Donald Trump

The Birth of a New Montana

18 November 2020
Evelyn Pyburn
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By Evelyn Pyburn

“We have it in our power to begin the world over again.” – Thomas Paine

Such is the case for Montana with the Republicans having gained control of the governorship and both legislative houses.  The situation poses a rare opportunity to set Montana on a strong economic foundation.

We know how to do it! And now, with the Party that is supposed to be the Party of sound fiscal policies in full charge — there should be no excuses – no barriers to begin the state’s economy over again.

It’s not as though there are no ideas about what works and what doesn’t. What makes for a good economic environment and for sound government has been studied to death over many decades and in 50 different laboratories, usually with much the same results.

Every year for 14 years, the American Legislative Exchange Council has issued the Rich States Poor States study of the economies of all the states. In great detail it identifies the policies and strategies that work in creating an environment in which business can thrive and governments can function soundly.

Is there any reason we shouldn’t be on top of this?

Of course there is. Not all of the leaders really meant it when they advocated for fiscal restraint and economic freedom. And, there are those who hold other ambitions, so their priority is to get along with the opposition more than solve problems. And, then as one pessimistic friend described, it is in the nature of Republicans to form a circle and just start shooting.

And there’s more. Some observers have explained that to solve problems is not the goal for many politicians of either political party. They are in lock step, while appearing to be on opposite sides, wrangling over familiar issues, in campaign after campaign. Their thinking is why solve problems that are guaranteed to successfully fund raise and garner votes, for the Right and the Left? Why do the hard work and take the slings and arrows that would surely come if they were to really try to solve the problem? Hence we have decades and decades of what seems to be unsolvable problems.

We all know of what I speak. There are all kinds of issues to which over the decades Republicans have given a lot of lip service during campaigns, only to become mysteriously silent once elected.  They are the promises we were commonly told were too difficult to get accomplished, or too complicated for us to understand. They are the changes that couldn’t happen, we were told, because they lacked the political power to get them passed.

It was essentially this non-performance that got Donald Trump elected president.

The most amazing, salient factor about President Trump is that he got it done! He demonstrated with almost the speed of light and with what appeared as astounding ease the nonsense of all the excuses.

From Day One, in the cancelling of a hugely over-priced order for a new presidential airplane, to the building of the wall, to neutralizing the saber-rattling of Iran, North Korea and Russia, to bringing peace to the Middle East, to ending terrorist activity, to unleashing the productivity of the American people, increasing for the first time in decades real income growth, regaining our energy independence, reversing the loss of our manufacturing industry, reinstituting Constitutional law. Almost single handedly he was doing all these things that so many had said were impossible. That’s why there were Republicans who stood opposed to Trump, he unmasked the lie of the duplicity of political compromise and the languor of expediency.

Montana has hundreds of issues big and small that should and could be addressed. Take away the political gamesmanship and the road is clear.

If during the next legislative session the Republicans do not act to strengthen our civil liberties, encourage economic freedom, curb the oppressive regulation of our industry, businesses and entrepreneurs, solve the growing debt of the public employees’ pension fund, unleash educational freedom, eliminate the remnants of business equipment taxes, penalize  the promulgators of frivolous lawsuits, and diminish the power and size of our bureaucracy  — all those things Republicans have always said they wanted to do are now doable.

Of course, part of the reason many of those things don’t happen is because legislators don’t hear from their constituents. So to all those who voted in this red wave: it’s no time to sit back and wait. Every voter needs to be up front -and -center about the issues – with Republicans and Democrats. Be assured there are many very organized and well-funded lobbying groups, who in your absence will be making their case.

Oil Field Innovations Change The World & Oil Industry

13 October 2019
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“You did that.”

“We need to talk about it more,” said Blu Hulsey, Senior Vice President of Government Relations and Regulatory Affairs at Continental Resources. The accomplishments and technological development of the petroleum industry goes far too much unremarked upon, Hulsey told the audience at the Montana Petroleum Association’s Appreciation Luncheon at the DoubleTree in Billings, on August 28.

The technology that has been developed within the industry “is equal to the technology of putting people on the moon,” he said,

Continental Resources is one of the largest oil producers in the Bakken.

“We are the greatest oil country in the world,” Hulsey unequivocally stated at one point.

The accomplishments of the industry “has changed the world,” said Hulsey, pointing to the recent antics of Iran capturing oil tankers and threatening other countries militarily “…and the price of gas in Billings doesn’t go up a penny,” he exclaimed. In the past, with the US dependent upon the Middle East for oil, any kind of incident like those recently witnessed, would have caused oil prices to sky rocket, but not anymore.

