A bipartisan provision championed by Sen. Steve Daines to sharply increase penalties for unauthorized disclosure of taxpayer information cleared the Senate Finance Committee as part of a broader tax administration package, moving one step closer to becoming law. The Daines-Cortez Masto provision passed as part of the Taxpayer Assistance and Service Act, which the Finance Read More…
Montana State University will host an interdisciplinary symposium Oct. 1-2 to explore the possibilities and challenges of artificial intelligence for human knowledge. “The Future of AI” conference, sponsored by the Interdisciplinary Institute on Artificial Intelligence at MSU, will be held on campus. Attendance includes lunch and an evening reception on Thursday, and a light breakfast Read More…
Gov. Greg Gianforte announced Montana will end the “orphan tax” — the longstanding practice of diverting Social Security survivor benefits from children in foster care to cover the cost of their state care — following a federal directive earlier this year calling on states to end the practice. For more than two decades, the Montana Read More…
Attorney General Austin Knudsen announced the Montana Motor Vehicle Division is extending its fee waiver for driver license and identification card renewals and replacements through September 30, following a strong response to the program that saw more than 18,000 Montanans add the new citizenship marker to their credentials in July alone. The waiver, originally set Read More…
Montana’s unemployment rate remained pretty much unchanged during the final month of the holiday season. State Senior Economist Barbara Wagner explains. “Montana’s unemployment rate is at 4.1% in December, that is the most recent month we have available,” said Wagner. “It is actually exactly even with the U.S. rate this month, which is a long Read More…
It’s the latest chapter in the ongoing legal battle over the Obama administration’s Waters of the U.S. rule. Spokesman for Attorney General Tim Fox, Eric Sell said a recent Supreme Court ruling allowing continuation of legal challenges to the WOTUS policy is a win for many western states.. “The state of Montana filed a legal Read More…
Montana Senator Steve Daines will be hosting his second Montana Energy Summit in Billings, set for May 30 and 31, where attendees will discuss Montanan’s energy infrastructure and the good paying jobs that the industry creates.. At a Senate committee hearing this week, Daines promoted Montana coal as part of an ‘all-of-the-above’ energy strategy for Read More…
This is National School Choice Week, and there are only two charter schools in Montana, one in Bozeman and the other a partnership between the communities of Libby and Troy. Superintendent of Bozeman Public Schools, Dr. Robert Watson described the unique charter school that exists within the structure of Bozeman High School. “One of the Read More…
HELENA – Former state judge Russell Fagg, one of several Republicans vying to challenge U.S. Sen. Jon Tester this year, reported Tuesday that he raised $615,000 in campaign funds through December – his first campaign-finance report. Fagg, a former state district judge from Billings, also said that 80 percent of the money came from individual Read More…
BILLINGS – Noted actor (and part-time Montana resident) Bill Pullman visited Billings this week to promote a new film called “The Ballad of Lefty Brown.” The film was shot in and around Ennis and Bannack. The film’s director, Jared Moshe, told Deadline.com: “I fell in love with Bannack. I even did a little re-write of Read More…
Eleven of the the 12 most vulnerable senators up for re-election in 2018 ended last year less popular among their constituents than at the start of the 115th Congress. That’s according to the new Morning Consult Senator Approval Rankings for the fourth quarter of 2017, based on more than 250,000 surveys with registered voters from Read More…
Interior Secretary Ryan Zinke said Sunday he has decided to keep many national parks open during the government shutdown because the tourist spots should not “be weaponized.” “Our public lands and our monuments really belong to the people and not the government,” he said. Zinke spoke with CNN on the National Mall in Washington as Read More…
BIGFORK – A small earthquake shook the area north of Bigfork on Sunday . There have not been any reports of injuries or major damage. The quake was measured by the U.S. Geological Survey as magnitude 3.0. It happened at about 6:44 p.m. on Sunday at a depth of about 6.1 miles, according to the Read More…
