Seems relevant as Daines is on the committee. Here is his response. It’s canned as I have gotten the same response multiple times since this all started.
Thank you for contacting me to express your opposition to selling federal public lands. As a fifth generation Montanan and an avid outdoorsman, access to Montana's public lands is important to our way of life and our state's heritage. I spent much of my youth backpacking in the Absaroka-Beartooth Wilderness and want to preserve Montana's unparalleled natural beauty so my children and grandchildren can do the same. Let me first stress that I do not support the mass transfer or sale of federal public lands to state or private ownership. Further, I do not support reducing Montanans' access to our public lands. Montana's public lands are an important part of our state's heritage, our economy, and our way of life.
As you may know, I championed the passage of the Great American Outdoors Act, which provides permanent, dedicated funding for the Land and Water Conservation Fund (LWCF) program and addresses the deferred maintenance backlog on our public lands. The LWCF is a critical conservation tool that has expanded public access to public lands, addressed checkerboard land ownership patterns, and increased sportsmen and recreation opportunities.
I also believe we need to do a better job managing our federal lands, however. The worsening health of Montana's forests has resulted in increased risk of catastrophic wildfires. The economies in our forested counties are suffering and have some of the highest unemployment rates in Montana due to the dramatic decrease in timber harvest on federal lands. I will continue to work across party lines in order to cut unnecessary red tape, eliminate frivolous litigation, create good-paying timber jobs, and give the U.S. Forest Service (USFS) the tools needed to protect our communities from deadly wildfires. As a member of the Senate Committee on Energy and Natural Resources which has jurisdiction over federal land management and forestry issues, please know that I will keep your views in mind as I work both to ensure that Montana's natural heritage is preserved and to protect livelihoods that rely on access to our lands.
Again, thanks for contacting me. It is my number one priority in the Senate to represent the values and interests of the people of Montana, and your input is very helpful as I do. I invite you to visit my website,
www.daines.senate.gov, for updates about activities in Washington that affect our lives in Montana or to contact me. I look forward to hearing from you again in the future.