That’s when Kraken Financial became the first entity to receive a special purpose depository institution (SPDI) charter in the Cowboy State, giving the cryptocurrency industry insight into roughly how long it takes to become a bank. It’s also the first newly chartered (de novo) bank the state has approved since 2006. While Kraken Financial still has some hoops Read More…
Back in 2014, I first interviewed the technology and security leaders in “Big Sky Country” for this blog. A lot has changed in the past six years, including the state’s government technology and security leadership. But what hasn’t changed is a focus on excellence and professionalism in public service that continues to surprise observers around the country. Read More…
This year in Montana, Republicans swept every statewide and federal race, while also increasing their majority in the statehouse by 10 seats. Montana, once dubbed a purple state for its split-ticket voting, is now deep crimson. After four terms of a Democratic governor, a Republican will sit in Montana’s governor’s mansion for the first time Read More…
U.S. Sen. John Thune, (R-South Dakota), has been re-elected to Senate Republican Whip, the second highest position in Senate Republican leadership, according to a press release from the senator’s office Tuesday. He was re-elected unanimously and his term as whip will begin in January for the 117th Congress. Thune was first elected as Republican whip for Read More…
Gov. Steve Bullock is on president-elect Joe Biden’s list to head the interior department, The New York Times is reporting. “The governor of Montana, Bullock recently lost a close Senate race to Steve Daines, a Republican incumbent. Bullock has been active in environmental issues: In 2014, he signed an executive order creating a habitat for Read More…
Former Maine Gov. Paul LePage made it crystal clear on Friday that’s he’s ready to return to public office. Asked in an interview with NewsRadio WGAN in Maine if he has plans to seek a third term as governor, LePage said “yes I do. Unequivocally. If I’m breathing, I’m running.” Term-limited after two four-year terms in office, from 2011 Read More…
BOZEMAN, Mont. – Governor-elect Greg Gianforte today announced his joint-transition advisory team for the Department of Natural Resources and Conservation (DNRC) and the Department of Environmental Quality (DEQ). The advisory team will identify and review candidates to serve as the next directors of the DNRC and DEQ and will forward their recommendations to Governor-elect Gianforte. Read More…
Gov. Doug Burgum is seeking legal representation for a likely lawsuit over a Bismarck-area state legislative seat won by a deceased candidate. The governor on Friday asked Attorney General Wayne Stenehjem to appoint three attorneys with Vogel Law Firm in Bismarck to represent him “on legal matters related to Legislative District 8’s membership in the North Read More…
Micron Technology is one of Idaho’s largest employers, but it only pays property taxes on a fraction of its taxable value. The reason? An unsuccessful attempt to lure a nuclear company to East Idaho during the Great Recession. The company paid $4.75 million in property taxes in 2019, only 23% of what it would owe Read More…
BOISE, Idaho — Due to the continued rise in COVID-19 cases across the state, jury trials in Idaho have been put on hold until Jan. 4, 2021. The Idaho Supreme Court issued this latest order on Monday. It applies to both criminal and civil cases. On Sept. 10, the state high court issued an order Read More…
About 60% of South Dakota prisoners have contracted COVID-19 since March while active cases at the Rapid City prison increased from 45 on Monday to 183 on Tuesday. There have been 2,009 coronavirus cases among DOC inmates since the pandemic began and 241 are active, according to Tuesday data from the Department of Corrections. Read More…
CASPER, Wyo. — The Wyoming Game and Fish Department said on Wednesday that pheasant hunting season is underway in the state. The department raises and releases pheasants at locations around Wyoming. “If you are interested in keeping up with the releases for the Ocean Lake and Sand Mesa Wildlife Habitat Management Areas (WHMA) outside of Riverton, Wyoming, you should check out Read More…
Georgia’s top election official said Wednesday the state will conduct a hand recount of all paper ballots cast in the Nov. 3 presidential election. Uncertified results in the state show Democrat Joe Biden leading President Donald Trump by 14,000 votes out of nearly 5 million votes counted in the state. Nearly all ballots have been Read More…
