By Gael Bissell
Permanent funding for conservation easements and Habitat Montana tops the Montana Audubon priority list for the 2025 Legislature!
Montana Audubon and the Montana Wildlife Federation have agreed to jointly fund a full-time experienced lobbyist for the 2025 legislative session. Tom Jacobson has over 30 years of experience in the nonprofit, public, and business sectors. He served 10 years in the Montana legislature first in the House and most recently in the Senate, passing dozens of key pieces of legislation with bipartisan support.
Tom’s lobbying efforts will focus on:
- Permanent Conservation Easement Authorization to ensure long-term protection of Montana’s wildlife habitats.
- Secure Funding for Habitat Montana to prevent any fiscal erosion or diversion of core funding for Habitat Montana.
- Advocate for Expanded Scope and Purpose of Marijuana Revenue to allocate a portion of the marijuana tax revenues for parks, trails, non-game species, and wildlife habitats and prevent the diversion of these funds to unrelated purposes.
- Other efforts include supporting expansion of the Wildlife Habitat Improvement Program (WHIP), advocating for wildlife crossings, and supporting coalition efforts.
Lobbying does help get good bills passed and bad bills killed, but your input to your legislators makes the most impact! It is easier than ever to talk to or leave messages for your legislators through Montana Audubon’s Action Alert emails. Throughout the session, you’ll receive regular emails that share updates on priority bills, resources for testifying and reaching lawmakers, and information to help you make an impact.
The 69th Montana legislative session opens on January 6. Sign up for Montana Audubon’s Action Alert emails to stay informed and engaged, https://mtaudubon.org/conservation-policy/action-alert/
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