Montana Attorney General Austin Knudsen has joined a coalition of 26 attorneys general in supporting President Donald J. Trump’s push to deport members of the Venezuelan gang Tren de Aragua (TdA), a group recently designated as a foreign terrorist organization. In an amicus brief filed Tuesday, the attorneys general urged the U.S. Court of Appeals Read More…
Montana State University (MSU) has announced two finalists for its next president, inviting students, faculty, staff, and the public to participate in upcoming campus visits and forums. The MSU Presidential Search Advisory Committee identified Dr. Kurt Schnier and Dr. Brock Tessman as the two finalists, each set to visit campus next week. Their visits will Read More…
Last summer, when Montana State University graduate student Connor Green was spending time with family, he didn’t expect his grandfather to receive a phone call he’d still think about five months later. The call happened to be from Connor himself. Or rather, a scammer using AI to sound exactly like Green’s voice, telling his grandpa Read More…
Montana taxpayers preparing their 2024 tax returns will notice the impact of Senate Bill 399, which was passed by the 2021 Legislature. The bill simplifies the state’s tax system by aligning it more closely with the federal system, meaning Montana taxable income now begins with federal taxable income. As part of the changes, certain deductions Read More…
Montana Attorney General Austin Knudsen has joined a coalition of 26 attorneys general in supporting President Donald J. Trump’s push to deport members of the Venezuelan gang Tren de Aragua (TdA), a group recently designated as a foreign terrorist organization. In an amicus brief filed Tuesday, the attorneys general urged the U.S. Court of Appeals Read More…
Montana State University (MSU) has announced two finalists for its next president, inviting students, faculty, staff, and the public to participate in upcoming campus visits and forums. The MSU Presidential Search Advisory Committee identified Dr. Kurt Schnier and Dr. Brock Tessman as the two finalists, each set to visit campus next week. Their visits will Read More…
When the U.S. military deploys tactical vehicles to hot and humid climates, microbes can grow on surfaces inside and out, potentially compromising the performance of specialized paints and other protective coatings. These microbes can clump together to form communities called biofilms, and combatting them requires understanding what specific microbes comprise them, according to a research Read More…
Last summer, when Montana State University graduate student Connor Green was spending time with family, he didn’t expect his grandfather to receive a phone call he’d still think about five months later. The call happened to be from Connor himself. Or rather, a scammer using AI to sound exactly like Green’s voice, telling his grandpa Read More…
Montana taxpayers preparing their 2024 tax returns will notice the impact of Senate Bill 399, which was passed by the 2021 Legislature. The bill simplifies the state’s tax system by aligning it more closely with the federal system, meaning Montana taxable income now begins with federal taxable income. As part of the changes, certain deductions Read More…
Applications are open for Montana State University’s $100,000 Venture Competition, which is hosted annually by the Jake Jabs College of Business and Entrepreneurship and the MSU Blackstone LaunchPad. Semifinalists will be notified April 4 and will deliver virtual presentations to the judges the week of April 14. The selected finalists will then compete on April Read More…
Montana Attorney General Austin Knudsen, in partnership with the Montana Highway Patrol (MHP) and Stockman Bank, has announced the opening of submissions for the 2025 Law Enforcement Appreciation Poster Contest. The contest invites elementary school students across Montana to create artwork that expresses their appreciation for law enforcement officers. Now in its fourth year, the Read More…
Montana Attorney General Austin Knudsen is leading a coalition of 21 state attorneys general in urging Congress to pass the “No DeepSeek on Government Devices Act,” which would ban the use of DeepSeek, a Chinese-based artificial intelligence platform, on all government devices. In a letter sent to congressional leadership on Thursday, Attorney General Knudsen emphasized Read More…
Corvallis Middle School and Hamilton High School are heading to the national Science Olympiad competition after claiming victory at Montana’s state tournament on Tuesday, March 4, at Montana State University. The national event will be held at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln on May 23-24, where students will have the chance to win awards and cash Read More…
The Montana Commissioner of Securities and Insurance (CSI) is calling for public comments on the regulation of digital assets, including cryptocurrency, Bitcoin, blockchain tokens, and other related financial instruments. With the rise of digital assets, the Commissioner is seeking input to help develop industry standards aimed at protecting investors from fraud and abuse while encouraging Read More…
Snow crunched underfoot as Mark Hebblewhite scanned the ridgelines of Canada’s Banff National Park. It was 1995, and the young biologist, fresh out of undergrad, was trailing one of the park’s most elusive wildlife species – the gray wolf. Though rare to see, the wolves of Banff had radio collars that allowed biologists like Hebblewhite Read More…
