The Biden administration on Monday unveiled a major permanent increase to the food stamp benefits that help 42 million Americans buy groceries — a record bump up for one of the country’s largest safety net programs. The average monthly benefits for the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program will be roughly 27 percent higher than they were Read More…
Rapid City has issued 3,111 building permits so far this year with a valuation of $245,820,725. The valuation from January to August is the second-highest in the city’s history with the highest from 2018 with a total of $262,030,115 for the same time period. The May to August valuation is also the second highest with Read More…
SIOUX FALLS | South Dakota Gov. Kristi Noem said Friday that she is looking to make widespread changes in the state’s prison system after meeting with tired and discouraged employees working short-handed at the state penitentiary in Sioux Falls. The Republican governor fired the prison’s warden and deputy warden last week following an investigation Read More…
BOZEMAN, Mont. — The Gallatin County Planning Department released the final draft of a new growth policy for the county. The policy is called Envision Gallatin: Tomorrow Together. It centers around three major themes — open space, heritage and opportunity. The Gallatin County Commission will vote on the policy at the public meeting Sept. 21. Developing Read More…
HELENA — Drawing two new, compact congressional districts for Montana in 2022 with equal populations is a piece of cake – but, when their political leaning is a consideration, things get prickly. Joe Lamson, one of two Democratic members of the five-member commission that will decide the boundary by November, says a goal should be Read More…
MISSOULA — Attention is once again turning to a legislative solution to wildfires as the Northern Rockies fire season winds down, and California’s rages on. MTN News takes a closer look at the proposals being floated by U.S. Senator Steve Daines (R-MT). Whether it’s logging projects to thin the forest or other measures like prescribed Read More…
WYOMING – Rep. Liz Cheney will serve as the vice chair for the Jan. 6 committee, her office confirmed Sept. 2. “Every member of this committee is dedicated to conducting a non-partisan, professional, and thorough investigation of all the relevant facts regarding January 6th and the threat to our Constitution we faced that day,” Cheney said. “I Read More…
MINNEAPOLIS (AP) — Attorneys for three former Minneapolis police officers charged in George Floyd’s death asked a judge Thursday to bar their upcoming trial from being livestreamed, saying some witnesses won’t testify if the proceedings are broadcast. The request from attorneys for Thomas Lane, J. Kueng and Tou Thao is an about-face from their earlier request to Read More…
President Joe Biden on Thursday slammed a Supreme Court decision that allowed one of the strictest anti-abortion laws in the country to take effect in Texas. Calling the law an “unprecedented assault on a woman’s constitutional rights,” Biden promised a “whole-of-government effort” to fight the ruling. The law, which went into effect Wednesday, bans abortions conducted after Read More…
Citing rising Delta variant COVID-19 cases, Crow Tribal Chairman Frank Whiteclay announced he is reinstating a mask mandate inside all public buildings, including schools, on the reservation. The Apsalooke Service Corp main office in Crow Agency at the old casino will help provide masks and cleaning supplies for the community, Whiteclay said in a release. Read More…
HELENA — The Helena City Commission says it wants to take a closer look at new ways to address homelessness in the community – including a proposal to build a new temporary shelter. During an administrative meeting Wednesday, commissioners heard about the growing impact homelessness is having and some possible responses. “The question is how Read More…
BILLINGS – At some places around the country, people can be excluded from events, employment, and buildings for not taking the COVID-19 vaccine. That can not happen in Montana because House Bill 702 prohibits discrimination against those who have not been vaccinated. The bill passed by the Montana Legislature this year covers many vaccines and has caused Read More…
A federal judge has rejected a lawsuit by the state of Missouri seeking to stop a project that would supply Missouri River water to parts of central North Dakota. The Wednesday ruling will enable the federal Bureau of Reclamation to move ahead with a water service contract for the Central North Dakota Water Supply Project. Read More…
