BOISE — The 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals has become the first circuit in the nation to order a state to pay for an inmate’s gender confirmation surgery, ruling Monday that a three-judge panel decision will stand. Idaho Gov. Brad Little said he will ask the U.S. Supreme Court to hear the case. Read More…
MISSOULA — The Missoula Area Youth Hockey Association — along with numerous other non-profit organizations around the state — received word from Montana’s Motor Vehicle Division in September of 2019 that their specialty license plates were in danger of being revoked. Nonprofits were given until Dec. 31, 2019 to have 400 of their plates on Read More…
MISSOULA – Wednesday’s incident brought back painful memories for the Missoula Police Department. February 12, 2020, marked ten years since the death of MPD Sgt. Robert J. Heinle. Heinle was shot in the line of duty in 1998. The Missoula Police Department posted about the incident Wednesday morning hours before one of their officers was shot Read More…
As America’s craft beer industry continues to boom, the waste it generates can pose challenges for sewer systems. But if it’s used in the right spot, in the right amount, it’s potentially beneficial and can actually save wastewater treatment plants money. In Bozeman, Mont., the Water Reclamation Facility treats more than 6 million gallons of Read More…
BOISE — The 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals has become the first circuit in the nation to order a state to pay for an inmate’s gender confirmation surgery, ruling Monday that a three-judge panel decision will stand. Idaho Gov. Brad Little said he will ask the U.S. Supreme Court to hear the case. Read More…
MISSOULA — The Missoula Area Youth Hockey Association — along with numerous other non-profit organizations around the state — received word from Montana’s Motor Vehicle Division in September of 2019 that their specialty license plates were in danger of being revoked. Nonprofits were given until Dec. 31, 2019 to have 400 of their plates on Read More…
MISSOULA – Wednesday’s incident brought back painful memories for the Missoula Police Department. February 12, 2020, marked ten years since the death of MPD Sgt. Robert J. Heinle. Heinle was shot in the line of duty in 1998. The Missoula Police Department posted about the incident Wednesday morning hours before one of their officers was shot Read More…
As America’s craft beer industry continues to boom, the waste it generates can pose challenges for sewer systems. But if it’s used in the right spot, in the right amount, it’s potentially beneficial and can actually save wastewater treatment plants money. In Bozeman, Mont., the Water Reclamation Facility treats more than 6 million gallons of Read More…
Attorney General William Barr has accepted an invitation to testify to the House Judiciary Committee on March 31, ending a year-long standoff that began when the panel first demanded his testimony in the aftermath of special counsel Robert Mueller’s investigation. The arrangement comes as Democrats have demanded answers about Barr’s apparent intervention in the sentencing of President Read More…
The Montana Department of Environmental Quality has approved a $107 million plan to clean up the toxic coal ash pounds outside the Colstrip units 3 and 4. The plan for Colstrip operator Talen Energy would remediate the high levels of sulfates, boron, selenium and heavy metals that have been disposed into 462-acre ponds over decades Read More…
INSTAGRAM comedians sparked panic when they pretended to spill coronavirus on a New York subway train. The jokers got on an L train in Brooklyn dressed in hazmat suits and carrying a plastic container filled with red liquid and covered in warning labels. They then tipped the contents on the floor and told passengers it Read More…
A Florida man was arrested Saturday and accused of driving his van through a tent where a local Republican group was registering voters, authorities and officials said. The man, Gregory William Loel Timm, 27, faces two counts of aggravated assault on a person 65 or older, one count of criminal mischief and one count of Read More…
Amazon is seeking sworn testimony from President Trump and Defense Secretary Mark Esper after the corporation missed out on a $10 billion Pentagon contract last year, according to court documents unsealed Monday. Amazon Web Services alleges Trump is part of the reason why rival Microsoft won out instead. Amazon blames “improper pressure from President Donald J. Trump, who launched repeated public and behind-the-scenes attacks Read More…
(KUTV) — A cellphone belonging to missing Idaho teen Tylee Ryan was found in her mother’s possession, CBS News reports. Ryan and her 7-year-old brother Joshua “JJ” Vallow were last seen in September. Their mother, Lori Vallow, was found in Hawaii last month with her new husband Chad Daybell. CBS News reports that Ryan’s phone has been used several times after Read More…
Whitefish Police Chief Bill Dial says a judge should allow evidence and other confidential criminal justice information to come forward in his case against Mike Goguen, the prominent community benefactor Dial says launched a “malicious campaign” against him to tarnish his reputation and destroy his career. Dial filed his Jan. 30 legal brief in response Read More…