For the fourth consecutive year, the Montana State University men’s hockey club will play in the American Collegiate Hockey Association’s Division 2 national tournament. The team will travel to St. Louis, where the tournament will be held March 14-18 at the Centene Community Ice Center. All games will be streamed live on FloHockey at flohockey.tv, Read More…
Montana state Senator Ellie Boldman, a Democrat from Missoula, pleaded guilty Monday morning to a misdemeanor charge of driving under the influence after being found asleep in her running vehicle in downtown Helena early Sunday. Boldman, who had attended the Montana Democratic Party’s annual Mansfield Metcalf fundraising dinner earlier that evening, admitted in Helena Municipal Read More…
The Montana Motor Vehicle Division (MVD) and County Treasurer’s offices are preparing for the launch of a new vehicle titling and registration system on March 17, 2025. The new system aims to improve customer service and efficiency across the state, but in preparation for the transition, all MVD exam stations and County Treasurer offices will Read More…
Governor Greg Gianforte announced today the appointment of John A. Mercer to the Twentieth Judicial District Court, which covers Lake and Sanders Counties. “John served the people of the Twentieth Judicial District well when I appointed him to serve his community last year, and I’m glad he was willing to do so once again,” said Read More…
MISSOULA, Mont. – Governor Greg Gianforte today visited Missoula County Public Schools (MCPS) to spotlight innovative programs that prepare students for success in the workforce. “Career and Technical Education plays an important role in preparing the next generation of Montana’s workforce,” Gov. Gianforte said. “By equipping students with hands-on skills and real-world experience, CTE and Read More…
Barrett Hospital & HealthCare in Dillon, Montana, is proud to announce its recognition as one of the 2025 Top 100 Critical Access Hospitals by The Chartis Center for Rural Health. This prestigious honor, awarded annually, highlights outstanding performance among rural hospitals across the country based on the Chartis Rural Hospital Performance INDEX®. “The Top 100 Read More…
Funding from the National Institutes of Health will allow a Montana State University research team to deepen explorations into a disease that is posing an increasing threat in the U.S. Lyme disease is a bacterial infection transmitted by ticks, and nearly 90,000 cases in the U.S. were reported by the Centers for Disease Control and Read More…
Montana State University has once again been recognized by the Carnegie Classification of Institutes of Higher Education and the American Council on Education as one of the most productive research institutions in the United States. MSU received R1 designation, which denotes very high research output and doctoral education – making it one of 187 institutions Read More…
Montana State University’s leading wool and sheep expert was featured recently in Time magazine, highlighting ongoing work to explore novel uses for wool. Brent Roeder, MSU Extension sheep specialist and a faculty member in the College of Agriculture’s Department of Animal and Range Sciences, appeared in the article, “Farmers are Using Wool to Save Water Read More…
In a controversial decision that flies in the face of biological science, a Montana District Court judge ruled that Senate Bill 458— which legally defined sex as strictly male or female— is unconstitutional. The ruling, handed down by Judge Leslie Halligan, claims the law violates the Montana Constitution’s guarantees of privacy and equal protection. However, Read More…
For the third consecutive year, UM has been named the top university in the nation for community and national service, an honor that highlights institutions excelling in student and alumni contributions to public service. “This ranking confirms what we know to be true: UM students and alumni continuously outperform their peers in the fields of Read More…
Montana Attorney General Austin Knudsen has signed an immigration enforcement agreement with the Trump Administration’s Department of Homeland Security (DHS), allowing state law enforcement to take a more active role in deportation efforts. Under the agreement, Montana Highway Patrol (MHP) troopers and Division of Criminal Investigation (DCI) agents will have the authority to arrest illegal Read More…
The University of Montana (UM) is continuing its upward enrollment trend, reporting a 4.3% increase in student numbers for the spring 2025 semester compared to the previous year. “The trend is clear—more students are choosing the University of Montana than at any point in the past decade,” said UM President Seth Bodnar. “With student enrollment, Read More…
A Montana State University ice researcher recently won a $1.5 million grant from the U.S. Army Engineer Research and Development Center to help a multi-institution team develop technologies to enable more readily sustained military operations in cold regions, such as within the Arctic Circle. The project is funded by a program of the Defense Advanced Read More…
