Bridge access bill wins initial vote in the House

HELENA -A bill giving anglers, floaters and others the right to access Montana's rivers and streams at public bridges climbed over a major hurdle today, winning it's initial test in the House by a vote of 95-5.

“This is a vehicle to pass bridge access,” said Rep. Kendall Van Dyk, D-Billings and the sponsor of House Bill 190. “It sends a really important message of compromise.”

The bill would allow public access at bridges, while also allowing landowners to connect fences to bridges and abutments to contain their livestock. Landowners would have to modify those fences to allow access. The state Department of Fish, Wildlife and Parks would have to approve such changes, and FWP would pay for the work.

Rep. Ken Peterson, R-Billings, failed persuade a majority to amend the bill to give the state's 56 county commissions the responsibility for overseeing ranchers' plans for allowing access through or over their fences.

But Van Dyk said such an amendment would disrespect the landowners, sportsmen and women, and conservationists who compromised to create HB 190. He also said his version of the bill had the support of county commissioners.

Rep. Wayne Stahl, R-Saco, said giving the county commissioners decision-making power would only create liability issues for the county, and taxpayers would be responsible for paying for lawsuits. “The last thing counties need is more liability,” Stahl said.

After his amendment failed, Peterson said he would vote for the bill anyway because stream access is important to his constituents.

The five votes against the bill came from Republican Reps. Joel Boniek of Livingston, Scott Mendenhall of Clancy, Lee Randall of Broadus, Scott Sales of Bozeman and Gordon Vance of Bozeman.

Disputes over stream access have been a legislative staple since 1985, when lawmakers enacted Montana’s landmark law allowing recreational access to the beds and banks of the state’s navigable waterways.

This year’s debate reflects a Madison County judge’s October ruling granting recreationists a right to access streams and rivers from bridges in the public right of way. But it also gave landowners a right to build fences up to those bridges to control their livestock.

-by CNS correspondent Molly Priddy