“You did that,” he told the room packed with representatives of all aspects of the petroleum industry. The US petroleum industry is now the world’s largest producer of oil and an exporter of oil and gas to the rest of the world.

As the cost of production continues to decline because of the new technology, and the level of production continues to increase there will continue to be a lot of changes to the world and to the industry itself.

The industry is changing how it looks at itself. “Everyone is looking internally,” he said about petroleum businesses.

You don’t need 150 rigs in the Bakken, 60 will produce just as much, now.

Returns that were projected on $70 per barrel oil prices are now being experienced with $50 per barrel oil prices. 

“We have almost doubled production in four years because of technology,” said Hulsey.

At one point it was impressive that there were 12 wells in the Bakken that hit 100,000 barrels of production in the first 90 days. Now there are 157 wells that hit that level of production in 90 days, and more and more continue to hit that goal.

“You are going to see long-term growth in the Bakken,” predicted Hulsey, “and we are going to continue to get more recovery.”

Investors are not being apprised of this reality as much as they should be, Hulsey lamented.

Hulsey praised the people in the industry. When the industry encounters barriers, “our people get better – American ingenuity is making a difference.”

Hulsey talked about the Bakken as a world class resource, saying that 150 miles wide and 150 miles long, it is comparable to the Permian Basin, which while impressive and larger doesn’t have the same quality of oil. There is more water in the Permian oil. Having considerably less water reduces production costs in the Bakken. Efficiencies being achieved in the Bakken are not necessarily found in every oil field – many won’t be found in the Permian.

The Bakken will eventually produce 30 to 40 billion barrels of oil.

Hulsey lauded the Trump administration. “We have an administration that is not stopping us from doing long-term development…that means big improvements for the long term.”

Pendley to Temporarily Oversee Management of BLM Lands

15 September 2019
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William Perry Pendley, an attorney noted for his strong advocacy of private property rights, was appointed acting chief of the U.S. Bureau of Land Management in a move by the Trump administration that drew the ire of environmental groups.

Interior Secretary David Bernhardt temporarily re-delegated Pendley to serve as acting director of the BLM pending an appointee . Pendley joined the bureau earlier this month as deputy director of policy and programs.

The order comes just weeks after BLM announced it would move its headquarters to Grand Junction, Colo.

Pendley was formerly president of the Colorado-based conservative public interest law firm Mountain States Legal Foundation, which focuses on protection of private property rights. He also served in the Department of Interior during the Reagan administration.

The move has drawn the ire of environmental and conservation groups who say Pendley is hostile to public lands. They cite a 2016 article by Pendley in which he wrote that, “The Founding Fathers intended all lands owned by the federal government to be sold. After all, jurisdiction over real property, that is, property law, was given to the states.”

The Trump administration has received constant criticism from environmental groups claiming that he is weakening environmental regulations and expanding access to energy development on public lands.

“Appointing William Perry Pendley, a proponent of taking public lands out of public hands, to head [BLM] is an outright assault on our public lands system itself,” Western Resource Advocates tweeted.

“Anything they’ve ever said about not selling off public lands has just been a political smokescreen to distract from their real intentions: handing over public lands to their special interest allies,” Executive Director Chris Saeger said.

Endangered Species Act Reform Pleases Some, Not Others

15 September 2019
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From The Center Square

The Trump administration announced, last week, reforms to the Endangered Species Act that it says will “increase transparency and effectiveness” in the law’s implementation.

One of the reforms removes a blanket rule which treats protections for threatened species the same as endangered species. It will also require the same standards be used when officials consider delisting or reclassifying species.

Another change will require that “areas where threatened or endangered species are present at the time of listing be evaluated first before unoccupied areas are considered,” which the administration says will reduce the regulatory burden on land owners.

“The best way to uphold the Endangered Species Act is to do everything we can to ensure it remains effective in achieving its ultimate goal—recovery of our rarest species. The Act’s effectiveness rests on clear, consistent and efficient implementation,” U.S. Interior Secretary David Bernhardt said in a statement. “An effectively administered Act ensures more resources can go where they will do the most good: on-the-ground conservation.”

The Environment Research Center (PERC), a Bozeman, Montana-based think tank, says that the ESA has been effective at preventing species from going extinct, but not as successful when it comes to species recovery.

