Following an inquiry by the DCI, the Grand Junction office for Rep. Scott Tipton gave a statement on Thursday, Jan. 27, regarding the Bear Ranch federal land exchange.

Spokesperson Chris Montana said, "I know it is on our agenda to look into the federal land exchange for Bear Ranch in Gunnison County.

We are going to research it a little bit more, and when we decide to move forward it's going to be a more transparent process with more public input."

Montana does not believe Rep. Tipton has been contacted by Western Land Group, who represented the interests of Bear Ranch owner Bill Koch when former representative John Salazar introduced a bill concerning the land exchange in 2010. That bill never made it out of committee.