It was a rainy October evening at the Heritage Inn in southwest Great Falls when about 20 or so people filed into the ballroom for a presentation, not a mask in sight.

It was the day after the New York Times published a story surrounding the misinformation campaign regarding the Big Sky County National Heritage Area that had swept through the town in 2020 and saw a resurgence in the summer of 2021.

However, folks werent there to talk about the BSCBA, they were there to learn about what was advertised as the 30 x 30 Land Grab, another conspiracy surrounding the federal government and land acquisition.

"30 x 30" refers to a goal set forth by President Joe Bidens administration to conserve 30% of Americas lands and waters by the year 2030 in an effort to combat climate change. Currently, about 12% of U.S. lands and 11% of freshwater ecosystems are protected.

The goal was included in an executive order issued in January with scant details. Months later, the National Climate Task Force published a preliminary report titled America the Beautiful'' which outlined principles towards achieving the goal, but not much on how it will follow through on them.

This ambiguity presented fertile ground for Margaret Byfield of American Stewards of Liberty (ASL), a non-profit working to protect private property rights and the liberties they secure, per their website.

The Colorado Sun reported the organization received $170,000 between 2015 and 2019 from DonorsTrust and Donors Capital Fund, which serves to muddy the waters of political donations from right-wing billionaire donors like the Koch brothers and the DeVos family.

The group has made presentations in multiple states and already started making ground in Montana when Byfield went to Livingston earlier this year.

This is not about conservation, Byfield told the group of Montanans, claiming the program was from socialist countries, that the models used in climate science are informed with bias and funded with money from George Soros, a billionaire who often donates to Democratic causes. This is about control.

She also claimed private land was a target in the plan and that it would be naive to believe conservation easements would allow property owners to retain control of the land.

She said that when Biden was elected that her organization started to look at his environmental policies, but as she continued a voice from the crowd said loudly, He wasnt elected! the conspiracy that led to the Jan. 6 insurrection.

30 x 30is supported by 73 countries around the world that have also pledged to conserve 30% of their lands by 2030. The 30 x 30 initiative was kicked off by Hansjrg Wyss, a Swiss native now living in Wyoming whose Washington, D.C.-based foundation launched a billion-dollar campaign surrounding this conservation effort in 2018, according to the foundation website.

Byfield said that all of the science surrounding 30 x 30 tied back to a report from the Center for American Progress, a progressive policy institute that receives funding from Soros. However, neither the executive order nor the America the Beautiful report cite the report or the Center for American Progress directly.

Byfield included a quote in her presentation from Secretary of Agriculture Tom Vilsack as an example of the administration having to "defend itself" and the conservation plan. The quotewas reported in Farm Journal in Aprilwhere he said: I can assure you this: Theres no intention to have a land grab, Vilsack told reporters. Theres no intention to take something away from folks.

And what I really like about that is to explain to the press that it is not a land grab, that he has to say, land grab, Byfield said. That's how you frame a debate.

Byfields goal in this presentation was to foster a grassroots movement in the community to push local officials to oppose 30 x 30. She noted other communities and states that have already drafted resolutions in opposition and showed a map with four Montana counties that had already done so, including Valley County, Richland County, Fergus County and Pondera County.

However, three Montana mayors signed a letter in support of 30 x 30: Cynthia Andrusof Bozeman,Wilmot Collins of Helena and John Engen of Missoula.

Montana Gov. Greg Gianforte was one of 14 governors to sign a letter to President Biden that questioned his authority to conserve 30% of lands, arguing it would infringe on property rights and hurt the economy.

Nebraska Governor Pete Ricketts passed his own Executive Order in opposition to the 30 x 30 plan in June, which among other objectives sets up training to help local governments push back on 30 x 30.

In the Heritage Inn ballroom, Byfield invited those present to attend a $50 coordination class that would run from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. the following day. ASL describes coordination on their website as a process for reconciliation of conflicts between federal and local policies that provides local government with an equal seat at the negotiating table.

She noted a previous coordination meeting she held with local officials at the U.S. border with Mexico, saying the community was overrun and needed boots on the ground. She said the meeting got the Texas Department of Emergency Management to cooperate but didnt specify how that cooperation changed anything.

