Ambler v. Friends of Montana Streams and Rivers

── Ambler v. Friends of Montana Streams and Rivers ── Court: Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit Date: April 17, 2026 Category: General NOT FOR PUBLICATION FILED UNITED STATES COURT OF APPEALS APR 17 2026 MOLLY C. DWYER, CLERK U.S. COURT OF APPEALS FOR THE NINTH CIRCUIT JOHN AMBLER; STACY AMBLER, No. 25-1474 D.C. No. Plaintiffs - Appellees, 9:23-cv-00151-KLD v. MEMORANDUM* FLATHEAD CONSERVATION DISTRICT, Defendant - Appellee, v. FRIENDS OF MONTANA STREAMS AND RIVERS, Intervenor-Defendant - Appellant. JOHN AMBLER; STACY AMBLER, No. 25-1479 D.C. No. Plaintiffs - Appellees, 9:23-cv-00151-KLD v. FLATHEAD CONSERVATION DISTRICT, Defendant - Appellant, * This disposition is not appropriate for publication and is not precedent except as provided by Ninth Circuit Rule 36-3. and FRIENDS OF MONTANA STREAMS AND RIVERS, Intervenor-Defendant. Appeal from the United States District Court for the District of Montana Kathleen Louise DeSoto, Magistrate Judge, Presiding Submitted April 15, 2026** Portland, Oregon Before: OWENS, VANDYKE, and SUNG, Circuit Judges. Appellants Friends of Montana Streams and Rivers (FMSR) and Flathead Conservation District (FCD) appeal the district court’s order granting Appellees John and Stacy Amblers’ motion for summary judgment, and denying FMSR and FCD’s cross-motions for summary judgment, on the Amblers’ claim for declaratory relief. The district court concluded that FCD lacks jurisdiction to enforce the Natural Streambed and Land Preservation Act of 1975 (Streambed Act), MONT. CODE ANN. § 75-7-101 et seq., against the Amblers on their private property within Glacier National Park. We review de novo the district court’s grant of declaratory relief. Cal. Ass’n ** The panel unanimously concludes this case is suitable for decision without oral argument. See FED. R. APP. P. 34(a)(2). 2 25-1474 of Rural Health Clinics v. Douglas, 738 F.3d 1007, 1011 (9th Cir. 2013). We have jurisdiction under 28 U.S.C. § 1291, and we affirm. 1. In 1911, the State of Montana ceded jurisdiction to the United States over private inholdings within Glacier National Park, and the United States accepted that cession in 1914. 1911 Mont. Laws Sec. 1, Ch. 33 (codified at MONT. CODE ANN. § 2-1-205); Act of Aug. 22, 1914, ch. 264 § 1, 38 Stat. 699 (codified at 16 U.S.C. § 163). Accordingly, “federal authority became the only authority operating within the ceded area,” including “privately owned lands within the described park boundaries.” Macomber v. Bose, 401 F.2d 545, 546–47 (9th Cir. 1968). The United States has exclusive legislative jurisdiction over private inholdings within Glacier National Park, except to the extent that Montana reserved powers at the time of cession. See Paul v. United States, 371 U.S. 245, 264–65, 268 (1963) (“[I]f the United States acquires with the ‘consent’ of the state legislature land within the borders of that State . . . the jurisdiction of the Federal Government becomes ‘exclusive.’” But “a State may condition its ‘consent’ upon its retention of jurisdiction over the lands consistent with the federal use.”). In its statute ceding jurisdiction, Montana reserved only the powers to serve process and to tax within the ceded territory. MONT. CODE ANN. § 2-1-205; see also 16 U.S.C. § 163. 2. State law in effect at the time of