BILLINGS – Nina Schuett didn’t feel like her life quite – fit. “I’d never really felt too passionate about other things before,” Schuett said. “I liked volleyball, I liked doing swimming, but I felt that those were more of other people’s sports.” Older sister Ashley swam collegiately, and twin Gage always seemed to be a Read More…
Craig Bjorland didn’t get to see his stepdaughter graduate from military basic training in 2017. “I flew to Texas to go to her graduation and I wasn’t allowed on base because of my marijuana charge,” he said. Instead, he drove around Dallas in a rental car to kill time. In 2010, Bjorland was pulled Read More…
HELENA — State officials said Monday they plan to invest $16 million annually over the next five years to add capacity for current community-based services for people with severe and disabling mental illness. The funding, under an existing Medicaid waiver benefit option, will increase the number of people already receiving services from 357 to 750 by 2025, Read More…
BOISE, Idaho — The business manager and fundraising program developer for the Idaho Military Division faces eight felony counts of possessing child porn. Kenneth Coulter, 72, of Boise was booked into the Ada County Jail about 11 a.m. Tuesday, charged with possessing sexually exploitative materials. The military division is the umbrella agency for both the Read More…
BISMARCK — Tribal casinos in North Dakota are taking a hit. Since the 2017 state Legislature legalized electronic pull tabs — a casino-esque game where players touch a screen to reveal winnings — tribal nations have been losing money as charities are seeing the benefits. “It’s no small thing for us,” said Mark Fox, Chairman Read More…
A Montana firefighter claims she was fired for posting provocative workout photos to her Instagram account, according to new reports. Presley Pritchard, 27, formerly a part-time firefighter paramedic with Evergreen Fire Rescue, filed a wrongful termination claim with the department — alleging that officials fired her because of her gender and singled her out over Read More…
DICKINSON, N.D. — Throughout the succession of failed bond referendums for a new high school with a career and technical education facility, community members in Dickinson have asked, “What about the Legacy Fund?” Dickinson got an answer sooner rather than later — and straight from the top. During a meeting with The Dickinson Press, Read More…
HELENA, Mont. (AP) — Montana plans to invest $16 million annually over the next five years to expand community-based services for people with severe and disabling mental illness, officials said. The funding under an existing Medicaid waiver benefit option will increase the number of people already receiving services from 357 to 750 by 2025, The Read More…
CHEYENNE — Imagine you’re a cattle rancher in rural Niobrara County, where only 4.3% of the population has access to broadband internet speeds of 25 megabits per second (Mbps) or faster. You want to trade your cattle online, but you have to go to the public library in Lusk to access internet fast enough, leaving Read More…
The application deadline for this year’s Miss Montana Competition, including more than $300,000 in cash and applied scholarships, is March 15. Applications require a $200 sponsor fee. Montana young women between the ages of 17-25, and teens between 13-17, have the opportunity to earn college scholarships and learn leadership skills by entering the Miss Montana Read More…
MISSOULA — It’s been 18 months since Jermain Charlo went missing and despite the lack of progress in the case her family and friends continue the search. Charlo was last seen near the Orange Street Food Farm in Missoula on June 16, 2018. Search warrants and interviews have been completed, and dozens of leads investigated Read More…
By: Cody Boyer BOZEMAN — As the city of Bozeman grows, so does the need for street lights. But some recently installed street lights are causing problems. “The national standards, frankly, haven’t caught up with the technology,” says Shawn Kohtz, city engineer for the City of Bozeman. Kohtz says issues with brightness started nearly three years Read More…
Gillette, Wyo. once produced 40% of all U.S. coal, but is now losing half its jobs as coal demand plummets. A nearby town survived a bust in the 1950s and offers lessons. ARI SHAPIRO, HOST: The state that produces 40% of America’s coal is trying to figure out a new future for itself. Gillette, Wyo., Read More…
JACKSON — A new type of industrial activity is rising from the sagebrush and pastureland in western Wyoming: utility- scale solar farms. Three such developments have already been constructed or will soon be built in the Green and Bear river basins. The introduction of photovoltaic renewable energy technology figures to help replenish county coffers and Read More…
