Native American lawmakers seek federal help on Montana bison

BILLINGS, Mont. (AP) — Native American lawmakers in Montana on Tuesday asked the Biden administration to help craft a plan to reintroduce wild bison to areas in and around Glacier National Park and the Charles M. Russell National Wildlife Refuge.

The request was made by eight members of the Legislature's American Indian Caucus in a letter to Interior Secretary Deb Haaland. It comes after Gov. Greg Gianforte and his fellow Republicans in the Legislature have sought to make it harder to reintroduce bison to areas of the state that the burly animals once roamed.

Bison have strong cultural significance for Plains Indians and were depended on by many tribes for food, clothing and other necessities until the huge herds that once populated the U.S. West were wiped out in the late 1800s.

State Rep. Tyson Running Wolf said the American Indian Caucus members decided the administration of President Joe Biden would be more willing to help bring back bison than Gianforte, who last week canceled a bison reintroduction plan adopted by his predecessor.

“It feels like during this legislative session, Native concerns and even buffalo as part of Native culture have just been invisible," said Running Wolf, a Democrat from Browning and member of the Blackfeet tribe. “Americans tribes in Montana have a deep-rooted connection with the buffalo, from commerce to religion to cultural values."

But ranchers in Montana have long opposed efforts to restore the large animals, fearing they could compete with livestock for public grazing space and spread the disease brucellosis. That’s an infectious disease carried by Yellowstone National Park bison that can cause animals to prematurely abort their young.

Haaland's office did not have an immediate response to Tuesday's letter. Last year her predecessor, David Bernhardt, announced a 10-year...