Legislators discuss gravel pit permits

A bill seeking to ease permitting requirements for gravel pits in rural areas and make it harder to call a public hearing on new facilities is drawing clear battle lines in the Montana Legislature, as property owners say it cuts them out of the process.

In a hearing that lasted for more than two hours on Monday, March 15, the bill’s sponsor, Rep. Steve Gunderson, R-Libby, called the bill -- House Bill 599 -- “Open Cut 2.0,” which he said built off the provisions of “Open Cut 1.0,” a bill passed in the 2019 session. Open-cut mining, also known as open-pit mining, is a surface mining technique used to retrieve sand, gravel, and other widely-used minerals.

The bill makes numerous changes to the open-cut mine permitting process. Under HB 599, the percentage of households near a proposed mine that must request a public meeting with the Department of Environmental Quality in order for one to be held is raised from 30% to 51%. Additionally, where mine operators were previously required to give notice to all nearby property owners of the planned mine, that’s been changed to all “occupied dwellings,” cutting out landowners without anyone actively living on their property.

HB 599 would also allow mine operators to change the use of their land once it’s been reclaimed without notifying the public, allows them to push reclamation of the mine back by five years after submitting a request to the department, and remove some regulations regarding wildfire prevention and water pollution that proponents said are redundant in state law.

The House of Representatives passed HB 599 on a party-line, 67-32 vote during the House’s sprint to advance bills before the transmittal deadline March 2 -- a point made by one of the bill’s opponents who said lawmakers should take a closer look at the changes it promises.

The bill drew support from sand and gravel companies and the Montana Contractors Association. Proponents said gravel makes up a critical aspect of daily life, from paved roads to building materials and more, and that the bill would help keep costs in those associated industries down by facilitating the permitting of more mines.

Mike Newton is an operations manager at Fisher Sand and Gravel in Glendive and told the committee that 85% of sand and gravel operations in the state are rural -- HB 599 is seeking to ease permitting for those operations.

“House Bill 599 is a win-win for the counties, the cities, the [Montana Department of Transportation] and the [Department of Environmental Quality]” Newton said. “This bill will save tax dollars.”

However, several homeowners who said they were already feeling the impacts of new open cut sites near their property testified against the measure alongside the Montana Building Industry Association, calling it a “lose-lose” and comparing the language of the bill to a “sledgehammer.”

Colleen Moullet and her husband Tim Moullet spoke against the bill, saying a company had proposed a new gravel pit less than a quarter mile away from their home near Huntley and had denied them and three other homeowners a public meeting before the permit was later approved. Colleen told the committee she was concerned the new gravel pit would potentially “wipe out” their well.

“I think this is a lose-lose situation for all Montanans that own land next to a gravel pit, because it just takes away our voice -- our say-so,” Tim Moullet said.

Other opponents, including Fred McMurray, also from Huntley, said facilitating more gravel pit permits would put the value of their property in danger.

“We stand to lose groundwater in the region, and that could absolutely bankrupt the value of our ag-producing land,” McMurray said

Archie Harper testified in opposition to the bill on behalf of the West Valley Citizens Alliance Network and said proposed gravel pit operations in Helena’s West Valley posed threats to the livelihoods and quality of life of the people living there.

“You know what I found brings Montanans of all social and political stripes together, and quicker than a Montana sunrise? Have one of these operations set up next door in a heavy, residential, developed area,” Harper told the committee. “Protect our property rights and our property values. Protect our day-to-day livelihoods and our right to a clean and healthful environment. And moreover, never disable, encumber, or obstruct our right to participate in any process having serious ramifications on our lives and properties. All these elements are under assault with House Bill 599.”

The “Open Cut 1.0” bill referenced by Gunderson was Senate Bill 343, signed into law by former Gov. Steve Bullock in 2019. That bill introduced potential penalties for open cut mines that did not follow reclamation requirements, among other changes.

Some members of the committee took issue with the requirement for “occupied dwellings” to exist on a piece of property in order for the property owner to be considered in the calculation for a public hearing. In a lengthy exchange, Sen. Bob Brown, R-Thompson Falls, raised the issue with Rep. Gunderson, asking him if Brown would be counted toward the percentage needed to call a public meeting if he owned property near a potential gravel pit site but did not live there or have others living there. Gunderson deferred to Brian Thompson of the Montana Contractors Association, who said concerns from property owners can be lodged “at any time” with the Department of Environmental Quality. Brown repeated that the lack of opportunities for property owners to trigger a public meeting still concerned him.

If the committee approves the bill, it will head to the full Senate for additional debate.

Austin Amestoy is a reporter with the UM Legislative News Service, a partnership of the University of Montana School of Journalism, the Montana Broadcasters Association, the Montana Newspaper Association and the Greater Montana Foundation. He can be reached at austin.amestoy@

umontana.edu.