Heartwrenching details began emerging Friday about some of the 13 U.S. troops killed in suicide bombing at Afghanistan’s Kabul airport, which included 20-year-old father-to-be and Bondurant native Rylee McCollum. Eleven Marines, one Navy sailor and one Army soldier were among the dead, while 18 other U.S. service members were wounded in Thursday’s bombing, which was blamed on Read More…
Unlike Wyoming, PacifiCorp is turning away from fossil fuels. The parent company to Rocky Mountain Power, the state’s biggest electric utility, announced Friday that its biennial Integrated Resource Plan is expected to include substantial investment in renewables — and no new investment in coal or natural gas. The 2021 plan will be finalized next Read More…
John Paulson, the hedge fund billionaire who made a fortune in 2008 when he shorted the housing bubble, said in an interview published Sunday that he believes cryptocurrencies will eventually go bust. The 65-year-old told “Bloomberg Wealth with David Rubenstein” that he wouldn’t recommend the investment to anyone. He said there is a cryptocurrency bubble that will Read More…
Secretary of Energy Jennifer Granholm earlier this week chartered a military jet to attend a diplomatic summit in Ukraine as the Pentagon struggled to evacuate Americans and allies from Afghanistan with limited time and operational resources, sources told the Washington Free Beacon. Granholm’s military flight took place amid the United States’ frantic effort to airlift tens Read More…
Democratic lawmakers pleaded with Biden administration officials on Tuesday to ignore an Aug. 31 deadline to withdraw all U.S. troops from Afghanistan, arguing that it would be nearly impossible to evacuate all American citizens and Afghan allies from the country before that date. During a classified briefing with President Joe Biden’s national security deputies, there Read More…
In the giddy early hours of his landslide victory, California’s governor-elect struck a tone that signaled the grandiosity of his ambitions. “The sun is rising in the west, and the arc of history is bending in our direction,” Gavin Newsom told jubilant supporters on election night in November 2018. There was some basis for a progressive Read More…
“One of the first things he asked me … was whether or not I was vaccinated,” Firlit, 39, told the Chicago Sun-Times. She was not, she said, explaining that she has had “adverse reactions to vaccines in the past” and that a doctor advised her against getting inoculated against the coronavirus. “It poses a risk,” she Read More…
NEW ORLEANS, La. — All of New Orleans is without power as Hurricane Ida continues to hit Louisiana with high winds, heavy rain, and storm surge. Entergy New Orleans said Sunday evening that all of Orleans Parish was without power due to “catastrophic damage” to its transmission system. Entergy’s outage tracker on its website showed more Read More…
Students are returning to fall classes at Montana Universities at a time when COVID cases are increasing. Mask mandates are now in place at Montana’s two largest universities. Two days after classes began at Montana State University in Bozeman, mask guidelines for inside classrooms changed from a recommendation to a mandate. The university had previously Read More…
Montana’s agency responsible for certifying law enforcement officials alleges a former Whitefish Police chief engaged in a wide range of misconduct. The Flathead Beacon first reported the allegations. The 12-page complaint from the standards and training bureau within the state justice department alleges former Police Chief Bill Dial engaged in, condoned and/or failed to disclose acts Read More…
KALISPELL, Mont. – Over the summer months, the Kalispell Fire Department has had to close or reduce services more frequently due to short staffing. Now, it sounds like these closures will happen less often. The Kalispell City Council approved a request to add two more firefighters in this upcoming year’s budget. This will make it Read More…
HELENA — Law enforcement officers and dispatchers dedicate their lives to keeping the community a safe place, Helena Police Department held an awards ceremony dedicated to outstanding members of law enforcement for their dedication to their jobs. But what makes the officers continue their service to the community? “When we when we first start out Read More…
HELENA — There are a couple of unavoidable aspects of getting older. Firstly scammers are more likely to target you, and secondly, there will be BINGO. A group of senior citizens and residents at Edgewood Senior Living Facility enjoyed a fun round of BINGO and learned how to protect their wallets from scammers this week Read More…
BILLINGS — Bow and rifle hunting season is upon us, which is why one Montana-based company is aiming to educate people around the country on the sport. For the Love of Hunting (FORLOH), an outdoor apparel company, has traveled across the nation to educate people on hunting and its responsibilities. But they also offer fun opportunities around Read More…
