(C) Daily Montanan This story was originally published by Daily Montanan and is unaltered. . . . . . . . . . . Lawmakers' not-so-secret war on Montana's environment – Daily Montanan [1] ['More From Author', 'June', 'Darrell Ehrlick'] Date: 2023-06-22 Being a court reporter for nearly three decades has given me an appreciation for the justice system. In that time I’ve learned that courtrooms are rarely as dramatic as “Law and Order.” Or, if you’re going to cover a trial in Yellowstone County, you’d better bring seat cushions. Or, don’t show up for a DUI sentencing drunk. Alas, those are all stories for another day. Since the Daily Montana launched nearly two-and-a-half years ago, I have covered many lawsuits centered on natural resources, the environment and government agencies. And it’s drawing upon that experience as a court reporter and observer that I would remind folks that this most recent Legislature, while obsessed with transgender children and drag queens, fought an equally hostile war against anyone who cares for the environment or habitat. The trial that concluded on Tuesday in which youth of this state allege that Montana has fallen far short of its constitutional promise of a clean and healthful environment for future generations is just one of many actions everyday citizens are waging in order to make sure those words are more than lofty sentiments. There are people fighting for Holland Lake; fishing enthusiasts and outdoors advocates are rightly concerned about the Ruby and Big Hole rivers; and there’s not room to mention the ongoing lawsuits that deal with grizzly bears, bison or wolves. Lawmakers passed several uniquely pernicious bills that take aim at these groups that are passionate about Montana not for the treasure it has buried deep within it, but for the beauty that exists by being untouched and undeveloped. Attorneys and organizations are now challenging some of these newly minted laws which force groups to post a bond – sometimes totaling millions – just to file a lawsuit, especially against well-heeled energy companies with their armies of staff attorneys. In other words, just to have the privilege and access to a judge and justice, they may be forced to pay not just for their own attorneys, but pay as if they’ve lost the case by coming up with a bond in the amount the state or business estimates they would lose by having to go to court. Thankfully, that newly minted law is being challenged, but there’s a chance of it going into effect. Somewhere in hell, the Copper Kings are smiling. For lawmakers who have such a stunning array of flag pins and talk about how much they love the constitution, nothing seems like bigger anathema than making folks have to pay just to access courts. And, let’s not forget for nearly all other types of lawsuits, the service is nearly free. The rationale goes something like this: These environmental (read: hippie tree-hugging out-of-state snowflakes) are burdening our sincere, hard-working state government and large multi-national corporations with pesky rules and regulations. Because these green groups want to inconvenience the state and private business, they should pay for the luxury of distracting them from their otherwise holy work. It’s a rather self-evident war on environmental groups that shows just how much animosity the majority of lawmakers have for those in the state who simply value clean air, water and public lands. At least during the era of the Copper Kings, the lawmakers had to be bribed to concoct such blatantly self-serving interests. Nowadays, they do it for free. I have been in court reporting for decades, and so that has given me a unique vantage point that I doubt few lawmakers could match. And, in the past two-and-a-half years, I have been the primary reporter for the Daily Montanan on many of these environmental and natural resource lawsuits, which play out on both the state and federal levels. Since the Daily Montanan’s inception, I have tracked 22 environmental cases. And of those, only one has gone against the environmental group; said another way: The government is batting 1-for-22 in its cases – or a 4% win rate. While these statistics are nowhere near comprehensive, they are nonetheless instructive. You see, being part of news organizations and nonprofits, I can say there is hardly a pile of cash sitting around just waiting to be spent on attorneys. These organizations, mostly reliant on the support of donations, are careful at litigating only cases they have a good chance of winning, especially since the government gets to play with house money, by using taxpayer dollars to fund lawyers. The other thing that seems disingenuous about Montana lawmakers’ narrative is that these poor agencies – both state and federal – which seem to get hauled into court often, are victims. While many government agencies have ways and means of checking their work to ensure they’re following their own policies, environmental law and natural resources don’t have many examples of internal compliance. In other words, agencies like the Montana Department of Environmental Quality or the United States Forest Service do not have funding or staffing in which staff independently checks for internal compliance or quality. In fact, many environmental laws depend on citizen involvement in order to force compliance. The laws precisely contemplate – even demand – citizen involvement and action. I believe our environment, and the agencies charged with protecting it, have been given historical short shrift. That is, we have created elaborate and comprehensive laws to protect land, air and water, but on the federal and state level, we didn’t create robust enforcement mechanisms, which left concerned citizens and groups with only one remedy – going to court, pleading with a judge to get the government to follow its own self-imposed rules. Now Montana lawmakers seem hell bent on making it more expensive and cumbersome. For a group of Republicans which seem constantly paranoid about what government agencies and their legions of bureaucrats are doing, it’s odd they wouldn’t appreciate groups who challenge those policies and officials. 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