Noah Rott, Deputy Press Secretary, noah.rott@sierraclub.org
Nick Gevock, Northern Rockies Campaign Organizer, nick.gevock@sierraclub.org
HELENA -- Today Montana Senators Tim Sheehy and Steve Daines voted to approve Steve Pearce as Director of the Bureau of Land Management (BLM).
Over months of heated debates, they faced enormous pushback from their constituents, who cried foul of Pearce's record of fossil fuel lobbying and years of support for selling public lands as a Congressman. According to a 2026 University of Montana poll, an overwhelming majority of Montanans across the political spectrum support banning the sale or transfer of public lands.
BLM oversees 8.3 million acres in Montana. Pearce is expected to continue pushing the Trump administration's harsh agenda of stripping away environmental and public lands protections from millions of Americans.
In response, Sierra Club Montana Chapter Director, Caryn Miske, released the following statement:
“Our senators tout their support of our public lands all the time, then pull a fast one on their constituents by voting to confirm 'Sell Off'Steve' Pearce to oversee our largest public land agency. Pearce is the perfect person to implement the Trump administration’s goals to put industrial-level drilling, mining, logging and grazing over all other uses of federal lands. This philosophy of polluting and closing off Montana landscapes we enjoy for wildlife watching, hiking, fair chase hunting and so much other outdoor recreation is one devoid of the values we cherish. Daines and Sheehy claim they support public lands, but this vote shows otherwise.”
About the Sierra Club
The Sierra Club is America’s largest and most influential grassroots environmental organization, with millions of members and supporters. In addition to protecting every person's right to get outdoors and access the healing power of nature, the Sierra Club works to promote clean energy, safeguard the health of our communities, protect wildlife, and preserve our remaining wild places through grassroots activism, public education, lobbying, and legal action. For more information, visit www.sierraclub.org.