With the apex of cherry season just weeks away, cherry growers along Flathead Lake are taking stock of the fruit on their trees and picking the varieties that ripen early. “So far this year the weather has been cooperating,” said Bruce Johnson, president of the Flathead Lake Cherry Growers Association. “We’ve been pretty dry for Read More…
Environment Montana, based in Missoula, released a report on Wednesday claiming that Montana is lagging behind adjacent western states when it comes to solar and wind energy production. Skye Borden with the Environment Montana Research and Policy Center referred to a recently released report called ‘Renewables on the Rise’. “Despite the fact that Montana has Read More…
The Montana Healthcare Foundation and the state have launched a new program aimed at reducing drug and alcohol use in pregnant women, new mothers and families. The three step plan provides support and care throughout a women’s pregnancy, and includes screening, counseling or higher levels of care, if needed. Care coordinators can then address social Read More…
BUTTE – The Montana East-West Shrine Game is five days away from kickoff, and the West team is starting to jell. They are practicing at Montana Tech’s Bob Green Field in Butte all this week. It was a rain-filled Tuesday morning for the West squad, but these players couldn’t be happier for the opportunity to Read More…
Direct primary care agreements are a fee-for-service contract between health care providers and patients, and are meant to cover preventive, routine or preliminary office visits. Primary care clinics are independent doctors’ offices that do not accept insurance or bill third parties. There have been several of these arrangements made available to consumers in Montana during Read More…
Wyoming’s economy was healthy in the first three months of 2018, with employment strong and sales tax collections rising. The figures came from the Wyoming Department of Administration and Information. Taxable sales rose 17.9 percent statewide in January, February and March, hitting $3.9 billion. READ THE FULL STORY.
Jackson Hole News&Guide reporter John Spina has set aside his journalistic ambitions to try to get Republican Jackson billionaire Foster Friess elected as the next Wyoming governor. Friess announced Spina’s appointment as his campaign’s director of communications Friday. His two-year stint covering the town of Jackson and Wyoming Legislature came to a close the week Read More…
State Rep. Jon Knokey on Friday officially withdrew from his re-election bid, spurring local Republicans to find a replacement for the race. Knokey served as a representative for House District 65, which includes the northern part of Bozeman from East Valley Center Road to Huffine Lane and from Gooch Hill Road to North Rouse Avenue. Read More…
On Friday, the Montana Shooting Sports Association moved to intervene in the City of Missoula’s lawsuit against Montana Attorney General Tim Fox over the ‘Bloomberg Ordinance’. Missoula’s gun ordinance was ruled as unenforceable by the Attorney General as it conflicts with state law. MSSA President Gary Marbut said the intervention is to protect the rights Read More…
Our country has a great abundance of mineral resources used to manufacture goods of all kinds. For weapons systems and consumer electronics, the value alone is estimated at $6.2 trillion; however, because cumbersome regulations and permitting processes hamper mining, we now rely on foreign suppliers for more than half of our needs. The situation has Read More…
A former financial analyst at Kalispell Regional Healthcare said this week the whistleblower lawsuit filed against the hospital is a skewed and out-of-context snapshot of a complex business model that aimed to create the best possible health-care network for patients. Chris Hassler, the manager of financial analysis at Kalispell Regional for 16 years until she Read More…
An emergency descent by an Air China aircraft after cabin oxygen levels dropped has been linked to a co-pilot smoking an e-cigarette during the flight, state media said on Friday. The state-backed Air China Boeing 737 aircraft was flying to the Chinese city of Dalian from Hong Kong when it went down to 10,000 feet Read More…
Birmingham, Ala. • A year after a book on the brutal slaying of black teen Emmett Till revealed that a key figure in the case acknowledged lying, the federal government has reopened its investigation of the 1955 crime that helped build momentum for the civil rights movement. A federal report sent annually to lawmakers under Read More…
Wyoming Republican Sen. John Barrasso introduced a discussion draft of the Endangered Species Act that elevates the role of states, increases transparency and prioritizes resources. “When it comes to the Endangered Species Act, the status quo is not good enough,” said Barrasso, chairman of the Senate Committee on Environment and Public Works. “We must do Read More…
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The number of small business that aren’t able to find enough workers has matched the highest level ever recorded. The percentage of small companies not able to fill open positions hit 36 percent in June, according to the NFIB Research Center, matching the survey’s record high set in November 2000. (The data goes back to Read More…
After reading a recent op-ed piece written by four seemingly confused former land board staffers regarding the Habitat Montana program I believe a response is definitely in order. The four, Ed Tinsley, Kathy Bramer, Rusty Harper and Jenny Eck, show the ineptness associated with past operations of the land board when it comes to writing Read More…
After reading David Brooks’ recent editorial, one thing is clear as a mountain stream: Propaganda will be the chosen vehicle in which Brooks and his supporters deliver Initiative 186 (I-186) to Montana in November. I suppose propaganda is expected in the support or opposition of any ballot initiative. However, the citizens of Montana deserve to Read More…
On Tuesday night in New York, a 28-year-old political newcomer and self-described socialist, Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, defeated one of the most powerful and entrenched Democrats in Congress in a shocking primary win for the progressive wing of the party. Ocasio-Cortez is likely to be the youngest woman ever elected to Congress come November. READ THE FULL Read More…
Tech-driven disruption in the insurance industry continues at pace, and we’re now entering a new phase — the adaptation of underlying business models. That’s leading to ongoing changes in the distribution segment of the industry, but more excitingly, we are starting to see movement in the fundamentals of insurance — policy creation, underwriting, and claims Read More…
