NorthWestern Energy has reached key settlement agreements with several major stakeholders in its ongoing regulatory rate review for electric and natural gas services in Montana. The agreements, if approved by the Montana Public Service Commission (PSC), would result in modest increases in residential utility bills, helping to fund continued investment in safe and reliable energy Read More…
Governor Greg Gianforte joined U.S. Senators Steve Daines and Tim Sheehy to officially cut the ribbon on Amazon’s new 50,000-square-foot delivery station in Belgrade. The state-of-the-art facility is part of Amazon’s continued expansion in Montana, representing a $27 million investment and creating dozens of jobs in Gallatin County. “Montana is open for business, and Amazon’s Read More…
SITKA Gear, a leader in high-performance hunting and outdoor apparel, announced a series of strategic changes to its sales team aimed at aligning talent with the company’s evolving business priorities. The adjustments include the addition of three new sales representatives and a significant territory expansion for a veteran team member, all designed to strengthen retail Read More…
Glacier Bancorp, Inc. (NYSE: GBCI) announced Friday that it has received all necessary regulatory approvals for its planned acquisition of Bank of Idaho Holding Co. (OTCQX: BOID), clearing a major hurdle in the completion of the deal. The acquisition, which includes Bank of Idaho and its subsidiaries, is now scheduled to close on April 30, Read More…
Kevin Washington, a minority owner of CryptoWatt, the cryptocurrency mining plant in Butte, says he’s “the biggest victim, by a mile” of the plant’s majority owner, Matthew Goettsche, who has been indicted in connection with an alleged $722 million Ponzi scheme. In a telephone interview Saturday, Washington said he is trying “at all costs” Read More…
Montanans earning the minimum wage will see the rate increase to $8.65 per hour beginning January 1, 2020. The 2019 minimum wage in Montana is $8.50 per hour. Currently, 29 states and D.C. have minimum wages above the federal minimum wage of $7.25 per hour. A press release from the Governor’s office says that an Read More…
To celebrate his graduation, Nicholas Balcken will likely raise a glass — of Blackfoot River Brewing Company beer. On Friday, Balcken became the first participant in the Montana Registered Apprenticeship Program to receive a Professional Brewer Certificate. With this credential, the Blackfoot River Brewing Co. employee said, “I hope to be able to develop better beers and improve my Read More…
HELENA — A third-generation rancher from Helena, Montana won the Montana Farm Bureau Young Farmer and Rancher Discussion Meet back in November. The prize was a brand new Polaris Ranger and an all-expense paid trip to compete in the national competition in Austin, Texas coming up in January. Rocky Forseth says, “We can take a Read More…
RONAN – The first hemp-processing license in the State of Montana was issued to a Ronan business in November from the Montana Department of Agriculture. Green Ridge Biosolutions moved into a 15,000 square-foot building at 63298 U.S. Highway 93, located near the Ronan arch, in September. Sam Belanger, chief operations officer, said he looks forward Read More…
BILLINGS — Montana clothing company All Season All Terrain (ASAT) Outdoors is suing New York-based fashion company Supreme for copyright infringement after Supreme sold clothing printed with a copyrighted camouflage design, according to court documents. Stevensville based ASAT Outdoors filed the suit on Nov. 11 in New York District Court. The Montana company claims to Read More…
HALL, Mont. — About 20-years-ago a rancher near Hall decided to semi-retire. But Ed James got bored. So he and his wife Sue, decided to start a new business. Now, the couple’s value added, family-owned company has clients all over the country. For our Montana Moment, we visited Sugar Loaf Wool Carding Mill. The mill stands in Read More…
BOZEMAN, Mont. — The first caregiver organization signed up for the Montana Apprenticeship Program Thursday. The program will provide 14 caregivers with dementia training at First Choice Home Health in Bozeman, where they say most of their patients are suffering from some form of dementia. In 2017, there were 287 deaths caused by dementia and Alzheimer’s Read More…
HELENA, Mont. – Three Small Business Development Centers are expanding access to services and outreach to rural areas by hiring additional staff to better serve small business owners and entrepreneurs across Montana. The Great Falls SBDC, based at the Great Falls Development Authority (GFDA), has hired a rural business adviser – a new position created to make business 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…
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…
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…
