Glacier National Park’s border with Canada is marked by broad prairies and majestic mountains. A bill in Congress co-sponsored by Rep. Dennis Rehberg could conceivably allow the Department of Homeland Security to put roads and other access venues in areas currently managed as wilderness.

The proposed “National Security and Federal Lands Protection Act” would give Homeland Security broad powers over land that borders foreign countries.

According to the bill, “The Secretary of Homeland Security shall have immediate access to any public land managed by the federal government (including land managed by the Secretary of the Interior or the Secretary of Agriculture) for purposes of conducting activities that assist in securing the border (including access to maintain and construct roads, construct a fence, use vehicles to patrol, and set up monitoring equipment).”

The bill also would allow Homeland Security to waive a host of environmental laws…

Continue reading . . .

Gray wolves returned to the crosshairs of Montana’s congressional delegation Wednesday.

Rep. Denny Rehberg announced the introduction of two pieces of legislation that would permanently remove them from the protections of the Endangered Species Act, and Sen. Jon Tester sent a letter to Interior Secretary Ken Salazar asking him to allow hunting of wolves in Montana to control their population growth.

Continue reading . . .

(Note that there was also a supporting resolution passed in the Montana House.)

Here’s an overview of the more notable local and regional coverage . . .

• The Daily Inter Lake has a pretty good write-up on Rep. Denny Rehberg’s local hearing on the impact of relisting gray wolves under the Endangered Species Act.
• Bill Schneider unloads on pro-wolf groups in the Flathead Beacon for refusing to consider any comprimise on wolf protection. He argues that the political backlash may put the integrity of the Endangered Species Act at risk. He also provides an excellent summary of the various legislative proposals floating around right now.
• By contrast, there’s an AP article in the Missoulian indicating that Montana, at least, is trying to reach a settlement with environmental groups that successfully sued to put wolves back under federal protection.
• At the same time, both Montana and Idaho are trying to get the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service to allow limited wolf hunts in certain areas under something called the “10(j) rule.” Go figure.

Just days after Republican Congressman Denny Rehberg announced that he had drafted legislation that would remove the gray wolf from the Endangered Species List, Montana’s Democratic Sens. Max Baucus and Jon Tester said they were introducing a similar bill.

Read the full article . . .

A late post to today’s Missoulian . . .

Montana and Idaho could win back state management of gray wolves through legislation offered by senators Max Baucus and Jon Tester late Tuesday.

The state’s two Democratic senators introduced their bill in the Senate Environment and Public Works Committee. Republican Rep. Denny Rehberg drafted a bill removing wolves from Endangered Species Act protection on Sept. 15, but has not introduced it yet.

Read the full article . . .

Rep. Denny Rehberg, R-Mont., announced Monday that he will host three hearings — including one in Kalispell on Oct. 6 — on the impacts of relisting gray wolves under the Endangered Species Act.

Rehberg is interested in a legislative solution…

The Oct. 6 meeting in Kalispell will be held from 10 a.m. to noon at Flathead Valley Community College’s Arts and Technology building…

Read the full article . . .

Rehberg has posted the proposed bill on his website and is asking for public comment. The site’s “Wolf Management” page includes a link to the bill, as well as an online feedback form. But, be warned, submitting comments through that form automatically places you on his mailing list.

A brief article in today’s Flathead Beacon provides links to additional background information.

Montana Rep. Denny Rehberg released draft legislation Thursday that would prohibit treating gray wolves in Montana and Idaho as endangered species and turn management of them exclusively over to the states.

The brief, two-page draft is meant to be a starting point for legislation that he hopes to present to the House of Representatives soon.

Read the full article . . .

An AP article by Matthew Brown posted today offers a good overview of the situation with Rehberg and some interesting analysis. Here’s the money quote:

As Rehberg tours the state this week to gauge public support for the measure, observers say where the Republican comes down could either help seal Tester’s biggest legislative achievement since his 2006 election — or put up a major roadblock to the bill’s success.

Read the entire article . . .

Read the press release for details.