A representative from Montana Secretary of State Christi Jacobsen’s office appeared before a legislative committee Thursday to answer questions from lawmakers about the office’s public mailings and their handling of state voter data. Jacobsen’s elections director and chief legal counsel spoke to the Legislative Audit Committee on questions about mailers, billboards and voter data. In Read More…
Idaho Gov. Brad Little on Thursday used his line-item veto authority to reverse a legislative cut to the state’s graduate medical education program, warning that the reduction would have disrupted the training of eight current medical residents mid-residency and undermined the state’s credibility with its healthcare workforce pipeline. Mr. Little signed but partially vetoed House Read More…
North Dakota Gov. Kelly Armstrong on Friday directed state agencies to prepare leaner budgets for the next two-year spending cycle, warning that a widening gap between ongoing revenues and expenditures represents an unsustainable fiscal trajectory that must be corrected by 2032. Speaking to agency leaders and fiscal officers at the state Capitol, Mr. Armstrong framed Read More…
The Laramie County School District 1 Board of Trustees authorized roughly $6 million in facility upgrades, service contracts and legal expenses at its regular meeting this week, while also appointing a new principal for Prairie Wind Elementary School. The board moved through its agenda swiftly, approving all items within roughly 10 minutes following public comment Read More…
Facebook chief executive Mark Zuckerberg reached out to House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif., in recent weeks to discuss how his company handles viral misinformation, but she has not called him back or personally replied, according to two people familiar with the exchanges. Pelosi’s decision not to engage with Zuckerberg, one of the most powerful technology Read More…
In 1995, Sen. Joe Biden offered high praise for William Barr, the once and future attorney general who has been roundly criticized by Democrats for his handling of special counsel Robert Mueller’s report on the 2016 election. “As I know you know, but others should know, too, I truly enjoyed working with you when you Read More…
Idaho Gov. Brad Little plans to lead a trade delegation to Taiwan and Hong Kong this fall. The Idaho Wheat Commission June 7 said the trade mission presents an opportunity to recognize loyal client millers in Taiwan and to explore ways to grow that business. Wheat growers from the state have exported for more than Read More…
The constitutionality of South Dakota’s protest laws will be argued in a Rapid City courtroom on Wednesday. Arguments in the American Civil Liberties Union’s lawsuit against Gov. Kristi Noem, Attorney General Jason Ravnsborg and Pennington County Sheriff Kevin Thom are scheduled to begin at 3 p.m. Wednesday in U.S. District Court in Rapid City. The Read More…
Very soon, an unmanned aircraft will be able to launch from the Montana border of North Dakota and fly to the state line of Minnesota uninterrupted and hundreds of miles away from its pilot. The North Dakota Legislature passed a bill this year infusing $33 million into UAS, $28 million of which is earmarked for Read More…
State lawmakers finalized the interim committee assignments today. The groups will look at various issues over the next 18 months, but today’s meeting might have created another one. Democrats wanted to chair three or four committees and ended up with one. House Minority leader Josh Boschee, D-Fargo, says they had an agreement with republican leadership. Read More…
CASPER – Hospitals in Wyoming charged private insurance plans more than three times what Medicare would pay for the same care in 2017, according to a national study that looked at 14 hospitals here and nearly 1,600 facilities statewide and found further evidence that the Eq-uality State has a serious problem with health-care prices. “What Read More…
Gov. Steve Bullock got a boost in his bid for the White House on Sunday with the endorsement of fellow Montana Democrat Sen. Jon Tester, who, like Bullock, has managed to win several statewide elections in a deep-red, predominantly rural state. Bullock unveiled the endorsement on “Face the Nation” Sunday, saying he’s “awfully excited” about the announcement. Read More…
MISSOULA – Montana boaters will see another mandatory inspection this summer. A new aquatic invasive species (AIS) rule calls for all watercraft with ballast tanks or bladders to be decontaminated upon entering the state or crossing the Continental Divide into the Columbia River Basin. READ FULL STORY
The first Democratic candidate for Montana governor has filed her paperwork with state regulators. Former state Rep. Reilly Neill registered Saturday with the state commissioner of political practices office. She pledges to carry on Gov. Steve Bullock’s legacy on her campaign website . The 45-year-old Neill represented Livingston in the Montana House between 2013 and Read More…
GREAT FALLS- State Rep. Casey Schreiner announced he’s running for the 25th Governor of Montana. He’s the second Democrat to announce a big for the race, after Livingston’s Reilly Neill. A native to Great Falls and a representative in Montana State Legislature House District 26, Schreiner made his announcement on Facebook this morning, June 11th, Read More…