Apple on Wednesday made a slew of announcements about its investment in and contribution to the U.S. economy in part because of the new tax law. The headline from Apple is that it will make a $350 billion “contribution” to the U.S. economy. The company also promised to create 20,000 new jobs and open a Read More…
House Speaker Paul Ryan warned on Wednesday against “playing political games” as Democrats threatened to block a last-ditch spending deal this week if they cannot also pass a plan to protect young undocumented immigrants from deportation. Parts of the government will shut down if Congress cannot pass a spending bill by the end of Friday. Read More…
HELENA – Montana’s two Republican members of Congress said Wednesday they’ll support a GOP budget plan to keep the federal government open past Friday – including the reauthorization of the Children’s Health Insurance Plan. Yet Sen. Steve Daines and Rep. Greg Gianforte said any budget plan should not be linked to immigration reforms, which are Read More…
CODY, Wyo. – Cody’s City Council Tuesday night voted to continue its culling program, and kill another 50 deer inside the city limits. That according to Big Horn Radio Network News Director Wendy Corr. Corr said police will bait, and shoot the deer by February 15th. The city obtained permits from Wyoming’s Game and Fish Read More…
Republican lawmakers fumed at Steve Bannon on Wednesday, and some threatened to hold the former Trump White House strategist in contempt of Congress a day after he stonewalled the House’s Russia investigation. In the latest political battle for the deposed Brietbart News chief, House Republicans showed little patience with a political agitator who has often Read More…
CNN Chief Medical Correspondent Sanjay Gupta was ridiculed across social media on Wednesday for declaring that President Trump has heart disease. White House physician Ronny Jackson said on Tuesday that Trump was in “excellent health” after conducting the president’s physical exam at Walter Reed National Military Medical Center last week. Jackson answered a variety of Read More…
Mitt Romney is preparing to enter the race for Utah’s Senate seat with a bang as he gains support from donors across the country, setting his sights on a potential congressional leadership position if he were to pull off a victory, FOX Business has learned. In an exclusive interview with Utah Gov. Gary Herbert, FOX Read More…
Multiple arrests involving phony cash have been making the media rounds in over 11 states, including New York, Iowa, Illinois and Michigan, in the last six months. Earlier this week, both New York City and Iowa reported cases of fraudulent cash popping up into the hands of local business owners. READ THE FULL STORY.
It was a nice run. For the first time in over a decade, Goldman Sachs Group Inc. is worth less than its longtime rival, Morgan Stanley, at least in the eyes of equity investors. After reporting a plunge in bond trading, Goldman’s market capitalization fell to $99.4 billion at the close on Wednesday, a fraction Read More…
With Bitcoin crashing, some cryptocurrency HODLers are hurting. That might include the Winklevoss twins. Tyler and Cameron bought 120,000 bitcoins in late 2012 with money from the $65 million payout from their lawsuit against Facebook. That’s more than $1.32 billion worth of bitcoin at Wednesday evening’s value of about $11,000 per bitcoin. That seems like Read More…
On Monday, October 2, 2017, Harvey Weinstein arrived at work earlier than usual. As was his custom, he barked orders and moved from room to room inside his spacious office suite at 375 Greenwich Street, the New York City headquarters of the Weinstein Company (T.W.C.), a beautiful old red-brick factory building that had been converted Read More…
Amazon has added a new $10 and Under section to its app and website, featuring, as one could infer, items that are priced $10 or cheaper. All items have free shipping, regardless of whether a user has Prime membership. The feature, first spotted by TechCrunch, looks to compete with budget shopping apps like Wish — Read More…
Google’s Project Fi cell service never played the “unlimited data” game that most carriers in the U.S. like to play (and which is never truly unlimited). Instead, Google simply offered data at $10/GB/month and would give you a refund for any data you paid for but didn’t use. Now, however, it’s taking its own stab Read More…
A former adviser to Ronald Reagan’s administration has slammed the Russia probe, accusing Special Counsel Robert Mueller of “investigating everything but collusion.” In an interview with Fox News’ Hannity, Mark Levin suggested the Justice Department was wasting its time looking into allegations of collusion between Donald Trump’s team and Russia. READ THE FULL STORY.