Helena – In a lawsuit filed by the Montana Democratic Party and several prominent Democrats, District Court Judge James Reynolds ruled Monday in favor of the Democrats and ordered the Montana Green Party must be removed from the ballot. However, Judge Reynolds failed to disclose his ties to one of the plaintiffs, Donald Judge of Read More…
Natrona County businesses gained a boost thanks to the modification of the “free trade zone” at the Casper Natrona County Airport. A “free trade zone,” means business owners who import goods from overseas do not have to pay a tax and the zone has been expanded to include all of Natrona County. READ THE FULL Read More…
HELENA – Winning the lottery once was exciting for Cheyenne Long, but winning it twice in one day was unbelievable. Long, of Kalispell, won a total of $77,000 playing Power Play Gold Crossword, a Montana Lottery Scratch ticket. She bought another ticket the same day, and won again. “It was a super genuine and blissful Read More…
The National Weather Service (NWS) hasn’t confirmed whether or not an actual tornado struck down in Plentywood, Montana Monday night. Nonetheless, the storm wreaked havoc, flipping over airplanes and knocking out the beacon at the airport. Taylor Ordahl of Brooks Photography posted over a hundred pictures via Facebook, a couple are posted below also with Read More…
Roger and Lisa Sammons are definitely overachievers. When the owners of Pardue Grain invited dignitaries, local business owners and customers, vendors and contractors to the “groundbreaking” of their new pulse crop processing facility, they forgot to mention the facility’s construction is well underway! Last Friday’s ceremony was merely a formality as the Sammons and their Read More…
GREAT FALLS — The state trap shooting tournament begins Wednesday morning in Great Falls, but Tuesday at the range shooting range just south of Ulm, they let a few amateurs take their best shots. Members of the KRTV and KXLH news team were given guns and turned lose on some clay pigeons at media day Read More…
Democrats could breathe more easily Tuesday after a judge ordered the Montana Green Party to be removed from the November ballot, upending a threat from the left to Sen. Jon Tester’s critical re-election bid. Helena District Court Judge James P. Reynolds issued his ruling after invalidating dozens of signatures on Green Party petitions in what Read More…
The lines started forming before noon Thursday, hours before President Donald Trump’s scheduled 4 p.m. arrival at Four Seasons Arena in Great Falls. As the temperature climbed, more and more red, white and blue-clad Trump enthusiasts milled around the fairgrounds, bearing the chants that would later echo throughout the arena: “Keep America Great” signs, “Lock Read More…
President Trump went after Sen. Jon Tester during a campaign-style rally in Tester’s home state of Montana on Thursday night, accusing the Democratic senator of failing to live up to his promises in Washington. Joined by Republican Senate candidate Matt Rosendale, who is seeking to oust Tester in November, Trump sought to tie the two-term Read More…
Judge Kimberly Mueller on June 10, 2016 in the U.S. Eastern District Court of California found that John Duarte, a nursery operator and wheat farmer, plowed wetlands, four to six inches deep, and therefore violated the Clean Water Act (CWA). The Judge found Mr. Duarte, by chiseling a pasture, discharged fill material into a water Read More…
U.S. Sen. Jon Tester, directly targeted by a presidential visit Thursday, spent the Fourth of July in Butte and East Helena – and said he’s not that worried about President Trump campaigning against him. In fact, he said he hopes the president sees more of Montana than just the walls of a campaign rally. “I Read More…
Last year, the Montana Highway Patrol created a drug interdiction team with hopes of slowing the trafficking of illegal drugs in the Treasure State. And the creation of that team has led to a record amount of drugs seized on the state’s roadways. “I never imagined the amount of drugs we would find,” Montana Highway Read More…
Montana Representative Greg Gianforte is trying to win support in Congress for more roadbuilding on public lands. Conservationists say he’s trying to turn back the clock to policies that proved unsustainable. On Tuesday, Gianforte chaired a House subcommittee hearing focused on road closures and access on U.S. Forest Service lands. “Unfortunately the Forest Service seems Read More…
MISSOULA, Mont. — The president of the United States is coming to Montana Thursday. Donald Trump will be the 17th sitting president to do so and the sixth to visit Great Falls. Trump is hosting military families for a picnic and fireworks at the White House for the Fourth of July, but in less than Read More…
HELENA, Mont.—Jerry Swick, an Army veteran who currently resides in this mountainous capital city, plans to vote this fall to keep Democratic Sen. Jon Tester in Congress. He just doesn’t know how he would tell that to President Donald Trump, for whom Mr. Swick voted in 2016. Mr. Trump will host a campaign rally in Read More…
Special Counsel Robert Mueller is tapping additional Justice Department resources for help with new legal battles as his year-old investigation of Russian interference with the 2016 election continues to expand. As Mueller pursues his probe, he’s making more use of career prosecutors from the offices of U.S. attorneys and from Justice Department headquarters, as well Read More…
A giant balloon dubbed “Trump baby” has been given the green light to fly near parliament during the president’s UK visit. London mayor Sadiq Khan’s Greater London Authority has approved a request for the flight after thousands signed a petition and a crowdfunding campaign raised more than £16,000 to get the six-metre inflatable off the Read More…
Donald Trump Jr. is set to headline Friday’s GOP convention in Montana, where he will seek to boost state auditor Matt Rosendale (R), who is running for Senate. READ THE FULL STORY.
Smugglers are using video cameras and small drones to spot vulnerabilities along the U.S.-Mexico border, and the Department of Homeland Security is struggling to stop them. Reports of unmanned aircraft flying along the Southwest border have spiked in recent months, with more than three dozen sightings since October, when the current fiscal year began. That Read More…
For the first time since President Donald Trump took office, the CNBC All-America Economic Survey shows more than half the public approving his handling of the economy, and it appears to be having some impact on his overall job approval rating. The president’s economic approval rating surged 6 points to 51 percent with just 36 Read More…