All posts by Big Sky Headlines

Zinke, Veteran Lawmakers Introduce Resolution Condemning Democrat Calls for Military Disobedience

4 weeks ago   Featured, Montana Politics, Politics

Western Montana Congressman and former Navy SEAL Commander Ryan Zinke, along with Representative Rick Crawford (R-Ark.) and 16 other veteran lawmakers, introduced a resolution this week condemning several Democratic lawmakers for urging members of the U.S. military and intelligence community to independently judge and refuse orders from the Commander in Chief. The resolution specifically targets Read More…

Judge Clears Justice Department to Release Epstein Grand Jury Transcripts

4 weeks ago   National News, News

A Florida federal judge on Friday authorized the U.S. Justice Department to release grand jury transcripts from its sex trafficking investigation into Jeffrey Epstein, potentially revealing new details about the late financier’s connections to high-profile individuals, including former President Donald Trump. https://bigskyheadlines.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/09/MVD-office15.mp4 The Justice Department requested the unsealing after Congress, under Republican control, passed legislation Read More…

Volkswagen to Invest $186 Billion Through 2030

4 weeks ago   Business, Featured, National Business News

Volkswagen Group will invest 160 billion euros—approximately $186 billion—through 2030 as the automaker tightens its long-term spending plans in response to mounting challenges in its two largest markets, CEO Oliver Blume announced this week. The updated figure is part of Volkswagen’s annual rolling five-year investment plan and reflects a continued pullback from previous spending peaks. Read More…

U.S. Lawmakers Urge Google, Apple to Remove Apps Tracking Immigration Agents

1 month ago   Featured, Home Featured, National Politics, Politics

Lawmakers on the House Committee on Homeland Security are pressing Google and Apple to remove mobile applications that allow users to track federal immigration officers, citing concerns that such apps endanger Department of Homeland Security personnel. In letters sent Friday to Google CEO Sundar Pichai and Apple CEO Tim Cook, committee leaders highlighted ICEBlock, an Read More…

Meta Strikes Multiple AI Deals with Major News Publishers

1 month ago   Business, Featured, Home Featured, National Business News

Meta Platforms Inc., the parent company of Facebook, has entered into a series of commercial AI agreements with prominent news publishers, including USA Today, People Inc., CNN, Fox News, The Daily Caller, Washington Examiner, and Le Monde, the company announced Friday. The partnerships will allow Meta to provide “real-time” news and updates through its AI Read More…

Sheehy Introduces Bill to Protect Veterans from Overprescription at the VA

1 month ago   Featured, Home Featured, Montana Politics, Politics

Senator Tim Sheehy (R-Mont.) has introduced the Written Informed Consent Act, a measure designed to ensure veterans are fully informed about the intended effects and potential risks of certain high-risk medications prescribed through the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA). The bill also aims to combat widespread overprescription within the VA system. “America’s veterans put their Read More…

Governor Gordon Emphasizes Economic Development as Key to Wyoming’s Future

1 month ago   Featured, News, Regional News

Governor Mark Gordon has highlighted economic development as a central focus of his administration, stressing the importance of creating a climate that encourages business growth and job creation across Wyoming. “Economic development is truly economic growth. Wyoming’s government must foster an environment where individuals who create and build businesses can flourish,” Gordon said in his Read More…

Governor Gianforte Highlights Veteran Therapy Program in “12 Days of Giving”

1 month ago   Featured, Montana News, News

On the fifth day of his annual “12 Days of Giving” campaign, Governor Greg Gianforte spotlighted Underwater Soldiers, a Montana nonprofit that provides therapeutic scuba diving for veterans while helping clean the state’s waterways. “Montana veterans have given so much to protect our freedoms and serve our communities,” Gianforte said. “Underwater Soldiers gives veterans a Read More…

Daines’ Bill Protecting Mothers Traveling With Breast Milk Signed Into Law

1 month ago   Featured, Home Featured, Montana Politics, Politics

U.S. Sen. Steve Daines on announced that his bipartisan “BABES Enhancement Act” has been signed into law by President Donald Trump, marking a significant win for parents traveling with breast milk, formula, and other infant nutrition products. “I’m thrilled to see our bipartisan BABES Enhancement Act officially signed into law by President Trump,” Daines said. Read More…

Warner Bros Discovery to Sell Studio and Streaming Assets to Netflix in $72 Billion Deal

1 month ago   Business, Featured, National Business News

Warner Bros Discovery (WBD) has agreed to sell its iconic studio and streaming assets to Netflix (NFLX) for $72 billion, a blockbuster deal that will reshape Hollywood and create a vertically integrated media powerhouse. The deal ends a weeks-long bidding war with Paramount Skydance and Comcast, coming amid sweeping changes in the media industry as Read More…

