#MTGov Daily Rundown: Bullock's Trio of Lies Part 2: Bullock Lies About Record on Colstrip

Governor Steve Bullock currently has three ads on the air. Each one makes its own variety of false claims. Part 2 dissects Bullock's ad on Colstrip.

CLAIM: “As Governor, [Steve Bullock] he listened to us”

• FACT: Governor Bullock Has Held Only One Townhall Meeting in Colstrip

• "'Part of our problem is that we have lost sight of the value and we haven’t done what we should do to communicate the value of what we are to the rest of the state,' [Colstrip Mayor John] Williams said. 'Colstrip is out of sight out of mind, setting out here.' The mayor called on Bullock to carry the message of the importance of Colstrip to the rest of the state. Williams' comments drew applause from a crowd of roughly 40 spectators (Billings Gazette, 05/31/2016)
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• FACT: Colstrip Residents Have Been Neglected by Steve Bullock
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• Terry Taylor, who owns a hardware store in Colstrip, said Bullock’s team, particularly the Department of Environmental Quality, had done more harm than good. He faulted the state for accepting $86 million from now-bankrupt Arch Coal for a lease on nearby Otter Creek coal, but then not granting the company a permit before a sour coal economy devastated it (Billings Gazette, 5/31/2016)
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• 'We feel like you’re a very handsome, smooth, intelligent man, but we don’t feel like you’re getting excited about what’s going on,' Taylor said. 'We feel like the Department of Environmental Quality is letting everything happen to us and not fighting for us. The state of Montana took $80 million from Arch Coal. Can you imagine that Arch Coal would be broke if they had that money? This kind of stuff goes on time and time and time again and we’re really frustrated (Billings Gazette, 5/31/2016)

CLAIM: “…and stood up to President Obama to defend our coal jobs,”

• FACT:  Steve Bullock Refused to Support AG Tim Fox’s Lawsuit Against Obama’s Clean Power Plan, Which Threatens Thousands of MT Jobs
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• A statement issued by Governor Steve Bullock didn’t say whether he thinks the lawsuit is a good idea. (Montana Public Radio, 10/23/2015)
• FACT: Steve Bullock Failed to Testify During Hearing for Bill Seeking to Protect Montana Coal Jobs
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• Zinke and Daines introduced the legislation in May, saying it would protect Montana coal jobs from the Obama administration’s recent moratorium on new federal coal leases. They also wanted to guarantee that states and tribes have a voice in changes to federal coal, oil, gas royalties or leasing policies… Gov. Steve Bullock did not send anyone to the hearing. (Great Falls Tribune 6/15/2016)
• FACT:  Bullock Said He Would NOT Ask Inslee To VETO  A Bill Paving Way to Shut Down Colstrip Then Backtracked Under Pressure from Greg Gianforte; Bullock NEVER Showed Any Courage to Ask the Governor of Oregon to VETO a Similar Bill That Paves Way to Shut Down Colstrip
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• For weeks Greg Gianforte asked Gov. Bullock to fight back against an out-of-state bill that paves the way to shut down Colstrip.  “Bullock isn’t likely to ask Inslee to veto the measure,” Baker said.
  (MTN News, 3/15/2016).
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• Under continued pressure from Greg Gianforte, Bullock then backtracked and finally asked Inslee to VETO the bill:  “I still asked Washington Gov. Jay Inslee to veto it because I think we can do better.”
  (Billings Gazette, 03/30/2016)
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• Bullock NEVER asked the Governor of Oregon to VETO “one of the nation's most aggressive pieces of pro-climate legislation” that also puts the future of Colstrip at risk and paves the way for its closure.
  (AP, 03/11/2016)

• FACT: MEIC & Sierra Club Sued to Shut Colstrip Units 1 & 2
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• Two of the four Colstrip coal-fired power plants will close by July 2022 under a proposed legal settlement announced Tuesday (KTVH, 7/12/16).
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• Plant owners Talen Energy and five electric utilities, and the two environmental groups that sued the owners in 2013, announced Tuesday afternoon they’ve reached a proposed settlement of a lawsuit alleging clean-air violations by all four Colstrip plants…The Montana Environmental Information Center and the Sierra Club sued the plant owners in federal court in 2013 (KTVH, 7/12/16)