Hawaii, Montana and Maine are the three states whose economies depend most on outdoor recreational activities such as hiking, water sports, hunting and skiing. The outdoor recreational industry accounted for 5.4% of Hawaii’s gross domestic product in 2017, the largest share of all U.S. states. The Aloha State was followed by Montana and Maine, where Read More…
Apparently, over the last ten years, telemarketer jobs in Montana have declined by 94%. So why am I still getting so many annoying phone calls? Probably thanks to robocalls, or just less people doing more work. A new study from Commercial Cafe discovered the most quickly declining jobs in every state in the US. For Montana, that Read More…
Longtime county employee Tim Harmon recently joined the staff of the Majestic Valley Arena as the general manager and facility director. He will start work Oct. 1. For the past 17 years, Harmon served as the maintenance supervisor for the Flathead County Fairgrounds. The addition of Harmon to the staff will allow arena owners, Bob Read More…
BILLINGS — Outdoor retailer REI is building a new store at the corner of Shiloh Road and King Avenue West Billings West End, city building officials said Tuesday. The company plans to build a 23,457 square-foot retail building on the northwest corner of the intersection, according to a permit filed with the city. Kent, Wash-based Read More…
Montage International, the hotel and resort management company behind the brand, Montage Hotels & Resorts, will open a resort with a hotel and residences in Big Sky, Montana. Currently under construction, Montage Big Sky will be the first ultra-luxury five-star resort in the entire state. Located at Spanish Peaks Mountain Club, a private ski and golf course community set on more Read More…
BUTTE – Montana often ranks high for workplace injuries. “Montana for years has been an inherently unsafe place to work. We injure more employees in Montana than almost any other state year after year after year,” said Mark Rosenleaf with Montana State Fund. For the past three years Montana State Fund has been giving away Read More…
The edge of downtown Bozeman will get another new hotel. The Bozeman City Commission unanimously approved plans Monday for Bozeman Residence Inn, a four-story, 104-room hotel just off East Main Street. The building will go on roughly 1.74 acres at 815 E. Main St., just behind Jackpot Casino and with Town Pump to the west. Read More…
Under the Big Sky, the Emmy Award-Winning storytelling series from the Montana Television Network, has received a $40,000 grant from the Greater Montana Foundation to continue to bring stories about life in Montana to audiences. The series premiered in February 2017 and recently finished production on its seventh episode. The quarterly program combines cinematic visuals Read More…
(Missoula, Mont.)—Moore Information Group, formerly Moore Information, has not only launched a new name and logo, but a new web presence as well. The national public opinion research and strategic analysis firm — with offices in Portland, OR, Missoula, MT, Denver CO and Washington, DC — is known for its strong track record of accurate Read More…
The Montana Renewable Energy Association hosted the 9th Annual Montana Clean Energy Fair at the Gallatin County Fairgrounds on Saturday. The event brought hundreds from around the region to participate in workshops and demonstrations on topics including renewable energy policy, solar electricity and solar heating, batteries and energy storage, and more. “This is our big Read More…
HELENA — Montana State Fund presented the Montana Building Industry Association (MBIA) with a $539,902 check Thursday morning for their efforts to improve workplace safety. MBIA instituted a Group Retention Insurance Program, or GRIP, which help foster safe workplaces for construction sites. “Montana State Fund applauds the efforts and determination of the Montana Building Industry Read More…
As many Montanans know, cowboy boots can tell a unique story about your life, your family and where you come from. One Treasure State woman has created a successful business giving old boots new lives. Nikki Edmundson lives in Harrison, (approximately) pop.165, with her husband, a rancher, and four kids. “You’ll miss us if you’re Read More…
WASHINGTON (Legal Newsline) – The owner of a surface coal mine in Montana is seeking to set aside a federal decision regarding a mining plan modification. Western Energy Co. filed a complaint on July 17 in the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia against Secretary of the Interior David Bernhardt and U.S. Office of Surface Mining Read More…
Sidney Health Center announced the recruit of James Hickey, D.O. Dr. Hickey joins the medical staff as a family medicine physician. Hickey provides a wide range of primary care services to people of all ages. His scope of practice includes diagnosing and treating illnesses, managing chronic conditions such as high blood pressure, diabetes and Read More…