The Montana Highway Patrol and local authorities near Bozeman, Montana were called to a crash scene in which a semi-tractor trailer careened off a roadway, and millions of bees were released. The incident happened at an intersection — the truck’s trailer overturned. Assistant Fire Chief Brian Nickolay told media it was an unusual rescue scene for his crew Read More…
Montana Gov. Steve Bullock isn’t one of the leading Democratic contenders for the 2020 presidential nomination, but he’s learning how to turn a Republican attack into an asset for his campaign. On May 29, the GOP-affiliated Senate Leadership Fund started a television ad campaign in the Missoula media market, according to Kantar/CMAG, and the message went Read More…
NEW ROCKFORD, N.D. — Charles William Anderson wakes up and puts on pants from Amazon, then heads to the kitchen to brew coffee from Amazon in his coffee maker from Amazon. As he sips his morning coffee sitting in his chair, also ordered from Amazon, he looks around the room to see other items from Read More…
Cheyenne Mayor Marian Orr is accusing Wyoming Governor Mark Gordon of using profane and misogynistic language toward her in an effort to intimidate her during a meeting on Friday. Gordon responded Monday that Orr mischaracterized the meeting, although he apologized for using an obscenity. “At no time during the conversation was I standing up or using Read More…
Leadership South Dakota has named those selected for the 8-month leadership program. The class includes 43 members and begins in September. Leadership South Dakota is a statewide program meant to provide South Dakotans with the background, experiences and insights to assume leadership positions at the local, state and national levels. READ FULL STORY
Dare to make a Difference is the theme for this year’s Miss Montana and Miss Montana’s Outstanding Teen Scholarship Program. Twenty-four amazing young women arrive in Glendive on June 16 to start a whirlwind week of excitement, adventure, community service, and the chance to win the state title. Each contestant besides being talented has a Read More…
BOZEMAN, Mont. — NBC Montana recently obtained surveillance video from a 2016 lawsuit involving the Montana State Hospital for allegations of violating patients’ rights. Disability Rights Montana is a federally-mandated organization that oversees the Montana State Hospital and represents the disabled in court cases. Courts documents said plaintiff and Montana State Hospital patient Ryan Bragg broke Read More…
Self-help guru Tony Robbins is on the defensive in the wake of recent BuzzFeed reports that nine women accused him of sexual misconduct and that he was filmed using racial slurs in the 1980s. Robbins is also out of one of his jobs now that Creative Planning, a $38 billion registered investment adviser based in Read More…
ABC News, in partnership with Univision, will host the third Democratic presidential debate in September, the Democratic National Committee announced Wednesday, saying it was raising both the polling and fundraising bars for candidates to qualify. The debate is set for Sept. 12 and could extend to a second night, Sept. 13, if enough candidates meet Read More…
ISMARCK — A new study commissioned by North Dakota officials predicts the state’s electric consumption will grow by as much as 71% over the next two decades thanks largely to expanding oil and gas activity. The North Dakota Industrial Commission reviewed the Barr Engineering Co. study during its meeting Tuesday, May 28. The commission, Read More…
CHEYENNE, Wyo. — Wyoming Army National Guard soldiers deploy this week for a peacekeeping mission in Kosovo. Community members are invited to attend a ceremony for the 297th Infantry Regiment on Tuesday afternoon at Star Valley High School in Afton. National Guard officials say this is the first time the Wyoming infantry unit is deploying Read More…
Republican Rep. Greg Gianforte, Montana’s lone House member, is planning to announce a 2020 run for governor, according to the state’s MTN News network. Gianforte, who was first elected to the House in a 2017 special election, would be the sixth Republican to enter the race to succeed Democratic incumbent Steve Bullock, who is term-limited and running for president. Republicans last captured Read More…
KALISPELL, Mont. — Montana’s homeless population has decreased from last year, according to recently released data. Point-in-Time survey numbers from the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development show decreasing populations across many of the state’s cities and towns. The Point-in-Time survey attempts to count every homeless person across the country during the last week of Read More…
BOZEMAN — Dane Fletcher didn’t need to go far to earn a college football scholarship. The former Bozeman High School standout caught the attention of former Montana State head coach Mike Kramer and his staff in the early 2000s, keeping the all-state linebacker and tight end in Bozeman. Fletcher made the most of the opportunity, Read More…
Helena mayor and Democratic U.S. Senate candidate Wilmot Collins admitted Tuesday to rear-ending another vehicle last week but pleaded not guilty to leaving the scene of the crash. Collins told Lewis and Clark County Justice of the Peace Mike Swingley that his foot slipped off the brake but he believed he caught it before hitting the vehicle Read More…
