36.25.132    WEEDS, PESTS, AND FIRE PROTECTION

(1) A lessee or licensee of state land shall keep the land free of noxious weeds and pests and assume responsibility for fire prevention and suppression necessary to protect the forage, trees, and improvements. The lessee or licensee shall perform these duties at his own cost and in the same manner as if he owned the land. The lessee or licensee is not responsible for the suppression of or damages resulting from a fire caused by a general recreational user, except that he or she shall make reasonable efforts to suppress the fire or report it to the proper firefighting authority or both, as circumstances dictate. In the event that any state land shall be included in a weed control or weed seed extermination district, the lessee or licensee shall be required to comply with 7-22-2149, MCA, which requires that the lessee or licensee be responsible for all assessments and taxes levied by the board or county commissioners for the district. The lessee or licensee of state land must comply with Montana County Noxious Weed Management Act under Title 7, chapter 22, part 21, MCA. Failure to comply with this rule may result in cancellation of the lease or license, subject to the appeal procedures provided in ARM 36.25.121.

History: 77-1-209 and 77-2-328, MCA; IMP, 77-6-114 and 77-6-210, MCA; NEW, 1987 MAR p. 17, Eff. 1/16/87; AMD, 1992 MAR p. 568, Eff. 3/27/92; TRANS, 1996 MAR p. 2384.