Steve Daines
RepublicanU.S. Senator, MT| Age | 63 (b. 1962-08-20) |
| Gender | Male |
| In office since | 2013-01-03 (~13 yrs) |
| Race / ethnicity | White (Norwegian ancestry) |
| Religion | Presbyterian (attends Springhill Church, Bozeman, MT) |
| Education | B.S. in Chemical Engineering, Montana State University, Bozeman (1984); previously attended Bozeman High School |
| Prior occupation | Chemical engineer and business executive; spent 13 years at Procter & Gamble (including 6 years in Hong Kong/China); returned to Montana in 1997 to work in family construction business; VP and executive at RightNow Technologies (cloud computing) 2000–2012 |
| Military service | No |
| Birthplace | Van Nuys, California |
| Marital status | married — Cindy Daines |
| Children | 4 |
| Residence | Bozeman, Montana |
| Notable relatives | Jay Owenhouse (brother-in-law, illusionist; his wife Susan Daines was Steve's sister) |
Pending research: languages · openly lgbtq.
Career & politics
| First elected | 2012 |
| Previous offices | U.S. Representative, Montana At-Large District (2013–2015) · Republican Nominee for Lieutenant Governor of Montana (2008, lost general election) |
| Committees | Senate Finance Committee · Senate Foreign Relations Committee · Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee · Senate Indian Affairs Committee |
| Caucuses | Senate Western Caucus (former Chair) · Congressional Sportsmen's Caucus |
| Leadership | Chair, National Republican Senatorial Committee (2023–2025) · Chair, Senate Western Caucus (115th Congress) |
| Ideology | Consistently conservative; Heritage Action 118th Congress scorecard: 79%; described as most conservative House member in Montana history by DW-NOMINATE analysis (2014). Tea Party-aligned; strong advocate for fossil fuel development, anti-abortion, anti-gun-control. |
| Signature legislation | Great American Outdoors Act (2020) — fully funded Land and Water Conservation Fund at $900M/year, signed by President Trump · Clean Water for Rural Communities Act · EFFECT Act (bipartisan energy) · American Mineral Security Act · Public Lands Renewable Energy Development Act · USE It Act |
Financial
Net worth: disclosed $1,845,014–$27,899,999 (2023) · estimate
| Genesis Partners, LLC (commercial real estate) | real_estate · $4,000,000–$17,000,000 · 2023 |
| Ag Land Belgrade | real_estate · $1,000,001–$5,000,000 · 2023 |
| Gen 3 (Genesis Partners property) | real_estate · $1,000,001–$5,000,000 · 2023 |
| Gen 7 (Genesis Partners property) | real_estate · $1,000,001–$5,000,000 · 2023 |
| Vanguard Federal Money Market Fund | fund · $1,000,001–$5,000,000 · 2023 |
| Residential/Agricultural Property | real_estate · $1,000,001–$5,000,000 · 2023 |
Top donors: Elliott Management ($193,000+ (2014 cycle; continued through 2024)) · Oracle Corp ($40,365 (through 2020 election)) · Koch Industries
Top industries: Finance, Insurance & Real Estate · Energy & Natural Resources (Oil & Gas) · Agriculture · Technology · Retired/Miscellaneous Business
Scandals & crimes ledger
resolved — FEC Audit Finding: Failure to Disclose Debts/Obligations and Receipts (2020 Campaign) business
A routine FEC audit of Daines' 2020 re-election campaign committee identified two adopted findings: (1) failure to disclose five debts and obligations totaling $265,217, in violation of 52 U.S.C. § 30104(b)(2) and 11 CFR 104.3(a); and (2) failure to correctly disclose receipts totaling approximately $945,418–$948,218 across calendar years 2019–2020. A third potential finding — excessive contributions of approximately $496,604 — was included in the audit report but was not adopted because it did not receive a majority vote from FEC commissioners. The committee declined multiple opportunities to respond or appear. The matter was referred to the ADR program on November 7, 2023 and settled on April 24, 2024 with a $1,000 civil penalty and mandatory FEC training.