Burns is seeking additional funds in the Energy and Water Appropriations Bill. The lines will be used for distance learning and telemedicine projects to benefit the communities. This is a joint project between Rocky Mountain College and Deaconess Billings Clinic and the respective tribal colleges and health care facilities. The center will use satellites and other technologies to research catastrophic forest fires in order to combat them more effectively. The program is designed to get more Indian students involved in undergraduate and graduate psychology programs.
States can use the funds for conservation easements and other conservation programs.
Montana is home to seven of the nation's 28 tribal colleges. A provision would prohibit the Forest Service and Bureau of Land Management from increasing fees for running fiber optic cables through their lands. The bill authorizes nine new stewardship projects in Forest Service Region 1 that includes Montana. There are a total of 28 projects in the nation. A provision was included that allows ranchers with grazing permits to continue using Bureau of Land Management lands while environmental reviews are completed.