For four terms I served at the Legislature and one thing has become obvious: liberal governors veto conservative legislation. For eight years conservative legislation has passed the House and Senate but are dead on arrival at the governor’s desk. In 2020 we have the best opportunity in 16 years to take back the Governor’s Read More…
GREAT FALLS — With hunting season in Montana right around the corner, it’s time for hunters to start getting prepared. But what about the meat processing companies? For about five weeks at the end of every year, meat processing companies see their business skyrocket. To make sure that everything is ready for the start of Read More…
In the early 1990s, Wilmot Collins and his wife, Maddie, escaped the Liberian Civil War. Broke and starving, they ended up in Helena, Mont. “Why do you think we fled?” Collins asked. “We fled because we wanted a second chance.” Soon after moving to their first home, a neighbor knocked on their door and alerted Read More…
Where is Montana Attorney General Tim Fox these days? I have attempted to contact his office three times in the past month regarding a complaint I filed against a Montana Highway Patrol trooper back in July, but Fox’s silence has been deafening. After forwarding my complaint up the MHP chain of command without resolution, Read More…
CASPER — A leading air ambulance company formally voiced its opposition to an ambitious plan by Wyoming policymakers to make aerial emergency transports a public utility funded under Medicaid in an effort to curb the cost of the flights. But the comment may be a moot point, as the federal government has signaled to state Read More…
The proposed sale of Blackjewel LLC mines in Wyoming includes a plan to pay all the company’s employees whose last checks bounced in early July. According to an Oct. 7 court filing, Blackjewel hoped to close the sale of the Wyoming properties yesterday. Last week, a West Virginia federal bankruptcy court tentatively approved the sale Read More…
Apple Inc. and Google both removed apps associated with Hong Kong’s antigovernment protests from their digital stores in recent days, thrusting the two Silicon Valley giants into the controversy engulfing U.S. companies related to the unrest. Apple removed from its App Store a crowdsourced map service that allows Hong Kong protesters to track police activity, Read More…
In July, Wealth-X released their findings on which US colleges have produced the most millionaires. The study focused on those alumni deemed to be ultra-high net worth (UHNW) individuals: those with fortunes of $30 million or more. The report analyzed the Wealth-X database of the world’s wealthiest people and used Wealth-X’s Wealth and Investable Assets Model to estimate the number Read More…
Republican Greg Gianforte turned in another impressive quarter of fundraising for his 2020 gubernatorial run this weekend, bringing his four-month total to $1.09 million – more than twice as much as any other rival in either party. Gianforte, currently Montana’s sole U.S. House member, reported raising $507,000 for the past three months, adding to the Read More…
Soon residents in the Mining City will have the opportunity to rub shoulders with representatives from companies like Slack and WeWork as around 200 entrepreneurs and other professionals descend upon Butte next week for the annual Innovate Montana Symposium. The event runs Oct. 14-16 and marks the fourth run of the symposium, which is Read More…
Spenser Merwin, a former staff member for U.S. Sen. Steve Daines, has been named the new executive director of the Montana Republican Party. Merwin has been Daines’ director of coalitions and outreach since 2015. He was the deputy political director for Daines’ Senate campaign during the 2014 election cycle and his regional political director during Read More…
U.S. Interior Secretary David Bernhardt paid a visit to the Rocky Mountain Front Saturday to hear about conflicts with grizzly bears. The secretary heard numerous calls for delisting grizzlies from their threatened species status in and around Glacier National Park, but he says changes may be able to be made prior to delisting. Secretary Bernhardt took Read More…
Montana Gov. Steve Bullock raised nearly $2.3 million for his presidential bid in the third fundraising quarter, his campaign said on Friday. Bullock’s fundraising haul falls short of most of the other candidates who have announced their third-quarter totals so far. But it’s higher than that of at least one of his rivals, Sen. Michael Bennet (D-Colo.), who announced Read More…
FARGO — A Fargo mother has brought a lawsuit seeking damages from a truck driver and his company for a 2018 crash on Interstate 29 that killed her two young boys. The crash happened when Trista Curry and her three young children were making a trip from Fargo to Stephen, Minn., to visit family in Read More…