Democrat Cal Cunningham conceded Tuesday to Republican Sen. Thom Tillis in North Carolina’s U.S. Senate race, one of the last undecided contests in the fight for control of the chamber. Later Tuesday, NBC News projected that Tillis was indeed the winner. Tillis leads Cunningham by fewer than 2 percentage points with some votes outstanding. In a tweeted Read More…
Fox News viewers appear to be deserting the network in droves as they tune into Newsmax TV. Nielsen data confirms the trend in the post-election period last week. During Wednesday through Friday last week, Newsmax TV led Fox Business and CNBC in all key day parts. Newsmax is also seeing a terrific surge across its media Read More…
McDonald’s chief executives joined Walmart’s CEO in calling for another stimulus package. “We need a stimulus measure, I think that is very clear,” McDonald’s CEO Chris Kempczinski said in an interview with CNBC on Tuesday. Kempczinski called for President-elect Joe Biden and Vice president-elect Kamala Harris to address the coronavirus pandemic and climate change, as well Read More…
The New York Times Co. for the first time Wednesday reported higher revenues from its digital business than its print operations, a “watershed moment” in the newspaper’s nearly 170-year history, according to CEO Mark Thompson. “And we don’t think it’s likely we’re going to go back from this moment,” Thompson said on CNBC’s “Power Lunch.” The Times reported Read More…
President Donald Trump visited Arlington National Ceremony on Wednesday as part of a Veterans Day ceremony. Trump laid a wreath at the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier, in an act that has become a Veterans Day and Memorial Day tradition for presidents in the years since the remains of several unidentified U.S. soldiers who fought in Read More…
Retirement savers appear to be taking advantage of relaxed rules around 401(k) withdrawals during the coronavirus pandemic. The typical 401(k) investor pulled $12,000 from their account in the form of a “coronavirus-related distribution,” according to a new Vanguard analysis of its client data. This figure represents the median withdrawal — in other words, the amount right in the middle Read More…
BILLINGS, Mont. – This year’s election results in Montana prove, yet again, how divisive people’s views are on gun regulation across the state. Legislative Referendum 130, restricting local governments’ authority to regulate carrying firearms, passed by 51%-49%. LR-130 has quite a lot of history to it, dating back to 2016 when Missoula enacted a city Read More…
HELENA — As Election Day approached last week, most public polls had declared the big statewide races in Montana – U.S. Senate, U.S. House, governor – to be relatively close, with Republicans perhaps having an edge. Yet the final outcome showed no such spread: Republicans cruised to easy victories, up and down the ticket, winning Read More…
MISSOULA – Montana Rail Link (MRL) announced Wednesday they released a special locomotive last week honoring veterans for Veteran’s Day. Additionally, MRL is also releasing a locomotive showing appreciation for essential workers amid the COVID-19 pandemic. “Essential workers have played a critical role in keeping our communities healthy and safe during the COVID-19 pandemic,” MRL Read More…
HELENA — Season work can be a good way to earn some extra money during the holidays, and help struggling families get back on their feet. Holiday hiring has begun in earnest, but those seasonal jobs are just a small portion of workforce shortage Helena businesses are currently experiencing. “There is an incredible need for Read More…
New changes are coming to one of downtown Kalispell’s oldest historic buildings. Originally opened in 1912, the Kalispell Grand Hotel is now under new ownership. Noelle and John Barr of Houston, Texas, took ownership of the downtown landmark after it spent more than 30 years under the care of Janet and Butch Clark. “We’ve got Read More…
Teton County health officials have received permission from the state to continue issuing quarantine orders for close contacts of COVID-19-positive patients. Although much of Wyoming and the nation is too overwhelmed to contact trace cases, Teton County still aims to conduct contact tracing as staffing and caseloads allow. — Eds. (updated 1 p.m. Monday.) Read More…
On Friday Nov. 6 around the lunch hour MTN canvassed just over 50 voters in Helena to gauge their reaction to the election. Much like the vote, reactions were split. In regards to the state of the presidential election, around a third of those canvassed directly supported the president’s actions so far. ‘It’s a scam Read More…
The US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is closing its office in Libby after 20 years of community outreach and extensive cleanup work. The Libby Field Office on Ninth Street opened as an information center as the EPA was ramping up its cleanup efforts after the town was declared a Superfund site from decades of asbestos Read More…
