U.S. Senator Steve Daines announced that President Donald Trump has signed a bill overturning the Biden administration’s Miles City Resource Management Plan Amendment (RMPA), which had restricted coal development in Montana. The legislation, sponsored by Republican Representatives Troy Downing and Ryan Zinke, as well as Senators Steve Daines and Tim Sheehy, eliminates the amendment that had blocked coal development across nearly two million acres in Montana and halted future coal leasing in the Powder River Basin.
The Powder River Basin is a significant source of coal in the United States, producing more than 40% of the nation’s coal in 2019, according to data from the U.S. Energy Information Administration. The Biden administration had previously limited future coal leasing in this region after legal disputes with environmental groups.
Senator Daines’ office stated that the resolution has received broad support, including backing from Republican Montana Governor Greg Gianforte.
“Today marks a massive win for both Montana and the nation. Biden’s disastrous Miles City RMPA was an anti-coal rule that would’ve blocked future coal leasing on two million acres of land, stifled job growth and caused the loss of over $4.3 billion in future revenue to our state,” Daines told the Daily Caller News Foundation. “But now, thanks to the hard work of our Montana delegation, Biden’s rule is repealed and Montana energy is back. Thank you President Trump for fighting for Made-In-Montana energy and for protecting America’s energy dominance.”