MT SJ14

Formally petitions Congress to release approximately 663,000 acres of wilderness study areas designated under the Montana Wilderness Study Act of 1977, including West Pioneer (151,000 acres), Hyalite-Porcupine-Buffalo Horn (151,000 acres), and five other areas

Requests release of 37 Bureau of Land Management wilderness study areas totaling over 400,000 acres, plus inventoried roadless areas exceeding 60,000 acres, to enable multiple-use management including timber harvesting, agriculture, and road construction

Notes that the 5-year federal review period mandated by the Montana Wilderness Study Act expired in 1982, and the vast majority of these lands have never been formally recommended for wilderness designation

Urges the U.S. Forest Service and Bureau of Land Management to evaluate watershed impacts on downstream water rights holders in connection with the 2007 water rights compact between Montana and the USDA Forest Service

Directs the Secretary of State to send copies of the resolution to the Governor, Montana Congressional Delegation, and federal agency officials including the Secretaries of Interior and Agriculture