At the end of her presentation Byfield also promoted giving donations to the organization with a photo of a postcard reading Give $30 to fight to Land Grab! and advertising memberships running from $35 to $1,000, with the Chairman Councils level advertising an American flag print with the John Adams quote Property must be secured or liberty cannot exist.

Executive compensation accounted for 63% of the organizations 2019 tax filing, with Margaret and her husband Daniel raking in a total of $192,381 between the both of them.

During a question and answer session, Jeni Dodd, a local advocate against the National Heritage Area, asked Byfield if there was any relation between the National Heritage Area and the 30 x 30 plan.

Byfield described it as a boiling frog approach.

These little innocuous things that this really isn't any impact to your private property, you can opt out of it, this is just to help, you know, promote tourism, all of these kinds of things, Byfield said. Those are the things you have to really be careful about.

Anytime there's going to be any kind of federal oversight, federal funding tied to it, Federal management, National Park Service, you have to be very concerned especially, under the Biden administration, because we know what their ultimate agenda is," Byfield added.

BSCNHA is a non-profit working to bring the NHA designation to Cascade and Chouteaucounties. Its chair, Jane Weber, said that the NHA and the 30 x 30 goal are not related.

There are people that attempt to tie them together, but they're not part of NHA designation, Weber said.

Weber also referenced a Government Office of Accountability report which found that Heritage Areas did not impact property rights.

Heritage area officials, Park Service headquarters and regional staff, and representatives of national property rights groups that we contacted were unable to provide us with any examples of a heritage area directly affecting positively or negatively private property values or use, the 2004 report said.

It's just unfortunate that the political climate right now uses innuendo to try to sway people's minds on something that is a good thing to build economic development for our communities and help us with people who want to do something about interpretation or the preservation of historic buildings and historic places, and historic stories and our culture, Weber said.

An important note on the history of this land being discussed is that Cascade and Chouteau counties include homelands of the Salish Kootenai, Ochethi Sakowin, Crow, Metis, Blackfoot and Niitsitapitribes. The Little Shell Tribe is headquartered in Great Falls.

The Congressional Research Service (CRS) described NHAs as partnerships among the National Park Service (NPS), states, and local communities, in which the NPS supports state and local conservation through federal recognition, seed money, and technical assistance. Since 1985, 55 NHAs have been established across the U.S.

Unlike lands within the National Park System, which are federally owned and managed, lands within heritage areas typically remain in state, local, or private ownership or a combination thereof, a CRS report from March of 2021 read.

There are no consistent standards across NHAs for funding and management. When a member of congress passes legislation to create an NHA, thats where the particulars for each area are determined including the management entity, usually non federal per the report, to coordinate the work of the partners. The plan must then be approved by the Secretary of Interior.

Rae Grulkowski, another local activist against the NHA who was prominently featured in the Times story, told the audience gathered that this was an opportune time.

Don't look down on the liberal news because they did this, this, that, the other, Grulkowski said. Let's pick it apart and get the good stuff going out in the community, use the energy, educate yourself and educate your community members, family and friends."

She said that after the Times story came out she disabled their Facebook page after obscene comments and Trump hater visuals became too much for her, but said their Facebook group is still active.

HB 554 was signed into law by Gianforte and requires the legislature to approve the designation of a NHA, but this doesnt go far enough for Grulkowski. She said she wants to tie their hands with funding to make sure that we're protected at any level that we can.

Richard Ecke, co-chair of BSCNHA, said that they are in the process of sending the feasibility study required to be considered for an NHA designation to the NPS soon and that hes not concerned about state approval.

Federal statutes trump state ones, and our attorney said it's very clear that it's unconstitutional, Ecke said of HB544. We're not concerned about it because it's a federal issue, not a state one.

This meeting comes as Montana experienced an intensefire season and drought.

Former legislator Kerry White, a Republican who represented Gallatin County, spoke during the meeting about how the smoke from fires affected Montanans this summer.

"This summer I counted the days, we had nine clear days down in the Gallatin," White said."I was born and raised here for generations. I have never seen our public lands in such a sad shape and it breaks my heart."

White asked Byfield at the end of his comments whether the bottom line agenda out there was to reduce the world population.

Byfield said in part that this was a spiritual battle.

