State will buy land with PPL money

The Montana Land Board endorsed a plan Monday to use roughly $40 million from a settlement with PPL Montana to buy more state land, over the objections of some lawmakers who say only the Legislature can make such a move.

The money comes from a state Supreme Court order that says PPL Montana needs to pay rent for the land its hydroelectric dams sit on. Part of that order included damages owed the state in excess of $40 million.

The Department of Natural Resources and Conservation said the money would likely best be used by increasing the size of the land trust that generates revenue for the sta...