PAL is short for the Public Access Land program, a new voluntary, incentive-based public access option administered by Montana FWP that was passed during the 2019 Montana Legislative Session with MALT’s support. PAL is a cooperative program to engage with landowners to open up currently inaccessible or hard to access public land.

The PAL initial application period is open until May 25.

From the Montana FWP website: The Public Access Land Agreement program is a creative way for landowners to provide public access to public lands for hunting and/or fishing, in exchange for a payment and other negotiated improvements to facilitate public access to public lands.

The FWP website spells out who is eligible, the basic provisions of the program, and the proposal review and approval process. Landowners may receive up to $15,000 annually for entering into a PAL agreement. Applications are reviewed by the Public Lands/Private Wildlife Advisory Committee and approved by the FWP director.