Landowner access agreements stir up commission, elk hunters

At issue was the commission’s approval of 10 free either-sex elk tags to three Montana ranch owners in exchange for limited public hunting access to their lands.

“These are, in the minds of a lot of Montanans, heading toward privatization and commercialization of wildlife, which … is the death of our fish and wildlife management,” said Commissioner Pat Byorth of Bozeman.

Read more from the Billings Gazette here.