How low can the State Land Board go? Monday night, members of the Northern Plains Resource Council called attention to the Land Board's downward slide on the "bonus bid" for state-owned Otter Creek coal. Northern Plains did so by throwing a limbo party in Billings while asking the question, "How low will they go?"

"Our limbo party was a fun way to draw attention to the serious and important issue of the leasing of the Otter Creek coal tracts in southeast Montana and the potential destruction of one of the state's last agricultural river valleys," said Jeanie Alderson, a Birney rancher and Co-chair of Northern Plains' Tongue River Railroad Task Force.

After approving the lease of the state-owned Otter Creek tracts, the Land Board in December set the minimum "bonus bid" at 25 cents a ton. It received no bids, only a note from Arch Coal of St. Louis saying the bid was too high. At the Land Board's February meeting, State Auditor Monica Lindeen joined Governor Brian Schweitzer and Secretary of State Linda McCulloch in lowering the bid price by 40%, from 25 cents down to 15 cents a ton.

"We began to wonder just how low the Land Board will go in lowering this bid," said Alderson. "The people will pay with their land and their taxes for this decision. Lowering the bid not only means less money in the state coffers from the bonus bid, but makes it more likely that taxpayers will subsidize the building of the Tongue River Railroad to remove Otter Creek coal. However, as we all know, this railroad is just an excuse to get Wyoming coal to market in the Midwest faster and cheaper with a shortcut through Montana."

"It's really hard to believe that this Land Board wants to be THE Land Board that starts the process for Montana taxpayers to pay for the disastrous Tongue River Railroad," said Alderson.

The event was also a chance for people to sign thank-you cards to Superintendent of Public Instruction Denise Juneau and Attorney General Steve Bullock for voting against lowering the minimum bid in February.

To learn more or to get involved, please contact:

Jeanie Alderson, Tongue River rancher and Co-chair of the Northern Plains Tongue River Railroad Task Force, (406) 984-6229.

or Larry Winslow, Northern Plains Communications Coordinator, (406) 248-1154.

What do you think about the Land Board accepting a lower bid?

Comment below--->