--- description: The tongue-in-check petition offered an unconventional way to settle soaring national debt title: Petition Suggests Selling Montana to Settle National Debt image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt683bbc5a46754624/69894582b21a9c88eb500241/gettyimages-1017163094.jpg?branch=production&width=3840&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 ---  * [Newsfeed](/tag/time-section-newsfeed/) ## Newsfeed Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close # Online Petition Calls for Selling Off Montana to Help Settle U.S. Debt by [Casey Quackenbush](/author/casey-quackenbush/) ## Casey Quackenbush Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close Feb 21, 2019 4:02 AM CUT  An American flag flies in front of the Logan Pass Visitor Center in Glacier National Park on July 26, 2018 in West Glacier, Montana. An American flag flies in front of the Logan Pass Visitor Center in Glacier National Park on July 26, 2018 in West Glacier, Montana.George Frey—Getty Images by [Casey Quackenbush](/author/casey-quackenbush/) ## Casey Quackenbush Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close Feb 21, 2019 4:02 AM CUT Online petitioners have proposed an unorthodox solution to the swelling national debt: [sell Montana](https://www.change.org/p/christian-moms-against-private-education-sell-montana-to-canada-for-1-trillion-to-eliminate-the-national-debt "undefined") to Canada. The petition on change.org, which as of Wednesday had almost 12,000 signatures, calls for a $1 trillion sale of the state. It suggests the profit could go toward chipping away at the national debt, which this month [soared](http://time.com/5528215/nation/ "undefined") to a record $22 trillion. “We have too much debt and Montana is useless,” the petition reads. “Just tell them it has beavers or something.” In response to the petition, a wry editorial in the Great Falls _Tribune_ [pointed out](https://www.greatfallstribune.com/story/opinion/2019/02/12/petition-sell-montana-canada-1-trillion/2847432002/ "undefined") that many of the signatories are from Montana. The editorial also broaches important questions, like, “Why not Alaska? It’s not even touching the other states!” It also raises the cultural significance of such a sale. “Would Montanans have to start saying “sorry” constantly or would there be allowances made for us as former Americans?” But perhaps most importantly, the _Tribune_ wanted to know what Canada would call the territory. “Would Montana still be named Montana or would we be Southern Alberta?” Lawmakers in Montana even humorously [took up the debate](https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/nation/2019/02/20/montana-canada-lawmakers-resolution-trillion-deficit/2929304002/ "undefined"). Rep. Jessica Karjala, a Billings Democrat, made a strong argument in favor of alignment with Canada. “What about those of us who would like more maple syrup, better tea and free health care?” she said, according to USA _Today_. But ultimately, the state’s House Administration Committee shot down the idea of a bill formally rejecting the petition’s suggested sale, USA _Today_ reports_._ Rep. Forrest Mandeville, who had proposed the satirical resolution pushing back on the petition, said it was clear Montana will be sticking to this side of the border. “I don’t think anyone really believes there is a snowball’s chance in Florida that the U.S. will sell Montana to Canada,” he said. ```json [{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"NewsArticle","@id":"https://time.com/5534176/petition-sell-montana-canada-debt/","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https://time.com/5534176/petition-sell-montana-canada-debt/"},"headline":"Online Petition Calls for Selling Off Montana to Help Settle U.S. Debt","datePublished":"2019-02-21T04:02:04.000Z","dateModified":"2026-04-13T07:57:35.930Z","description":"Sell the state for $1 trillion to help pay off $22 trillion U.S. debt, it says","url":"https://time.com/5534176/petition-sell-montana-canada-debt/","keywords":["Newsfeed","Montana","onetime","overnight"],"thumbnailUrl":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt683bbc5a46754624/69894582b21a9c88eb500241/gettyimages-1017163094.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","author":[{"@type":"Person","name":"Casey Quackenbush","jobTitle":null,"url":"https://time.com/author/casey-quackenbush/"}],"articleSection":"","image":[{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt683bbc5a46754624/69894582b21a9c88eb500241/gettyimages-1017163094.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","width":1200,"height":675,"headline":"Popularity Of Glacier National Park Draws Record Crowd Numbers In 2018","caption":"Popularity Of Glacier National Park Draws Record Crowd Numbers In 2018","creditText":"George Frey—Getty Images","representativeOfPage":true}],"publisher":{"@type":"Organization","name":"Time","url":"https://time.com/","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://time.com/images/logo.png","width":528,"height":156},"foundingDate":"March 3, 1923","sameAs":["https://www.facebook.com/time","https://www.instagram.com/time/?hl=en","https://twitter.com/time","https://www.pinterest.com/timemagazine"]}},{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"BreadcrumbList","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"item":{"@id":"/tag/time-section-newsfeed/","name":"Newsfeed"}},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"item":{"@id":"https://time.com/5534176/petition-sell-montana-canada-debt/","name":"Online Petition Calls for Selling Off Montana to Help Settle U.S. Debt"}}]}] ```