Source:  Helena Independent Record   February 1, 2017    By: Rob Chaney, The Missoulian

MISSOULA – Montana Sen. Steve Daines has been appointed chairman of the Senate’s subcommittee on National Parks.  The panel has oversight of the National Park System, Wild and Scenic River System, National Trails System, historic sites, military battlefields and the Land and Water Conservation Fund reports to the Senate’s Committee on Energy and Natural Resources.  Republican Daines also sits on Public Lands, Forests and Mining, and Subcommittee on Energy. 

“Growing up just a short drive away from Yellowstone National Park, I know the importance of our national parks to Montanans way of life,” Daines wrote in an email Tuesday morning.  “In this new role, I’ll continue to champion our national parks by working with the Trump administration to reduce the maintenance backlog and restore integrity to Park Service.  We must create a National Park system that honors America’s Best Idea.”

Running that subcommittee will put Daines in close contact with fellow Montanan Ryan Zinke, confirmed Tuesday by a Senate panel for secretary of the Department of Interior.  the Interior Department oversees the National Park Service, among other agencies.