MVD Rolls Out Next-Generation Driver Licenses and IDs

1 month ago   Featured, Montana News, News

The Montana Motor Vehicle Division (MVD) unveiled a redesigned driver license and identification card today, featuring enhanced security elements aimed at reducing driver license fraud and identity theft. The new credentials, described as among the most secure in the nation, will begin issuance in December 2025. Current cards will remain valid until their expiration dates. Read More…

President Trump Announces Reset of Corporate Average Fuel Economy Standards

1 month ago   Featured, Home Featured, National News, News

President Donald J. Trump announced a major rollback of the Biden Administration’s Corporate Average Fuel Economy (CAFE) standards, calling the move a relief for American families facing rising costs. The reset lowers fuel economy requirements for passenger cars and trucks to levels achievable with conventional gasoline and diesel vehicles. The Biden-era standards, Trump argued, set Read More…

Daines’ Bills to Boost Funding for Montana’s Rural Communities Gain Bipartisan Support

1 month ago   Featured, Montana Politics, Politics

U.S. Senator Steve Daines highlighted two key bills aimed at strengthening Montana’s rural counties during a Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee hearing this week. Daines discussed his Small County PILT Parity Act, designed to ensure that counties with populations under 5,000 receive fair compensation through the federal Payment in Lieu of Taxes (PILT) program. Read More…

Little Signs Agreement to Double Timber Output

1 month ago   Featured, News, Regional News

Governor Brad Little joined U.S. Forest Service Chief Tom Schultz and Idaho Department of Lands (IDL) Director Dustin Miller today to renew and expand Idaho’s Shared Stewardship agreement with the federal government, aiming to increase the pace and scale of forest management across the state. “Idaho’s early leadership with the Good Neighbor Authority laid the Read More…

Supreme Court to Weigh Legality of Trump Move to Limit Birthright Citizenship

1 month ago   Featured, Home Featured, National News, News

The U.S. Supreme Court on Friday agreed to decide the legality of former President Donald Trump’s directive aimed at restricting birthright citizenship, a key and controversial part of his immigration agenda. The high court will consider an appeal from the Justice Department following a lower court’s ruling that blocked Trump’s executive order. The order instructed Read More…

Armstrong Eyes Jan. 21 for Tentative Special Legislative Session on Rural Health Funding

1 month ago   Featured, Home Featured, Politics, Regional Politics

Gov. Kelly Armstrong today informed legislative leaders that he has tentatively set Jan. 21 for a special session of the 69th Legislative Assembly to act on anticipated federal funding for North Dakota’s Rural Health Transformation Program. North Dakota submitted its funding application to the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) on Nov. 3. The Read More…

Assaults against ICE up 1,153% in 11 months

1 month ago   Featured, Home Featured, National News, News

The Center Square) – Assaults against U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement officers are up 1,153% in 11 months, according to the U.S. Department of Homeland Security. As ICE officers continue to arrest the most violent criminals nationwide, U.S. citizens have increasingly obstructed their efforts, including physically attacking them and threatening to kill them, according to Read More…

Montana State junior wins $10,000 scholarship from energy society

1 month ago   Montana News, News

Montana State University junior Molly Coonfield, who is studying electrical engineering with a minor in mechatronics, recently received a $10,000 scholarship from the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers’ Power and Energy Society. The society provides up to 20 scholarships and real-world experiences annually to undergraduates who are interested in building a career in power Read More…

In New York, some school secretaries make six-figures and more

1 month ago   Featured, National News, News

(The Center Square) – Secretaries are well known for earning modest wages, but not the ones who work at Pocantico Hills Central School District. At the school district of 500 students outside New York City secretaries make $130,000 and $190,000 a year, an investigation by The Center Square found.  The highest paid is Gina L. Downes, a confidential secretary. Her salary is $110,538 this school year, and she will receive $79,281 in benefits and Read More…

Attorney General Labrador Secures Judgment Against Vacation Scam Operator

1 month ago   News, Regional News

Idaho Attorney General Raúl Labrador announced Friday a judgment and permanent injunction against Arenal Outdoor Center and its owner, Keith Craig Fletcher, in a consumer protection lawsuit. The ruling bars Fletcher from offering travel-related goods and services within the state. Fletcher’s record extends far beyond the current case. Over the years, he has faced numerous Read More…

Montanan Katie Verderber to represent Team USA in 2026 Winter Paralympics

1 month ago   Featured, Home Featured, Montana News, News

Montana attorney Katie Verderber has been selected to represent Team USA in Wheelchair Mixed Curling at the 2026 Winter Paralympic Games in Cortina d’Ampezzo, Italy. The announcement was made Monday, Nov. 24, by USA Curling, the national governing body for Olympic and Paralympic curling in the United States. Verderber will join teammates Matthew Thums of Read More…

