Senators: Montana BLM projects to get $17.5 million from jobs-stimulus bill

Baucus, Tester say funding will boost economy and create good-paying jobs

(WASHINGTON, D.C.) – Montana will receive more than $17.5 million in additional jobs-stimulus funding for Bureau of Land Management (BLM) sites across the state, U.S. Senators Max Baucus and Jon Tester announced today.

Both Baucus and Tester helped write, supported and voted for the jobs-stimulus bill, which is creating new jobs across Montana and cutting hundreds of millions of dollars in taxes on Montana residents.

The $17.5 million announced today will fund projects such as upgrading roads, dams, visitor centers, boat ramps, campgrounds and trails on BLM land in Montana.  The money will also fund habitat restoration, mine cleanup and renewable energy projects.

Baucus and Tester said Montana will receive the following funding through the BLM:

• Capital improvements: $1,525,000
• Maintenance: $3,907,000
• Habitat restoration: $2,536,000
• Abandoned mines cleanup: $6,082,000
• Renewable energy: $1,400,000
• Road/bridge maintenance and construction: $1,873,000
• Trail maintenance and construction: $249,000
• TOTAL: $17,572,000

A detailed list of Montana BLM projects receiving funding is available online HERE (pages 10-12).

“This is great news for Montana because it will create good-paying jobs in Montana,” said Baucus, chairman of the powerful Senate Finance Committee.  “These dollars will go a long way in keeping our public land accessible and usable for all Montanans.  And we’ll see a return on our investment for generations to come.”

“This is an investment in Montana’s public lands and in our outdoor heritage,” said Tester, a member of the influential Senate Interior Appropriations Subcommittee, which oversees funding for the BLM.  “Funding like this is why I voted for the Jobs Bill.  It creates jobs and rebuilds our economy by investing in Montana.”

The funding announced today is in addition to more than $1 billion Montana is already receiving from the jobs-stimulus bill.  The measure will also cut more than $500 million in taxes on Montanans.