Historians, educators and proud Montanans gathered at the State Capitol in Helena Friday to honor the 2020 Montana History teacher of the year. Abbey Kochel is the 31st educator to receive the Montana Statehood Centennial Bell Award. Kochel teaches seventh grade at Castle Rock Middle School in Billings. Inspired by her father to become a Read More…
FRAMINGHAM — A Framingham development company is co-redeveloping a Montana mall and bringing the first Whole Foods Market to the western state. Framingham-based Grossman Development Group, LLC, is partnering with Boston Realty Advisors/The Broadway Company and the ownership of the Gallatin Valley Mall in Bozeman, Montana, to redevelop the shopping center that serves a five-county trade Read More…
The former CEO of Google, Eric Schmidt, is finalizing a plan to become a citizen of the island of Cyprus, Recode has learned, becoming one of the highest-profile Americans to take advantage of one of the world’s most controversial “passport-for-sale” programs. Schmidt, one of America’s wealthiest people, and his family have won approval to become Read More…
The Libertarian Party earned a historic victory Tuesday, clinching a statehouse seat for the first time in nearly two decades. Marshall Burt was elected to the Wyoming House of Representatives in its 39th district, defeating Democrat incumbent Stan Blake, said Bob Johnston on the Libertarian National Committee. “This is only the fifth time in Libertarian Party history a candidate running only on Read More…
South Dakota and Montana are the latest states to vote in support of the legalization of recreational marijuana use. Arizona and New Jersey voters also approved the legalization of recreational marijuana on Election Day. The addition of South Dakota and Montana means that there are now 15 states in the nation that permit marijuana use Read More…
FARMINGTON, Utah — Montana and Montana State will meet in their annual Brawl of the Wild football game March 27 in Missoula, the Big Sky Conference said Wednesday in announcing its six-game league schedule for spring 2021. The abbreviated slate is set to begin Feb. 27 and will culminate April 10 with two conference-wide bye weeks Read More…
GREAT FALLS — The four-member staff of a Montana county’s health department has resigned, citing a lack of support by the county in fighting the coronavirus. A letter from Health Department Director Nicki Sullivan to the Pondera County Commission highlighted the need for a fairer wage, more transparency and additional contact tracers and staffers. “I want Read More…
MISSOULA, Mont. — This state is now red. Not the light red it used to be; not a red-and-blue checkerboard coaxing the eyes to see purple. Just a deep red. Every statewide race in Montana went Republican this week, with record voter turnout: president, Senate, House, governor, attorney general, secretary of state, auditor. And both Read More…
First Interstate BancSystem (FIBK) came out with quarterly earnings of $0.76 per share, beating the Zacks Consensus Estimate of $0.68 per share. This compares to earnings of $0.79 per share a year ago. These figures are adjusted for non-recurring items. This quarterly report represents an earnings surprise of 11.76%. A quarter ago, it was expected Read More…
Elizabeth Warren wants to be Joe Biden’s Treasury secretary and will make her case for it if he wins next week, according to three Democratic officials who have spoken with her inner circle. “She wants it,” two of them said matter-of-factly. Warren’s moves could set up the marquee fight between the party’s left and its Read More…
PORTLAND, Ore. (KOIN) — Bernie Sanders is the latest figure endorsing Portland mayoral candidate Sarah Iannarone. Sanders’ endorsement late Thursday endorsement came the same day Portland City Commissioner Jo Ann Hardesty announced her backing of incumbent Ted Wheeler’s challenger. The former presidential hopeful and current U.S. senator from Vermont also endorsed Chloe Eudaly in her Portland City Read More…
Whether dark money is a problem in North Dakota depends on who you ask. “Absolutely there’s problems with transparency in elections here,” Ellen Chaffee, a proponent of the Ethics Commission, said. “I don’t think dark money is a real problem in North Dakota,” Bismarck Republican Sen. Dick Dever said. Dark money refers to political spending Read More…
Stephanie Kodish is used to opposition to her work. In her job with the National Parks Conservation Association, she pushes utilities to comply with environmental laws. That can mean installing expensive new anti-pollution technology on coal plants, or even closing them down. Last year, though, she encountered a completely new kind of opposition that left Read More…