As Congressional Democrats and Republicans continue to fight over the fate of undocumented immigrants in the DACA program, the federal government is barreling towards a shutdown Friday. Yellowstone Public Radio’s Nate Hegyi sat down with Montana’s Republican Senator, Steve Daines, to talk about the potential for a shutdown, his legislative goals in 2018 and President Read More…
On Wednesday, a bill honoring the life of Alex Diekmann passed the U.S. House of Representatives by a vote of 400 to 3. Congressman Greg Gianforte teamed up with U.S. Senators Steve Daines and Jon Tester to sponsor the bill. According to Gianforte, Diekmann was a champion for Montana. “Alex Diekmann was a renowned conservationist Read More…
GILLETTE, Wyo. – Coal from the Powder River Basin will soon be on its way to Japan to fuel two new coal gasification plants in Fukushima Prefecture. Gillette, Wyo.-based Cloud Peak Energy, which operates the Spring Creek Mine near Decker, will begin to ship up to 1 million tons of coal a year to Japan Read More…
After the state of Montana struggled with a surprising $227 million budget deficit in 2017, many are wondering why the state’s revenue is so weak at a time when the economy is growing. An economist says it’s largely due to Montana’s reliance on income tax. Patrick Barkey, director of UM’s Bureau of Business and Economic Read More…
BOZEMAN, Mont. — A new study using data from the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration shows Montana has the worst drivers in the country. This is the third time in four years Montana has topped the list. “It’s not a good category to win, if you want to call it that,” said Montana Highway Patrol Read More…
Montana’s top technology official and a key architect of the state’s IT consolidation, will be stepping down, officials confirmed to Government Technology. Chief Information Officer Ron Baldwin, who was appointed to lead the State Information Technology Service Division (SITSD) by Gov. Steve Bullock in January 2013, will be leaving “for a role outside of state Read More…
HELENA – Montana state prisoners are getting another chance to overcome addiction. Montana Department of Corrections officials announced Tuesday that 30 inmates are the first accepted into a new chemical dependency treatment program at the state prison in Deer Lodge. The secure, remodeled facility provides a 90 to 180-day intensive therapy program and has three Read More…
This story is the final chapter of a series focusing on how Missoula and its surrounding communities are grappling with challenges of sustainable growth. (If you haven’t yet, check out the first of the series here, the second one here, and the third here.) It was written by the The Missoulian and is published here Read More…
Montana farmers and ranchers are being asked to fill out a very important survey that helps paint an accurate picture of American agriculture – the Census of Agriculture. “By filling it out you let your voice be heard. You let everyone know how Montana’s agriculture economy is; basically, telling us your story” says USDA-NASS MT Read More…
More than three decades ago, the lawsuits against W.R. Grace & Co. began cropping up with relative obscurity, brought by former miners and their families who were exposed to the asbestos-laced vermiculite mined in Libby. People were dying. And as that trend became clear in the mid-1980s, the first of many lawsuits asserted that company Read More…
Well one of the leaders now in rentals and vacation nights is Airbnb. How much did we make here in the Big Sky State utilizing this service? According to NBC Montana, In 2017, Airbnb hosts earned over $19.7 million and welcomed nearly 147,000 people to Montana. Wow, that is more then I thought. Having used Read More…
Missoula County Attorney Kirsten Pabst has announced that she is running for her second term and officially filed for reelection on Friday. “These last four years have been incredibly gratifying and challenging, and I feel like I need at least another four years to continue some of the work that we’ve done,” Pabst said. “When Read More…
In 2017 the Helena Regional Airport saw a record number of passengers with 209,000 making it one of the most successful years for the organization. Airport Director Jeff Wadekamper says that load factors on the flights were great with most flights being at 50-80% capacity and airlines increasing aircraft size to better accommodate those loads. Read More…
On a map, or from the frozen skin of Dickey Lake, David Guild’s and Bill Krywolt’s properties look similar. Both are long, narrow lots about one acre in size, with a few pines and steep slopes plunging toward about 100 feet of lakeshore each. Krywolt reaches the water via a switchbacked path; Guild has a Read More…
Chelsea Manning, the transgender soldier who was convicted of giving classified information to WikiLeaks, has filed paperwork with the Federal Elections Commission for a U.S. Senate bid in Maryland. According to an FEC statement of candidacy form dated Thursday, Manning filed to run as Democrat in the 2018 midterm elections, challenging incumbent Sen. Ben Cardin, Read More…
Terry Sargent of Great Falls claimed a $100,000 prize in the Montana Millionaire lottery drawing. Sargent, a military retiree from Great Falls, won the prize on a Montana Millionaire ticket he bought at the Holiday Station Store on 15th Street North in Great Falls. He found out he won right after the winning numbers were Read More…
A whitefish native is headed to the Olympics. Maggie Voisin suffered a broken ankle in the Sochi Olympics, a heartbreak for the 15-year-old. This year, she will have the chance to finish what she started. READ THE FULL STORY.