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July 31, 2025
The “war on coal” has long played a role in Montana Attorney General Austin Knudsen’s pro-fossil fuels messaging, but a conservative nonprofit with secretive funding sources has recently been circulating ads suggesting the two-term Republican AG is fighting from the wrong foxhole.
Ads by 60 Plus Association target Knudsen for suing the asset management firms that invest in the coal industry, namely State Street, BlackRock and Vanguard. The latter two are the largest shareholders in NorthWestern Energy, Montana’s largest monopoly utility.
On tax filings, 60 Plus bills itself as an advocate for seniors. The association did not respond to a detailed voicemail left by Capitolized for this article.
A Knudsen source familiar with the ads said it isn’t clear if 60 Plus is working for a client.
Knudsen has a history of criticizing BlackRock for operating under a policy known as ESG, or environmental, social and governance standards, that can discourage investment in fossil fuel industries.
He and other Republican attorneys general wrote to BlackRock in 2023, questioning the firm’s participation in efforts like the 2020 Net Zero Asset Managers Initiative, which suggested that investments in greenhouse gas emitters be balanced with investments in companies that are reducing greenhouse gas emissions. Both BlackRock and Vanguard have since exited the initiative.
At the heart of the 60 Plus ads is the lawsuit filed by the Republican attorneys general accusing the investment firms of using their power as mining company shareholders to reduce coal production. The ads, however, say it’s Knudsen who isn’t advancing President Donald Trump’s energy agenda to prioritize electricity generated by burning coal or natural gas.
Four of the 11 attorneys general involved in the lawsuit have been targeted with ads. All are members of the Republican Attorneys General Association, a privately funded group that promotes the election of its members. Six-figure donors to RAGA range from major tobacco and energy companies to a nonprofit affiliated with Leonard Leo, a Republican influencer credited with trying to reshape America’s courts. Knudsen previously served as RAGA’s vice chair.
On its website, 60 Plus said the lawsuit will drive up energy costs for seniors. The coal lobby isn’t buying the explanation.
America’s Coal Associations issued a letter July 25 condemning 60 Plus for aligning itself with the investment firms. The Montana Coal Council, which represents the state’s coal mining stakeholders, signed the letter.
Tax records show that some of the same donors funding RAGA also fund 60 Plus.
Koch Industries, a top donor to RAGA, also funds Americans for Limited Government, which gives money to 60 Plus, as does Leo’s foundation, The Concord Fund, which does business as the Judicial Crisis Network.
According to Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington, a political watchdog, 60 Plus “has a reputation for renting out its services” to support candidates and issue-based campaigns, particularly in the energy sector.
— Tom Lutey
CJOC you later
ACLU of Montana lobbyist Henry Seaton received an email at 9:35 a.m. on July 18 informing him of the end of his term on the Montana Criminal Justice Oversight Council.
“The Governor has appointed Jessica Flint as the representative for civil rights organizations,” wrote Lt. Gov. Kristen Juras, who thanked Seaton for his service. Flint is a state government relations manager at Alliance Defending Freedom, a conservative legal organization that “advances every person’s God-given right to live and speak the truth.”
When he got the message, Seaton had just gotten off a call with criminal justice advocacy organizations to discuss policy. He said he was disappointed to see the lieutenant governor’s email.
“This was not expected,” Seaton said in a recent interview with Capitolized. “The correspondence I received from Juras was less than a week before the [council’s] next meeting.”
Seaton also noted the dismissal was retroactive; the email said Flint’s term started July 1.
Newly elected council Chair Sen. Barry Usher, R-Laurel, said he wasn’t aware of the change in membership until the July 23 meeting. But Usher said he thinks “ADF is a great organization.”
“It’s the governor’s choice and if the governor feels it’s a good fit, I’m OK with it,” Usher said in an interview with Capitolized.
The governor’s press secretary, Kaitlin Price, wrote in an email to Capitolized that ADF has a “long history of advocacy surrounding civil rights, civil liberties, and other constitutional rights.”
“The governor believes including ADF will bring a fresh perspective to the council,” Price wrote.
Flint, wife of Billings-based conservative talk radio host Aaron Flint, introduced herself and her organization at the July 23 CJOC meeting with a reference to the Colorado baker who refused to make cakes for a same-sex couple and to mark the celebration of a gender transition.
“We’ve seen laws that criminalize and punish people, like one of our clients, Jack Phillips in Colorado, and the complaint against him came with fines and jail times,” Flint said, referencing the criminal justice tie-ins to her appointment.
Jail time was not a possible outcome in either suit.
Seven Democratic legislators and 15 Montana advocacy organizations, including policy think tanks and civil rights advocates, signed onto a letter from Disability Rights Montana criticizing the governor’s decision to appoint “a national religious advocacy organization with no record of criminal justice reform work in Montana or elsewhere, to replace the ACLU of Montana, one of Montana’s most prominent and experienced civil rights organizations.”
ADF did not respond to requests for comment.
The oversight council is an interbranch entity that includes legislators, judges, attorneys, sheriffs, state agencies and nonprofits. The council meets outside of the legislative session to discuss, consider and formulate policy.
The governor appoints some members of the commission, with the rest selected by legislative leadership, the chief justice of the Montana Supreme Court and the state attorney general. The head of the state Department of Corrections also sits on the commission.
— Zeke Lloyd
