Gianforte Scraps Plan For Free-Roaming Bison
Montana officials are butting heads over the future of the national mammal. At stake is whether bison should be treated as livestock or as wildlife. New legislation and policy changes under the Gianforte administration are derailing hopes of establishing the first free-roaming bison herds in the state.
It’s baby bison season in Yellowstone National Park. Tourists are pulled off on the side of the road, marveling at newborns a couple hundred yards away. One tourist, Kathie King, is from Butte. Oh, the babies,” she laughs. “That’s why we like this time of year. To see the babies.”
HELENA, Mont. (MAY 10, 2021) – Livestock producers around Montana are thrilled with the recent signing of House Bills (HB) 14 and 632 by Governor Greg Gianforte. Both bills included $26 million in funding for infrastructure investments to build a new Montana Department of Livestock’s Veterinary Diagnostic Laboratory.
“Securing funding for a new facility was Montana Stockgrowers Assocaition’s (MSGA) number one priority this legislative session,” shared Jim Steinbiesser, MSGA President. “This facility is paramount in protecting the annual $2 billion cattle industry in our state. Not only does the veterinary diagnostic lab serve the cattle industry but also plays a key role in wildlife and public health safety.”
When and where to turnout to make the most of available grass
Krista Ehlert – SDSU Extension Range SpecialistMay 4, 2021Agriculture News
Photo Lauren Chase, Montana Stockgrowers Association
BROOKINGS, SD – There’s nothing like green grass to remind many of us how much we love the livestock business. Amid market highs and lows, droughts, blizzards and floods, it is encouraging to remember how reliable the progression of seasons is. Every year at green-up, grass managers must make decisions about when and where to begin grazing.
Considerations include hay reserves, the cost of purchasing additional feed and the impact of early grazing on pasture grasses. How long should you continue to feed, delaying the impact of grazing on pastures? How early can you turn out, relieving the cost of feeding? Which pasture do you graze first? The answer to these questions is: It depends! You may have several options, depending on your pasture resources, your stored feed resources and your abi
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By Nicole Rolf and Rachel Cone, Montana Farm Bureau Federation
The deadline to transmit fiscal bills to the second chamber in the 2021 Montana Legislative Session arrived this week. We didn’t see a lot of floor action on some of our agriculture-specific bills in either chamber, as legislators were hard at work focused on handling the fiscal bills well. We did see progress on some important fiscal bills. House Bill 2: the General Appropriations Act has been passed through both chambers. This is the state’s budget that funds many of the programs and agencies important to us, and the completion of this bill often signals a race to the session’s finish line.