At least $3.8 million was spent to influence Montana lawmakers’ work during the first three months of 2019. That’s with one more month’s worth of lobbyist spending reports for the 2019 legislative session yet to be filed. The deadline for that is today. Lobbying dollars can include things like paying a lawyer to speak against Read More…
As both Samsung and Huawei are left reeling from various troubles, Apple is taking the opportunity to kick its opponents while they are down. And only a few weeks ago it seemed like Apple was being crushed by the competition. Speaking to The Independent, Craig Federighi, Apple’s senior vice president of software engineering, lifts the lid Read More…
BISMARCK — North Dakota state transportation officials kicked off a $370 million highway construction season Wednesday, May 22, months after lawmakers rejected a gas tax increase to boost road funding. The plans include reconstructing and rehabilitating sections of Interstate 94, reconstructing parts of Interstate 29 between Fargo and Wahpeton as well as reconstructing and rehabbing U.S. Read More…
CHEYENNE — A wealthy Republican political donor from Wyoming says he’s thinking about running for U.S. Senate in 2020. Foster Friess told The Associated Press in a statement Wednesday he will be weighing a possible run in the months ahead. Republican Sen. Mike Enzi recently announced he will retire at the end of his current Read More…
The governor of South Dakota says she does not plan to stop the execution of a death row inmate who claims jurors were biased against him because he’s gay. The American Civil Liberties Union is urging Gov. Kristi Noem to grant clemency to Charles Rhines. He was convicted of stabbing 22-year-old doughnut shop employee Donnivan Read More…
The Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals is doing some digging to figure out who exactly owns fossils found buried in Montana. The long-standing dispute is between landowners and mineral estates in Garfield County, who are making competing claims for the rights to the valuable finds. On Monday, the federal appellate court bounced the case back Read More…
BOZEMAN, Mont. — A Montana organization has been awarded a $500,000 contract to develop a village of 200-square-foot homes for people who are homeless. The Bozeman Daily Chronicle reports mortgage company Fannie Mae announced Wednesday that Bozeman-based Human Resource Development Council was among the five winners in a competition looking for innovative proposals addressing affordable Read More…
Sen. Steve Daines of Montana said Wednesday he applauds President Trump’s tough stance on trade with China, since he saw firsthand how difficult it is to do business there. But his patience is finite, he warned Treasury Secretary Steven T. Mnuchin. Mr. Daines, a Republican, said farmers and retailers back home are fretting over tit-for-tat tariffs with the Read More…
WASHINGTON – There have been multiple reports of sexual harassment and hostile work environments at national parks, including Yellowstone National Park. Eight incidents occured from January 2016 to June 2017, according to the Office of Inspector General. Wednesday, Sen. Steve Daines, R-Mont., addressed U.S. Department of the Interior Secretary David Bernhardt, saying if more is not Read More…
From Representative Gianforte’s Office WASHINGTON — Congressman Greg Gianforte (R-Mont.) and a bipartisan group of legislators introduced Savanna’s Act, a bill to address the crisis of missing and murdered indigenous women. Native American women face a murder rate 10 times higher than the national average, and 84 percent experience some form of violence in their Read More…
Barbara Barrett, a former U.S. ambassador and one-time Arizona gubernatorial hopeful, is President Donald Trump’s pick to lead the U.S. Air Force. Barrett is well-known among business-minded Republicans, the cohort who attend Chamber of Commerce luncheons. She and her husband, former Intel chairman and CEO Craig Barrett, regularly donate money to Republican candidates. They’ve also given millions Read More…
The U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement Agency is planning to add more than 20,000 spaces to its Intensive Supervision Appearance Program, part of the “Alternative to Detention” system for immigrants awaiting hearings. The expansion, from 99,500 places in the current fiscal year to a projected 120,000, was not formally announced by ICE, but a request Read More…
Amazon has reached an informal settlement with the federal Occupational Safety and Health Administration for unsafe workplace conditions at its new, local delivery center in Nampa. OSHA cited the company in March with four violations, including failing to log an injury to a worker that required treatment beyond first aid. The modular delivery center went up in November Read More…
Mothers gave birth to 6,551 babies in Wyoming last year, the lowest number in more than 15 years, the Wyoming Department of Health said Tuesday. The downward trend began in 2015. That year — which coincided with the state’s largest energy bust in decades, mothers gave birth to about 7,700 babies. Wyoming’s population dropped in the first three Read More…