Travelers heading to Montana this summer may face sticker shock at the rental car counter. Bozeman Yellowstone International Airport (BZN) has been named the most expensive airport in the country for car rentals, according to a new survey from travel website Cheapcarrental.com. The survey, which analyzed rental rates across 100 U.S. airports for the peak Read More…
Attorney General Austin Knudsen today announced the appointment of Billings attorney Emily Jones to the Montana Judicial Standards Commission, a key body responsible for upholding the integrity and ethical standards of the state’s judiciary. With more than 15 years in private practice, Jones brings extensive legal experience to the commission, which investigates allegations of judicial Read More…
Governor Greg Gianforte and U.S. Forest Service Chief Tom Schultz has signed a historic Shared Stewardship Agreement between the State of Montana and the U.S. Department of Agriculture Forest Service, launching an ambitious new partnership to accelerate forest restoration and wildfire risk reduction across the state. The agreement establishes a long-term framework to dramatically increase Read More…
Montana Attorney General Austin Knudsen announced Friday that his office has opened an investigation into Lee Enterprises following a February cyberattack that compromised the personal information of nearly 40,000 employees and subscribers, including an undisclosed number of Montanans. Lee Enterprises, based in Davenport, Iowa, owns several major newspapers in Montana, including the Helena Independent Record, Read More…
Montana’s congressional delegation made a successful bipartisan push Wednesday to advance legislation that would, for the first time, federally recognize the Little Shell Tribe of Chippewa Indians. According to a press release sent to MTN News, Sens. Steve Daines and Jon Tester have stapled their tribal recognition bill as an amendment to must-pass defense spending 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 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…
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…
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…
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…
HELENA – Highway Patrol Trooper Wade Palmer will return home to Montana on Wednesday, May 22. He is currently receiving treatment at the University of Utah Hospital in Salt Lake City, where his doctors have determined he is ready to transition to the next phase of care. Palmer will be flown to Missoula and is Read More…
BOZEMAN – Congressman Greg Gianforte announced the winners of the 2019 Congressional Art Competition, Jessie Graveley, a student from Powell County High School, is Montana’s winner. “Every year, I’m impressed with the talent of our high school artists. Every piece submitted was unique and showed a different aspect of our state. Thank you to all of Read More…
BUTTE, Mont. — Organizers announced the remaining performers for the annual Montana Folk Festival in Butte this summer. Led Kaapana, Mick Moloney, Rahim AlHaj Trio, Charlie Walden, Jasmine Bell and North Bear, Yuliyana Krivoshapkina, Rahzel and Himalayan Heritage Band are slated to perform. There will be 21 performers at the event. “We can now give everyone Read More…
University of Montana President Seth Bodnar is taking his message statewide. On Tuesday, he spoke to service club members at the Meadowlark Country Club in Great Falls. Bodnar, who took over the top job at UM in January of 2018, said the University needs to do a better job of telling its story to combat Read More…
The number of prisoners in Montana under jurisdiction of state or federal correctional authority on Dec. 31 decreased by 3 percent between 2016 and 2017, according to a report recently released by the national Bureau of Justice Statistics. The 43-page report is packed with a variety of stats related to a snapshot taken of people Read More…
U.S. Sen. Jon Tester has entered into an agreement to write a memoir, Publishers Weekly reported in its April 22 edition. It is to be co-written by Aaron Murphy, the former chief of staff for the Montana Democrat, the article stated, adding a fall 2020 publication date is planned. Tester entered into an agreement with Read More…
BILLINGS – Mothers, daughters, sisters, granddaughters and friends came together for the Montana Women’s Run on Saturday. Almost 5,300 women participated in the 38th annual run. “This is my first year of doing the women’s run,” said Kealy Milton. “I thought I would just come out and see what it was all about and kind Read More…
BOZEMAN – As the opioid crisis and drug epidemic deepen nationwide, we’re feeling the effects right here in Montana. So far this year, law enforcement in southwest Montana have seized nearly 35,000 grams of drugs, ranging from marijuana to meth to prescription drugs. They’re already on track to surpass last year’s seizures of close to Read More…
BILLINGS- A former U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service special agent in Billings admitted in federal court Tuesday to possessing child pornography, according to U.S. Attorney Kurt Alme. Shawn Thomas Conrad, 48, faces a maximum of 10 years in prison, a $250,000 fine and five years to life of supervised release on one count of possession Read More…
Meth isn’t a new problem for Montana, but it is a growing problem. For members of law enforcement and state prosecutors, it’s growing at an alarming rate. For instance in 2018, the Eastern Montana High Intensity Drug Trafficking Area Program seized more than 129 pounds of meth. At $80 a gram on the street, that Read More…
Montana’s congressional leaders have taken up the Restore Our Creek Coalition’s cause of demanding a fully restored upper Silver Bow Creek from Texas Avenue to the confluence at George Street. Sens. Jon Tester, a Democrat, and Steve Daines, a Republican, and Republican U.S. Rep. Greg Gianforte sent letters Wednesday expressing concern and disappointment over the Read More…