• FACT:  $500,000 in Anti-Colstrip Money Supporting Bullock;
  Bullock Accepted Campaign Contributions From MEIC and Sierra Club Board Members –
  The Two Groups Suing to Shutter Colstrip 1 & 2
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• Governor Bullock is benefiting from $500,000 in dark money from a fringe enviro group – and one of the main backer of this fringe enviro group called one of their ‘recent successes’ shutting down Colstrip Units 1 & 2.
  (KXLH, 08/09/2016; The Brainerd Foundation)
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• The firm MEIC that actually pursued this lawsuit against Colstrip, their board members have written checks, five of them have written checks to Gov. Bullock’s campaign,' Gianforte said. 'He’s bought and paid for by special interests that shut down Montana jobs.'  Campaign records show Gianforte’s allegation is true (Billings Gazette, 7/13/2016).
• Source: Montana Campaign Electronic Reporting System https://camptrackext.mt.gov/CampaignTracker/public/search
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• MEIC Donors to Bullock:
• Greg Lind (Missoula) - $1,300 to Steve Bullock 2016, $1260 in 2012
  Bob Ream (Helena) -$300 to Steve Bullock in 2016, $1260 in 2012
  Jennifer Swearingen (Bozeman) - $200 to SB in 2016, $650 in 2012
  John Rundquist Treasurer (Helena) - $250 Steve Bullock 2012
  Alexis Bonogofsky (Billings) -$350 Steve Bullock (2012)
• ·         Sierra Club's Montana Executive Committee Donors to Bullock:
• Teresa Brock - $100 to SB in 2016
  Mike Scott (staff) - $400 to SB in 2016
  Bob Clark - $100 to SB in 2016, $25 in 2012
• ·         From Montana Conservation Voters:
• Robin Saha - Vice Chairperson - $50 in 2016, $25 in 2012
• Elizabeth Ametsbichler - Treasurer - $100 in 2016,  $50 in 2012
• Dave Chadwick - Director Helena - $50 in 2016
• Katie Craig Scherfig - Gallatin-Park Chapter Representative - $35 in 2012
• Brenda Lindlief Hall - PAC Board Rep. $225 in 2016, $235 in 2012
• Beth Madden - Alternate Gallatin-Park Chapter Representative - $15 in 2016
• Clayton Elliott - $50 in 2016, $75 in 2012
• Ross Prosperi - $50 in 2012
• Neal Ullman - $100 in 2012
• Jeanne Marie Souvigney -$200 in 2012

CLAIM: “He’s working on solutions for the long term.”

• FACT:  Even After U.S. Supreme Court Put A Stay On Obama’s EPA Clean Power Plan, Bullock Suspended His Clean Power Plan Advisory Council
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• Montana Gov. Steve Bullock on Tuesday suspended the work of a panel appointed to address new federal carbon dioxide emissions rules after the U.S. Supreme Court temporarily blocked the key component of President Barack Obama’s climate change plan (Associated Press 2/9/2016).

ICYMI- Gianforte Campaign Ad "Emili"

CLAIM: “…investing in new technologies and new energy like solar and wind”

• FACT:  Steve Bullock Vetoed Two Bills that Would Have Allowed New Hydro Projects To Count Toward Renewable Energy Mandate
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• Bullock also has vetoed a bill that would have included vintage hydropower as eligible for Montana's renewable energy standards…He vetoed a similar proposal from the same sponsor, Sen. Debby Barrett of Dillon, last session (Missoulian, 4/2/15).
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• SB 31: This bill originally would have allowed all the electricity generated at all hydropower facilities, including existing ones, to be considered as renewable energy for the purpose of complying with the State’s Renewable Energy Standard (RES). The bill was amended on the Senate floor to limit its applicability to new hydro-power facilities, regardless of size. The current RES allows new dams under 10 megawatts in size, and new irrigation hydroelectric facilities under 15 megawatts in size, to count as eligible renewable resources” (MEIC, 4/16/13).
• FACT:  Steve Bullock Waited 4 Years and Until His Re-Election To Unveil Energy Plan for Montana
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• Bullock on Tuesday presented his 26-page proposal during a news conference in Helena. The governor said his proposal was merely a broad outline of his priorities: developing the state's capacity to produce power from wind, solar and electricity-churning dams, and expanding the infrastructure that could boost the Montana's ability to transmit – and sell – surplus energy to utilities across the Northwest… He could not immediately say how much his program would cost, nor identify how many jobs might be created by his initiatives (Missoulian, 6/21/16)
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• "Is there some political calculus in this? Perhaps," said Jeff Fox, the Montana policy manager for Renewable Northwest. (Missoulian, 6/21/16)
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• Bullock's Republican opponent, Greg Gianforte, questioned the timing of the announcement on Tuesday, saying it took Bullock four years to come up with a plan. (Missoulian, 6/21/16)

CLAIM: “…Steve Bullock stands for Montana energy and our jobs”

• FACT: Colstrip Units 1 & 2 Will Shut Down by July, 2022
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• Two of the four Colstrip coal-fired power plants will close by July 2022 under a proposed legal settlement announced Tuesday (KTVH, 7/12/16).
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• Plant owners Talen Energy and five electric utilities, and the two environmental groups that sued the owners in 2013, announced Tuesday afternoon they’ve reached a proposed settlement of a lawsuit alleging clean-air violations by all four Colstrip plants…The Montana Environmental Information Center and the Sierra Club sued the plant owners in federal court in 2013 (KTVH, 7/12/16)
• FACT: Colstrip’s Closure Threatens 7,000 Montana jobs, $1.5 Billings Negative Impact to Montana’s Economy, And Loss of Nearly $200 Million in Tax Revenue
• “The impacts are spread across industry,” said Patrick Barkey, director of the UM Bureau of Business and Economic Research. “I think it could be the biggest economic event in Montana, in over three decades. It’s a fairly large impact on the economy” (KXLH,11/18/15)
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• Closing the coal-fired plants in Colstrip would reverberate across the state, he said, costing 7,000 jobs, $500 million a year of income and another $190 million in state-and-local tax revenue (KXLH, 11/18/15).
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• It said more than 7,000 jobs would be lost in 2025, with average earnings of almost $66,000 per job (KXLH, 11/18/15).
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• Sales of Montana businesses would decline by $1.5 billion and population could fall by 10,000 people, the study said (KXLH, 11/18/15).