Wyoming Medical Center has signed a letter of intent with Banner Health, the first step in a potential future affiliation deal between Wyoming’s largest hospital and one of the most significant health care organizations in the region. The agreement is nonbinding, according to an announcement sent Tuesday by WMC, and allows both organizations to “conduct Read More…
Disney, McDonald’s, Starbucks and other U.S. companies with significant footprints in China are suspending operations and instituting travel restrictions as they respond to the outbreak of the coronavirus. The virus has now taken the lives of at least 82 people in China and sickened 2,900 worldwide, including in the U.S. and Europe. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention confirmed Read More…
The maker of the helicopter that crashed and killed former NBA superstar Kobe Bryant on Sunday pledged to investigate the incident. Defense contractor and aerospace giant Lockheed Martin said it would probe the crash of its Sikorsky S-76B helicopter in Calabasas, California, near Malibu, which killed nine people. The S-76 series helicopter debuted in the 1970s. Sikorsky has Read More…
FARGO, N.D. – Officials in North Dakota say it’s time for property owners in flood-prone areas of the Red River Valley to think about buying flood insurance. Flood preparation meetings with state and federal officials are scheduled this week in Fargo, Grand Forks and Jamestown. Those sessions will focus on insuring homes and other structures. Read More…
Spirits were high even as the beer ran low on a recent evening at the Great Northern Brewing Co., the Flathead Valley’s oldest craft beer establishment slated to close its doors in Whitefish’s downtown corridor next month. The iconic brewery at 2 Central Ave. has punctuated the north end of Whitefish since opening along the Read More…
BOZEMAN- What is the Dolly Parton challenge? It’s four photos of what could be your profile photos for social media sites like Facebook, LinkedIn, Instagram, and Tinder. Montana Senator Jon Tester got in on the fun but added a twist. Instead of using a “Tinder,” photo he used a “Farmersonly,” photo. READ FULL STORY
BILLINGS, Mont. — The Trump administration on Wednesday approved a right-of-way allowing the Keystone XL oil sands pipeline to be built across U.S. land, federal officials told The Associated Press, pushing the controversial $8 billion project closer to construction though court challenges still loom. The approval signed by Interior Secretary David Bernhardt covers 46 miles Read More…
PIERRE, S.D. (KELO) — If a South Dakota Senator has his way, the Board of Regents will combine the administration of Spearfish-based Black Hills State University and Rapid City-based South Dakota School of Mines and Technology. A bill introduced Tuesday by Sen. Ryan Maher (R-Isabel) would require the Board of Regents to develop a plan Read More…
Training sessions on new electronic pollbooks are planned throughout the next week and a half for North Dakota election officials. The new devices — 990 of them — will be distributed to North Dakota’s 53 counties for use at polling locations after being delivered to the state in February. Pollbooks are records of voters Read More…
The American Red Cross is issuing a call for donors of all blood types to give blood or platelets. The organization notes in a news release that since influenza has been escalating across the country, it’s preventing some donors from giving. The Red Cross also reports that during winter weather has been threatening to cancel Read More…
BOZEMAN — Montana State’s all-time winningest quarterback is headed to the National Football League. DeNarius McGhee will join the Houston Texans staff, sources tell MTN Sports on Tuesday. The former Montana State quarterback has been on Jeff Choate’s coaching staff in Bozeman for the past three seasons. “DeNarius did very good work in a number Read More…
USDA says eight percent of corn and two percent of soybeans still need to be harvested in the country. The weather does not help and continues to be a focus in the Northern Plains. Farmers in North Dakota saw dangerously low temperatures over the weekend. It’s one problem after the next as the state’s farmers Read More…
BILLINGS — The Montana High School Association executive board passed proposals for the MSHA to add girls wrestling and boys powerlifting as sanctioned sports during the MHSA’s annual meeting on Monday in Billings. The sports will be offered to member schools beginning with the 2020-21 school year. It was announced in late November that the Read More…
More than 100 years ago, Montana and many states erected legal walls against spending public money on private religious schools, but today school choice activists are seeking to bring down those barriers using a case from Montana. The U.S. Supreme Court will hear oral arguments Wednesday in a lawsuit brought on behalf of Kendra Espinoza Read More…
HELENA, Mont. — An investment group from Billings has filed a lawsuit against the Montana Lottery over rules that require businesses wishing to offer sports gambling to have specific alcohol licenses. The lawsuit filed by Arete Group argues the legislation that authorized sports wagering did not include the alcohol license rule. The lawsuit seeks an injunction Read More…