Montana education leaders have released the latest results in the assessment that measures elementary and middle school students’ math and English-language arts proficiencies – and the data shows there has been little change this year. The Montana Office of Public Instruction announced the results of the statewide Smarter Balanced Assessment for the 2018-2019 school year. Read More…
Montana sports betting is less than two months from launch. The Montana Lottery has now published its draft regulations — the framework of rules that, once finalized, will unleash full-fledged legal and licensed wagering on the Big Sky State. The Lottery said Friday that it expected to launch the market towards the end of 2019, Read More…
Billings resident Nelly Nicol announced today that she is running as a Republican for Montana State Auditor. Nelly is a fourth-generation Montanan, wife, mother, and professional who has spent much of her career working in the insurance industry. “I was raised in a patriotic Marine Corps household and serving others is something that comes naturally Read More…
MISSOULA, Mont. — Medicare is reducing payments to nine Montana hospitals under a program that penalizes costly readmissions within a month of treatment for heart and lung diseases as well as knee and hip replacement surgery. The Bozeman Daily Chronicle reports the Hospital Readmission Reduction Program evaluated 14 Montana hospitals and will reduce Medicare payments by Read More…
House Republicans will force a vote to formally condemn Rep. Adam Schiff when they return from recess, their most aggressive offensive yet as the GOP fumbles for a strategy to beat back impeachment efforts. The largely symbolic move, which won’t get approved by the Democrat-controlled House, is backed by the House’s highest-ranking Republicans and some Read More…
A federal grand jury has indicted three Powell men in connection with a yearslong Medicaid fraud scheme that prosecutors allege involved billing the government for $8.5 million worth of “therapy” that included taking patients to the gym and watching them play video games. The indictment is the latest in a series of court cases Read More…
CASPER, Wyo. (AP) – A federal bankruptcy judge in West Virginia has approved a new plan to sell two Wyoming coal mines. Under the deal approved Wednesday, Milton, West Virginia-based Blackjewel would sell the Eagle Butte and Belle Ayr mines to Eagle Specialty Materials, a subsidiary of Jasper, Alabama-based FM Coal. Blackjewel halted almost all Wyoming Read More…
HELENA — Bidding is open for seven alcohol licenses in Montana, including Bozeman and Belgrade. According to a press release from the Montana Department of Revenue, on-premises beer licenses are available in Helena, Bozeman, Hamilton, Belgrade, and Polson. All-beverage floater licenses are available in Bozeman and Missoula. A “floater” license allows the applicant to purchase, Read More…
The Office of Public Instruction announced Wednesday that Montana has received a five-year, $50 million Striving Readers Comprehensive State Development Program literacy grant through the U.S. Department of Education. The Montana Comprehensive Literacy State Development Project (MCLSDP) will award competitive subgrants to eligible districts to advance literacy skills using evidence-based practices, strategies, and interventions for Read More…
Democratic presidential candidate Elizabeth Warren endorsed a Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D., N.Y.) policy proposal that includes taxpayer-funded welfare benefits for illegal immigrants. Ocasio-Cortez’s proposal, dubbed “A Just Society,” calls for nationwide rent control and bans the federal government from denying welfare benefits based on an individual’s immigration status and previous criminal convictions. Warren became the first Read More…
Last week, freshman Democrat Alexandria Ocasio-Cortz (a.k.a. AOC) decided to jump into the issue of New York City taxi drivers and the financial problems they’ve been facing in the era of the gig economy. Even though she’s a federal elected official, I don’t knock her for entering the debate since many of her constituents are Read More…
First lady Melania Trump will be visiting Wyoming this week, the White House announced Tuesday morning. Trump will fly into Jackson Hole for a two-day visit starting Thursday, visiting both Grand Teton and Yellowstone National Parks to promote her anti-bullying #BeBest campaign. According to an itinerary provided by the White House, she will be Read More…
