06/03/2026
The Montana Conservation Society is a scam. It sounds like some grassroots conservation group, but it’s not that at all. It has no membership base. Privately funded used to lobby the state government. Who is on it? Ben Lamb. Rob Arnaud, former MOGA president. MOGA lobbyist Mark Taylor. And non other than sitting state senator Wylie Galt as the director. He is tied to numerous bills benefiting private land hunters and outfitters at the expense of public land hunters. Did I mention he is chair of the natural resources committee? That’s right, a rich sitting state senator has a group of friends start a group and hire a shady lobbyist to lobby the exact committee he sits on!
And what do they push? Not exactly fair policies for everyone. This group has been tied to efforts involving more opportunity for nonresidents, landowner-friendly access, private-land power, land-exchange changes, and policies that make it easier for connected landowners and outfitter interests to get what they want while average Montana hunters get pushed farther away from the table. They even showed up around the land-swap policy fight, where the public could lose good usable land and get traded garbage. When a group has no real members, private money behind it, MOGA’s lobbyist working for it, and a conservation name slapped on the front, who is it actually conserving land for? The Montana Conservation Society is a scam!
— Stephen Ziegler
Outdoor writer | Rack Junkies Podcast