The reforms will help in efforts to recover species, the organization, which uses market-based approaches to conservation and environmental issues, PERC said. “These essential tweaks to the Endangered Species Act promise to make the law more effective and results-driven in the 21st century,” said PERC Executive Director Brian Yablonski. “It represents a win for all of us devoted to recovering species and a win for states and landowners who now have an opportunity to be more innovative and creative in their role as habitat protectors.”

The groups say that lifting the regulations will help “encourage states and landowners to recover [threatened species] before they reach endangered status.”

Industry and farming groups also praised the changes.

The National Cattlemen’s Beef Association said the changes will bring “long-awaited regulatory relief to American cattle farmers and ranchers.” Kathleen Sgamma, president of the Western Energy Alliance, said the current regulations of the EAS “hinders landowners and companies from effectively protecting and recovering species.”

“For far too long, the Act has been weaponized to stop the production of food, fuel and fiber that Americans need every day while turning a blind eye to how red tape actually inhibits the recovery of species,” Sgamma said. “This Administration has the fortitude to move forward with common-sense rules that follow the law while improving species protection, despite the hyperbolic rhetoric.”

Other environmental groups roundly criticized the reforms as weakening the ESA.

The Sierra Club called it the “Trump Extinction Plan,” saying the reforms “would gut critical endangered species protections.”

“Undermining this popular and successful law is a major step in the wrong direction as we face the increasing challenges of climate change and its effects on wildlife,” said Lena Moffitt, senior director of the Our Wild America Campaign, Sierra Club. “The Endangered Species Act works; our communities— both natural and human — have reaped the benefits. This safety net must be preserved.”

“It is particularly egregious that the Trump Administration is steamrolling through unpopular rules issued by an Interior Secretary embroiled in at least 17 scandals,” Endangered Species Coalition Executive Director Leda Huta said in a statement. “Losing our biodiversity isn’t something that any American can afford. We don’t live in an enclosed man-made bubble — our health and safety, the health and safety of our children and grandchildren, our access to clean air and water, actually depends on biodiversity.”

Yablonski added: “Our interest is getting this landmark wildlife protection law to work better. That means fostering conditions so landowners become more enthusiastic in their role as stewards for species recovery, not worried if they find an endangered species on their land. States and landowners will respond better to carrots, not clubs, in our efforts to improve species recovery results.”

Changes to Health Care

22 August 2019
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Under the Trump Administration there have been changes made to rules governing employee insurance that have expanded and improved benefits, over the past year.

Last week, the Trump Administration announced new guidance on health savings accounts (HSAs), which will help patients better manage chronic conditions, provide more affordable access to treatments, and in the end prevent these conditions from worsening. This first action stemming from Executive Order 13877 (“Improving Price and Quality Transparency in American Healthcare to Put Patients First”) expands the list of preventative care benefits permitted to be provided by a high deductible plan, which will allow patients with chronic conditions such as diabetes, heart disease and asthma to use their HSA dollars to pay for treatment and care before they meet their deductible. This change is effective immediately.

The directive follows another in mid-June which allows citizens to use HRA funds to purchase the health coverage that best meets their personal needs. It also allows the use of the funds for benefits such as dental and vision care.

Last August the departments of Health and Human Services, Labor and Treasury issued a final rule on short-term, limited-duration plans. The rule extended a 3-month limitation on the duration of these plans to under twelve months; allowed for a renewal of the plans for no longer than 36 months; and requires clear communications for consumers to help them understand the coverage level they are receiving.  This health coverage option is important for the self-employed, startups, and people who transition in and out of the workforce due to personal reasons and the need for flexibility.

The courts upheld President Trump’s authority to make these changes in the directives, with U.S. District Judge Richard Leon saying, “Not only is any potential negative impact from the 2018 rule minimal, but its benefits are undeniable.”

Also, in mid-July, the U.S. House passed H.R. 748, the “Middle Class Health Benefits Tax Repeal Act of 2019” by a vote of 419-6. The legislation fully repeals the “Cadillac Tax.” The U.S. Senate is expected to act on the legislation soon.  Over time, the 40% tax is expected to hit all plans, which business organizations like the Small Business & Entrepreneurship Council, worry will put health insurance out of reach for many more small businesses and the self-employed.  

“Partially due to taxes and the threat of impending taxes, health coverage costs have increased and access to health care has become more expensive. Repealing this tax is important, and we are pleased to see the massive bipartisan vote in support of ending it for good.  Similarly, it is now time for Congress to repeal or extend the current moratorium on another tax – the Health Insurance Tax (HIT) – which specifically targets small business plans,” said Karen Kerrigan, who heads the SBE Council.