Two Bozeman Democrats are running for U.S. Senate with the hope of unseating Republican Steve Daines in 2020. Cora Neumann, 44, launched her campaign Tuesday, saying she will focus on affordable, high-quality health care, increasing wages and protecting public lands. Michael Knoles, 32, has filed with the Federal Election Commission but said he Read More…
Montana Gov. Steve Bullock (D) will apply to receive public financing for his struggling presidential campaign. In a memo Monday, Bullock’s campaign manager Jennifer Ridder cast the decision to seek out public funds for his presidential bid as a show of the governor’s commitment to campaign finance reform, an issue that he has put at the center Read More…
HELENA, Mont. — The state of Montana has denied a $97 million claim filed by a man who was exonerated after spending 18 years in prison for a murder he didn’t commit. Richard Raugust had to file the claim before filing a lawsuit. It was denied Monday. Raugust tells Lee Newspapers of Montana that he has Read More…
BUTTE, Mont. — A Montana mine company has laid off dozens of workers, but could hire again as it aims to prevent acid rock drainage. The Montana Standard reported that Golden Sunlight laid off 28 out of its 49 remaining workers Monday following a 2015 layoff after stopping open pit mining. Company officials say Toronto, Canada-based Read More…
Reminder: Montana has one year left before REAL ID requirements go into effect, and travelers without REAL ID won’t be able to board commercial flights. Montana, Washington and Idaho are among states where the REAL ID extension will expire in October 2020. READ FULL STORY
Governor Brad Little and other Idaho officials are in Europe this week to foster economic relations with business leaders who have investment interests in Idaho. A visit to the Netherlands is part of an effort to bring new industry to the state. When McCain Foods — the largest producer of frozen potato products in the Read More…
Gov. Kristi Noem has expressed disappointment in recent standardized test scores among South Dakota students. South Dakota News Watch reports 54% of students tested in grades three through eight and in 11th grade showed proficiency in reading and writing. Only about 47% of those same students were proficient in math for their respective grade levels, Read More…
BISMARCK, N.D. – Sen. Dick Dever, R-Bismarck, is asking Legislative Management, which handles the interim committee work for legislators, to consider a new study this interim over concerns about mobile home parks around the state being bought by capital investment firms. Utah-based Havenpark Capital purchased two Bismarck parks- Colonial Estates and Holiday Park, in July. Dever Read More…
JACKSON, Wyo. — We’ve all heard the saying, “Time is money.” But what if you’re putting in hard work and time, and your paycheck still isn’t cutting it? It may have something to do with where you live. A new study by Joblist.com used the most recent US Current Population Survey, which surveyed Americans to find out the amount Read More…
Montana’s congressional delegation is reacting in the wake of House Speaker Nancy Pelosi’s announcement this Tuesday that the House will move forward with an official impeachment inquiry of President Donald Trump. On Tuesday morning, Republican Senator Steve Daines Tweeted “Impeachment. Obsession.” over a GIF of a character from the popular TV show “The Office” rolling Read More…
BILLINGS, Mont. — Beartooth Pass has closed in Wyoming for the winter season but remains open on the Montana side of the border. The Billings Gazette reports the Montana side of U.S. Highway 212 is expected to close sometime over the Columbus Day week, but bad weather could bring that about sooner. The National Park Service Read More…
GREAT FALLS — The annual Montana Association of Counties conference in Great Falls this week is connecting county commissioners from across the Treasure State. “It travels around, so to speak, in each of our major towns: Missoula, Great Falls, Helena, Billings, Kalispell,” said Jim Hart, MACo president and Madison County Commissioner. The 110th annual event Read More…
Roughly three years into a new initiative, 55 Montana providers have woven more mental health services into their regular care. Montana Healthcare Foundation CEO Aaron Wernham announced the number Tuesday during the organization’s Integrated Behavioral Health Summit at Montana State University. “That is a fantastic rate of transformation,” Wernham said. The idea behind integrated Read More…
After months of publicly considering mounting a return to Congress, Rep. Darrell Issa appears to be on the verge of formally announcing his candidacy for East County’s 50th Congressional District seat. Issa has scheduled a press conference for Thursday morning at Centennial Plaza in El Cajon. In the news release he says several well known Read More…