Google Drops EU Antitrust Complaint Against Microsoft Amid Regulatory Probe

1 month ago   Business, Featured, National Business News

Google on Friday withdrew its European Union antitrust complaint targeting Microsoft’s cloud computing practices, just a week after EU regulators opened an investigation into whether Microsoft should face scrutiny under rules designed to curb market dominance in the sector. The EU’s move, announced last week, signaled growing concern about Microsoft’s influence in cloud services, including Read More…

Trucking Industry Exec Earns UM Honorary Doc

1 month ago   Montana News, News

Lana Batts likes to say if you got it, a truck brought it. As a former president of the Truckload Carriers Association and a senior vice president of government affairs with the American Trucking Association, Batts became a standout figure in the male-dominated transportation sector. She has been described as a trailblazer for women who Read More…

Warburg Pincus to Acquire Raptor Technologies in $1.8 Billion Deal

1 month ago   Business, Featured, National Business News

Warburg Pincus has reached an agreement to acquire a majority stake in Raptor Technologies from private equity firm Thoma Bravo, in a transaction valuing the school safety software provider at roughly $1.8 billion, according to people familiar with the negotiations. Sources said the deal could be announced imminently. They requested anonymity because the details are Read More…

Russia threatens full ban on WhatsApp

1 month ago   Featured, Home Featured, National News, News

Russia’s state communications watchdog warned Friday that it may impose a full nationwide ban on WhatsApp if the platform fails to comply with Russian data and security laws, according to multiple Russian news agencies. The regulator, Roskomnadzor, issued the threat amid escalating tensions between Moscow and foreign-owned tech platforms. In August, Russian authorities began restricting Read More…

64 New Officers Graduate from Montana Law Enforcement Academy

1 month ago   Featured, Home Featured, Montana News, News

Sixty-four new officers who will serve in 41 agencies across Montana graduated Friday from the Montana Law Enforcement Academy (MLEA), part of the Montana Department of Justice. The academy provides both basic and advanced training for state, county, city, and tribal law enforcement officers. Attorney General Austin Knudsen attended the ceremony to congratulate and address Read More…

Montana Heritage Center Completes $60 Million Fundraising Campaign

1 month ago   Featured, Home Featured, Montana News, News

The Montana Historical Society (MTHS) announced today that its $60 million fundraising campaign for the Montana Heritage Center has been successfully completed, thanks to a final $165,000 gift from the Oakland Family Foundation of Great Falls. The state-of-the-art facility is scheduled to open to the public on December 3 with free admission. After MTHS reported Read More…

Who really benefited from the ACA expansion?

1 month ago   Featured, Opinion

The 2021 American Rescue Plan Act – which was sold as temporary help during the challenges of COVID-19 – expanded Affordable Care Act subsidies in a way that reshaped who the program serves and who profits from it. New enrollments were concentrated in states that had previously declined the federal government’s offer to expand Medicaid, fearing Read More…

Crypto-Hoarding Company Shares Slide as Market Turbulence Damps Risk Appetite

1 month ago   Business, Featured, National Business News

Shares of companies that stockpile bitcoin and other digital tokens are coming under renewed pressure as fresh volatility sweeps through the cryptocurrency market, raising concerns about stress in a niche but rapidly expanding corner of the financial world. The selloff follows months of enthusiasm fueled in part by President Donald Trump’s pro-crypto stance and the Read More…

UND Reopens Search for Dean of School of Law

1 month ago   Featured, News, Regional News

The University of North Dakota is seeking candidates for the position of Dean of its School of Law, reopening the search for a leader to guide the institution into the next phase of growth and development. Reporting to the Provost and Vice President for Academic Affairs, the Dean will serve as the chief executive officer Read More…

Starbucks Workers’ Union Expands Black Friday Strike to Over 120 Stores

1 month ago   Business, Featured, Home Featured, National Business News, National News, News

Starbucks’ workers’ union significantly widened its ongoing strike on Black Friday, extending the walkout to more than 120 stores nationwide—nearly double the number that began the action earlier this month—amid demands for better pay and improved staffing levels. The strike, which the union says is now the longest in Starbucks’ history, began on Nov. 13 Read More…

Montana State to award honorary doctorate to alumnus whose foundation supports injured veterans

1 month ago   Featured, Home Featured, Montana News, News

Retired U.S. Marine Corps Col. Eric Hastings, a Montana State University alumnus and founder of a national organization that serves traumatically injured servicemen and women, will receive an honorary doctorate degree from MSU during the university’s fall commencement ceremony on Friday, Dec. 12, at the Brick Breeden Fieldhouse. Today, the Montana Board of Regents approved Read More…

Texbase Strengthens Advisory Board with Appointment of Industry Veteran Randy Harward

1 month ago   Business, Montana Business News

Texbase, Inc., a leading cloud-based platform that manages supply chain traceability, compliance, certification, and sustainability data for retail, manufacturing, and textile brands, announced today that Randy Harward has joined its Advisory Board. Harward brings more than two decades of experience in product development, materials research, and manufacturing innovation. He spent much of his career at Read More…