BILLINGS, Mont. — An organization that advocates for the interests of cable operators at the Montana Capitol is disbanding. The Billings Gazette reported Wednesday that the Montana Cable Telecommunications Association has announced it will cease operations after 60 years of representing the industry. READ FULL STORY
Often lauded as one of the state’s major business success stories, owners of a prominent Montana farm have sold their land. Wheat Montana, based in Three Forks, sold its mills and bakeries to a private equity firm in 2015 and sold its farm to a new family in January 2019, co-owner Dean Folkvord said. Though Read More…
BOZEMAN – Twenty current and emerging leaders from Montana’s natural resource industries have been selected to take part in Class IV of REAL Montana (Resource Education and Agriculture Leadership). Class IV will begin their leadership journey on September 12, 2019 at their first seminar in Bozeman. “REAL Montana continues to strengthen its mission of building Read More…
HARLOWTON, Mont. — Bridger Brewing, Montana Space Grant Consortium at Montana State University and Bozeman-based Crooked Yard Hops have partnered on a project that sent beer ingredients into space. The retrieved ingredients were then used to brew a commemorative beer celebrating the upcoming 50th anniversary of the Apollo 11 moon landing. While other breweries are Read More…
Forty-four Montanans Complete Premier Leadership Development Program, 19 Complete new Masters Class BOZEMAN – Leadership Montana announced the graduation of 44 community, business, education, healthcare, nonprofit and government leaders from across the state for the Class of 2019 of its flagship leadership program. Leadership Montana presents an annual seven session program of leadership development, education about Read More…
James Stack’s career as a financial advisor is testament to the fact that you can understand the movements of the stock market while working 2,200 miles away from it. A native of western Montana, Stack made a decision to forgo life in a financial center for the pleasures of working in Whitefish, in the middle Read More…
Dive Brief: OSHA has cited a Montana highway contractor for 26 serious and two other violations and proposed fines totaling $225,425 in connection with an accident during which three employees sustained burns and one worker fell. The agency’s initial press release in April reported 23 serious violations and fines of $261,418. The agency said three Read More…
MISSOULA – Move over, White Claw. This month, Big Sky Brewery unveiled its own brand of spiked seltzers, featuring flavors familiar to the Treasure State. Though the Big Sky Spiked Seltzer is a far different beverage than longtime flagship beers such as Moose Drool and Summer Honey, the company says Spiked Seltzer still follows the Read More…
BILLINGS, MT – The U.S. Department of Labor’s Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) has cited Nelcon Inc. – a highway contractor based in Kalispell, Montana – for exposing workers to burns and falls at a mobile asphalt-mixing plant in Laurel, Montana. The company faces $261,418 in penalties for 23 serious violations. Three workers suffered burns Read More…
A longtime veteran of Bozeman’s tech world, Susan Carstensen, said the business climate for women in Montana doesn’t look like it did when she first started. “The difference between 1995 and today, I think, is pretty dramatic,” she said. Carstensen worked for RightNow Technologies, now Oracle, as a chief operating officer, chief financial officer and Read More…
MISSOULA – Montana’s unemployment rate decreased by 0.1 percentage points to 3.7% for the month of March. Total employment estimates indicate a gain of 326 jobs, while payroll employment posted no change over the month, suggesting that tight labor markets are constraining job growth, according to figures from the Department of Labor & Industry. Montana’s labor force Read More…
Dive Brief: A Montana district court judge last week issued an order in favor of solar developers, ruling that the state’s Public Service Commission intentionally disadvantaged small solar projects in violation of the Public Utility Regulatory Policies Act (PURPA). The ruling comes after a June 2017 audio recording captured Commissioner Bob Lake acknowledging that cuts Read More…
The Flathead County Sheriff’s Office dispatched officers to the Montana Athletic Club in Bigfork on Thursday to ensure the business’ compliance with a 30-day suspension of its alcohol license. A Helena judge has prohibited the sale of all alcoholic beverages on the club’s premises for 30 days and imposed a $1,000 fine following the club’s Read More…
It’s a well–worn idea that bitcoin is helping to trash the planet, throwing fuel on an already burning world while providing value to very few people. By one recent estimate, the energy used to keep the network going, a process known as mining, is enough to power Hungary. But now a Montana county in the Read More…