Hours before he officially left office, New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo granted clemency to six people, including convicted murderers. Cuomo commuted the sentences of convicted murderers Greg Mingo, Robert Ehrenberg, Ulysses Boyd, and Paul Clark. He also referred David Gilbert, who was convicted of murder and robbery in 1983, to the parole board for possible release. READ Read More…
A Republican senator is demanding that President Biden hold somebody within his administration accountable after the Taliban seized a trove of U.S.-made arms, armored vehicles and military aircraft abandoned following the sudden collapse of Afghanistan’s military. In a letter addressed to the White House, Sen. Steve Daines, R-Mont., called on Biden to launch an investigation after the Taliban captured a stockpile Read More…
MISSOULA — Montana’s two senators are blasting the Biden Administration, with the latest announcement that the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) is extending the closure of the Canadian border now until Sept. 21. While vaccinated Americans have been able to enter Canada since Aug. 9, the same isn’t true for southbound traffic. The DHS order keeps the gates Read More…
(The Center Square) – As demand and scarcity drive property values up, Montana’s property tax structure may get a second look. Attorney and former Montana state lawmaker Matthew Monforton is proposing an “acquisition-value” property tax system, the Missoula Current reported. Such a system would keep property taxes from inflating along with market property values by Read More…
BOZEMAN, Mont. – The Bozeman School Board voted 7-1 to update the face-covering policy which requires a mask to be worn inside school district buildings. The new policy is effective as of Tuesday, Aug. 24 and requires face coverings for all students, faculty, staff, parents, volunteers and visitors on campus. Enforcement of any masking requirement will not Read More…
CARBON COUNTY, Mont. — The body of a 23-year-old from Idaho who disappeared on a solo mountain-climbing trip in July has been found. The Carbon County Sheriff’s Office confirmed that the remains belong to Tatum Morell, a graduate student at Montana State University who had been attempting to climb five mountains in five days when she went Read More…
A hydrogen hub is on the horizon for the Bakken, in about half the time it usually takes, according to a release from Bakken Energy. The infrastructure development company announced Monday, Aug. 16 that an agreement has been reached with Basin Electric Cooperative to purchase the assets of the Dakota Gasification Company, which owns Read More…
For the first time since the pandemic began, Montana’s oil industry is seeing renewed activity. In August, two drillling rigs set up shop in eastern Montana. Both are horizontal rigs targeting oil production for Kraken Oil & Gas. It’s been more than 16 months since Montana reported any oil rig activity along the western edge Read More…
CASPER, Wyo. — Wyoming Governor Mark Gordon said during a conference call on Monday, August 16 that he and other governors are monitoring the situation as disruptions to the global supply chain continue to impact supplies in a number of industries. “There are a number of shortages,” Gordon said during the call. “Aviation fuel is Read More…
An agreement has been reached by Bakken Energy and Basin Electric on key terms and conditions to purchase the assets of the Dakota Gasification Company (Dakota Gas), a subsidiary of Basin Electric, and the owner of the Great Plains Synfuels Plant (Synfuels Plant). Located near Beulah, ND, the Synfuels Plant holds a distinguished place in Read More…
Drought that has plagued North Dakota all summer worsened again in the past week, with exceptional drought beginning to creep into the southwest after appearing in the east last week. Exceptional drought — the worse of four categories, now covers nearly 16% of the state, up from 14% last week, according to the latest U.S. Read More…
A group of Arizonans filed the “Arizonans for Voter ID Act” ballot initiative on Monday, asking the secretary of state’s office to further ID requirements for in-person voting, individuals returning a voter’s ballots, and mail-in voting. In a news release, the political committee chaired by Arizona voter Vicki Vaughn said that the initiative would make it Read More…
A 41-year-old Cheyenne anesthesiologist who disappeared while hiking in the Wind River Mountains over the weekend was found dead on Monday by a Sublette County search and rescue team. Tip Top Search and Rescue announced late Monday afternoon that the body of Thor Hallingbye was discovered in Fremont County. Earlier, the rescue unit said Hallingbye was last Read More…