust lands",1072,1408000,2480000,"/Search/View?dp=1&key=2755244-a96f3304c3a3e7c26511d1f61cb232e3&start=1408&end=2480","https://assets.pipeline.soar.com/2755244-a96f3304c3a3e7c26511d1f61cb232e3/thumbnail_1408000.jpg","/articles/6625958/Montana/Bill-would-set-minimum-10-year-primary-term-for-mineral-leases-on-state-trust-lands","https://secure.pipeline.soar.com/6625958-515a60353aa85874faac2b0c50d57178/orig.mp4?Expires=1771204472&Signature=hrTHIVwdiNwXt2MlaOkijxDcPqcKQCDn7MXGCSklVOgIp6ABTTIGpF8GAGYcQhKJ8mj9KFf7qvF8VuEVEb02RNju4RlRI9DHYV8xQiBIJV1SGHSwBlTQIoYtF48E1WgRLx08s5yXwCHk50xdol~ozSvy1vfM1ux47vb-5U8twb6El0PEUGc-P2Sf4lcxyrLcbdDS2jQKKV1q-hLViznbL7Ao2mb1SMftYmuDVY9labaOgzLP0z4vcsanGEjvVWcRJOmt~jLKZMMUCDihZXYIg1GvlpRu-bfBaKOxbOCBSFtbOgPSIo7~nzRQtLykP-~GBbUKCxZfbzoMGUda3zLykA__&Key-Pair-Id=KUT5TJCACFTXG","Sen. Tony Tzczak opened a hearing on Senate Bill 520, which would revise the terms of mineral leases on state trust lands to provide a primary lease term of not less than 10 years and permit continuing extensions for time lost to permitting or legal challenges.

Tzczak said Montana lacks lease-term protections that neighboring states provide and that a defined term would encourage investment and exploration that could generate revenue for schools and jobs. \"The 10 years is gonna give some incentive for companies to come in and look at that,\" he said in closing.

Proponents included Matt Vincent of the Montana Mining Association, who said an undefined primary term put Montana at a competitive disadvantage and that many Western states use defined 10-year terms. The Montana Contractors Association and statements \"on behalf of Madam Secretary Christy Jacobson\" were also recorded in support.

Opponents raised statutory drafting and public-interest concerns. Derf Johnson of the Montana Environmental Information Center asked the committee to clarify a provision that automatically extends the primary term for the period a permit is \"subject to challenge\"; he argued the current drafting could extend leases for any litigation rather than only permit-related suspensions and recommended linking extensions to permit suspensions or stop-work orders. Johnson also urged preservation of the existing public process that determines whether geological or commercial information is confidential, saying the bill's language could improperly withhold geological information the public needs for assessing environmental and bonding risks.

Committee members asked technical questions about whether the bill applies to oil and gas (it does not) and whether the bill aligns with existing oil, gas and coal lease statutes. Members noted potential drafting problems: representatives pointed out the bill's text uses \"not less than 10 years\" while existing oil-and-gas statutes use a primary term \"not more than 10 years,\" and asked the sponsor and counsel to review the alignment.

Informational witnesses included Trevor Taylor. The committee discussed whether confidentiality provisions should read \"may\" or \"shall\" when protecting proprietary geological data; proponents and committee members discussed existing DEQ rules on confidentiality and whether the bill should adopt a \"shall\" standard to ensure predictability for applicants.

Sen. Tzczak said the bill is intended to provide certainty for companies to justify the up-front investment required for exploration and permitting; he urged a do-pass recommendation.

No committee vote was recorded during the hearing.

Speakers quoted or cited in this report are drawn from the hearing record: Senator Tony Tzczak (sponsor); Matt Vincent (Montana Mining Association); Derf Johnson (Montana Environmental Information Center); Trevor Taylor (informational witness).","Sen. Tony Tzczak sponsored Senate Bill 520 to standardize mineral lease terms for metallic and nonmetallic minerals on state trust lands by setting a primary term of not less than 10 years and allowing extensions for time lost to permitting or litigation. Proponents said the change brings Montana in line with surrounding states to attract mining,","actionData","errors"]

Article not found

Bill would restore lessee—rights for longstanding cabins on state trust lands

Hearing on bill to ban geoengineering pits public-health concerns against cloud-seeding and snowmaking interests

Bill would set minimum 10-year primary term for mineral leases on state trust lands