The Department of Environmental Quality (DEQ) is accepting a second round of comments on a proposed Montana Pollutant Discharge Elimination System (MPDES) permit for snowmelt associated with snowmaking using treated wastewater on Spirit Mountain, Andesite Mountain, and the Spanish Peaks base area near Big Sky. Spanish Peaks Mountain Club (Spanish Peaks) applied to DEQ for Read More…
Montana Attorney General Austin Knudsen is leading a coalition of 20 attorneys general in defending a religious organization’s right to make employment decisions based on religious beliefs in the case of Union Gospel Mission of Yakima Washington v. Robert Ferguson. Knudsen argues that Union Gospel Mission, a nonprofit religious group, must have the authority to Read More…
Accounting students from Montana State University’s Jake Jabs College of Business and Entrepreneurship are offering free help preparing tax returns for MSU students and individuals who made less than $60,000 last year. The 2025 help sessions will be held on the MSU campus in Jabs Hall, Room 215, from 3:15 to 5:15 p.m. on the Read More…
Montana Attorney General Austin Knudsen has joined a coalition of 24 state attorneys general in filing an amicus brief with the Seventh Circuit Court of Appeals, urging the court to reverse a lower court’s decision allowing a convicted murderer in Indiana to receive taxpayer-funded sex-change surgery. The brief challenges a district court ruling that granted Read More…
Montana Attorney General Austin Knudsen announced today that the state is set to receive $16.57 million from a $7.4 billion national settlement with Purdue Pharma and the Sackler family, the owners of Purdue, over their role in fueling the opioid crisis. The settlement resolves allegations that Purdue aggressively marketed opioid products for decades, contributing to Read More…
Montana State Auditor and Commissioner of Securities and Insurance James Brown announced today that the Montana Commissioner of Securities and Insurance (CSI) has joined a multi-state task force and the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) in a $106 million settlement with Vanguard Marketing Corporation (VMC) and The Vanguard Group, Inc. The settlement stems from Read More…
After an extensive nationwide search, the University of Montana has selected Anne Hosler to lead the Broadcast Media Center. Hosler, who has been with the center since 2012, has served in various roles, including membership manager and director of development. She has been acting as interim director and will now officially step into the leadership Read More…
Governor Greg Gianforte today honored the winners of his third annual Youth Hunting Story Contest in a ceremony at the State Capitol. The contest, designed to celebrate Montana’s rich hunting heritage, attracted nearly 200 entries this year. “We started the Youth Hunting Story Contest to celebrate Montana’s proud hunting heritage, and the contest continues to Read More…
Attorney General Austin Knudsen is reminding Montanans to stay vigilant and on the lookout for bad actors trying take advantage of them as the Department of Justice’s Office of Consumer Protection (OCP) fielded 900 scam complaints, over 1,000 complaints about businesses, and saved Montanans from losing over $1 million in 2024. In 2024, OCP prevented Read More…
The University of Montana received a $500,000 grant from the Mellon Foundation to support a new Democracy Studies Program. Led by history professors Claire Arcenas, Kyle Volk, and Jeff Wiltse, the grant seeks to foster democratic values and revitalize the humanities while also supporting faculty research over the next three years. UM is one of Read More…
Amid ongoing discussions about the future of President Trump’s tax cuts, U.S. Senator Steve Daines (R-Mont.), alongside Senate Majority Leader John Thune (R-S.D.) and 33 other Republican senators, introduced the “Main Street Tax Certainty Act,” a bill aimed at making the 20 percent pass-through business tax deduction permanent. Without congressional action, the deduction is set Read More…
The Montana Department of Commerce announced today that more than $3.2 million in federal funding has been allocated to develop and preserve affordable housing in four Montana communities. The funds, distributed through the department’s Housing Trust Fund (HTF) and HOME Investment Partnerships Program, will support projects in Billings, Bozeman, Dillon, and Laurel, helping to provide Read More…
The Montana Department of Environmental Quality (DEQ) is now accepting applications for $1 million in grant funding to support projects aimed at reducing nonpoint source pollution in the state’s lakes and streams. The deadline for eligible applicants to submit draft applications is March 7, 2025. The grants are available to nonprofit organizations and government entities Read More…
Governor Greg Gianforte today announced the appointment of four individuals to the Montana Board of Regents of Higher Education and the Board of Public Education. The appointees bring extensive experience in education and leadership to their respective roles. Board of Regents of Higher Education Appointments: Raina Mortenson, Malta – A current student at the University Read More…
The United States Supreme Court today upheld a federal law banning TikTok nationwide unless its Chinese-owned parent company, ByteDance, divests its stake in the app by Sunday. In response to the ruling, Montana Attorney General Austin Knudsen praised the court’s decision, emphasizing the national security risks posed by the popular social media platform. “I’m glad Read More…