Ive read the last chapter, and I like how it ends, Byfield said. That day is going to come, that doesn't mean that we aren't going to have a bumpy ride."

I absolutely believe this, there's two things you should do every day, read the Bible, read the newspaper, Byfield said. So that you know what both sides are doing, and you know which side you're on.

Former legislator and candidate for city commission in the Nov. 2 election Joe McKenney was in attendance as a member of the Great Falls Association of Realtors, which hosted the event. When asked afterward if he would support a draft proposal like what was passed in other counties if he was on the commission, he said it was too soon to tell.

I would say, if anyone wanted to bring it to the City Commission for discussion, I would welcome it, McKenney said.

The majority of candidates for city commission polled said they did not know enough about the 30 x 30 conservation goal to comment. Eric Hinebauch said he was familiar with it but did not have an opinion.

Fred Burow, candidate for mayor and former city commissioner, said he knew a little bit about 30 x 30.

To me, it doesn't make a whole lot of sense. Why would you push to have that much more nontaxable land? Burow said. I mean, I guess I don't know enough about it, definitely to support it, But it just seems like it's more of a land grab than anything.

Burow also said he opposes the NHA.

I just think that it could be a situation where you have an unelected board overseeing all this and making decisions and it could eventually create an issue with property rights, Burow said.

He said that the NPS has complained for years about not being able to afford maintenance on the land it manages already.

Ecke of BSCNHA responded to Burows comment saying that there are hundreds of nonprofits that operate in Montana that dont have elected boards. He added that members of the U.S. Congress will have to make the ultimate decision on whether or not to approve it, so people can contact their representatives. He said the organization has hosted public meetings in the past and has their annual meeting in January which they welcome the public to attend.

In response to the claim about property rights, Ecke said theres been no evidence of property rights violations regarding NHAs since they were first established.

There's a history of heritage areas going back to the 1980s. So if they can't find anything in 35 years, any bad things that have happened, it really makes you question why they continue to say that, Ecke said These opponents ought to be doing accurate research. And if they can't put up any information about violations of property rights, then they ought to shut up. So they need to put up or shut up.

Incumbent candidate Mayor Bob Kelly was the sole candidate to express support for the NHA.

In my view, it represents an opportunity to define the community, for ourselves and for tourists who are looking to focus on the particulars of our area, Kelly said. I don't believe that this is a federal land grab or will bring horrible things to ranchers, farmers and families that are currently being discussed.

Candidates Josh Copeland and Paige Turoski said they were both in opposition to the National Heritage Area. Copeland said it was a violation of personal privacy rights and a backdoor for government control of private property.

If you look at what happens in Yellowstone on an annual basis with people out there messing with livestock and going places where they aren't supposed to be, that's not the kind of attention that we need to attract to our farms and ranches in Cascade County, Copeland said.

Turoski echoed Copelands concern over private property as it relates to the NHA. She added that she also opposes it because none of [the NHAs] have become self-sufficient since the first two were created in 1985, like they were supposed to, and they're still receiving government funding.

It seems like it's a strain on taxpayer dollars at a federal level, Turoski said.

The CRS report on NHAs said past presidential administrations, namely the Trump Administration, expressed interest in having NHAs become financially self-sufficient. The report outlined that the NPS evaluates certain heritage areas at least three years before the expiration of the authorization for federal funds, adding that NPS has completed evaluations of 19 NHAs and continues to evaluate others.

In 2019, President Donald Trump signed into law the first act to create an NHA since 2009, creating six NHAs across states in Maryland, West Virginia, Washington, California, Arizona and Pennsylvania. According to the CRS report, the law authorized appropriations of $10 million for each of these NHAs, of which not more than $1 million is to be made available for any fiscal year with a sunset date15 years after enactment.

Candidate for city commission Vanessa Hayden was not immediately available for comment.

Nicole Girten is a Government Watchdog Reporter at the Great Falls Tribune. You can email her at ngirten@greatfallstribune.com.To supportcoverage of Great Falls and Cascade County subscribe to the Tribune by finding the "Subscribe" link at the top of the page.

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Opposition to the National Heritage Area gets a new boogeyman: Bidens 30 x 30 conservation plan - Great Falls Tribune