Getting healthcare to people in rural areas is something Congressman Greg Gianforte addressed when he visited Benefis Health Services this morning. Doctors, nurses and other hospital officials voiced their concerns about staffing, especially the lack of resources, when it comes to helping those with behavioral health needs. Gianforte serves on the House Energy and Commerce Read More…
BILLINGS, Mont. — A Montana man has been charged with defrauding a Canadian financial institution of $43 million by posing as a legitimate business owner. Todd Capser was arrested Wednesday in Billings, Montana. Prosecutors in New York said Capser defrauded the Toronto, Canada, entity and tried to defraud nine other institutions of between $46 million Read More…
HELENA – Montana health leaders are reminding the public to take precautions this spring to avoid exposure to hantavirus. Hantavirus is spread through urine and droppings from infected rodents – most commonly deer mice – and can lead to a serious respiratory disease. The Montana Department of Public Health and Human Services says spring and Read More…
MISSOULA, Mont. — The deadline for the Miss Montana to Normandy project is only days away. Crews are working around the clock to make sure the historic DC-3/47 is ready for the trip to Normandy, France, to mark the 75th anniversary of D-Day and honor the 57,000 Montanans who served in the war. The plane Read More…
BUTTE – NorthWestern Energy reports that their Montana customers are being targeted by a scam threatening immediate utility shut offs. Customers report that they receive a call and a recording plays, telling the customer to call a 1-800 number to avoid having their utility service interrupted. Customers who called the phone number report that the person Read More…
GREAT FALLS – Hollis Fudge, along with two of his children, is deaf and he and his wife, Amanda, feel it is important for them to have a good community to be involved in. “I want to encourage the hearing community to be involved and take advantage of deaf perspective,” Amanda said. Hollis said they Read More…
Lucky Minerals Inc (CVE:LKY) (OTCMKTS:LKMNF) said Tuesday that a Montana judge has issued a ruling related to the company’s exploration license at its Emigrant project in southwestern Montana and the company has a strong case to appeal it. Judge Brenda Gilbert of Montana’s Sixth District Court recently made a ruling against Lucky Mineral’s and Montana attorney-general Read More…
Last week Montana’s Republican Sen. Steve Daines hosted a roundtable in Missoula to talk with police and prosecutors about the devastating toll methamphetamine is taking on western Montana. The event also offered a revealing look at the business end of the meth trade. Local meth-cooking operations are generally an anomaly. Home brew labs are certainly Read More…
MONTANA – Governor Steve Bullock and the members of the Montana Broadcasters Association (MBA) today announced the renewal of a media campaign of TV and radio public service announcements that focus on raising awareness about suicide prevention in Montana. The media campaign first launched in April 2017. “Suicide has broken the hearts of so many, on Read More…
HELENA, Mont. (AP) – Officials say Montana is now complying with federal driver’s license rules after years of resisting the REAL ID Act. Montana Department of Justice officials said Monday the notification from the U.S. Department of Homeland Security means Montanans will be able to use their Real ID-compliant licenses and identifications to board domestic Read More…
BILLINGS – A Billings high school sophomore got the chance to meet some ranking Montana politicians after she won the Montana “Teenpreneur” challenge. Kathryn Brower and her business, 406 Lips, rose to the top out of about 87 participants. She creates lip balm holders made out of fabrics. Brower was inspired to create the holder after she ruined a load Read More…
BILLINGS, Mont. — A nine-mile (14.5-kilometer) stretch of abandoned railroad in southwest Montana will be resurrected to once again carry Yellowstone National Park-area tourists. The Billings Gazette reports that the Custer Gallatin National Forest last week announced approval of a nonmotorized, multi-use path along the old Oregon Short Line rail bed between West Yellowstone and Read More…
Former North Dakota health-care administrator Craig Lambrecht has officially assumed his role as Kalispell Regional Healthcare’s new chief executive officer, bringing with him more than 16 years of experience in health-care leadership and ambitious plans for the organization. Lambrecht’s propensity for leadership began long before he launched into the business side of health care in Read More…
Bozeman commissioners continued their push for citywide high-speed internet, which would take a lot of buy-in from businesses and developers to become a reality. City commissioners declared broadband an essential piece of Bozeman’s infrastructure with a unanimous vote Monday. “The future belongs to the connected and the internet is both the workplace and the marketplace Read More…
CORVALLIS – The latest man to be honored by Representative Greg Gianforte (R-MT) for his continuing service as a veteran believes many former soldiers are anxious to keep serving and can make a real difference in their communities. Former US Army Ranger and Green Beret Doug Mason is the latest Montanan to be awarded the Read More…
MISSOULA, Mont. – Volunteers are working hard to get a former firefighting plane ready to travel to France for the 75th anniversary of D-day. The 75-year-old WWII area Dakota DC-3 known as Miss Montana hasn’t flown since it landed in Missoula in 2001. But that won’t stop volunteers from getting her back in the air. Read More…
HELENA, Mont. — An Albanian national who talked about joining ISIS and attacking random people to avenge a shooting at a New Zealand mosque was arrested at a gun range in Montana, authorities said Thursday. Fabjan Alameti, 21, appeared before a U.S magistrate judge Thursday on charges of possession of a firearm by an unlawful Read More…
Two conservation groups filed a federal lawsuit this week, challenging the 2018 Flathead Forest Plan. WildEarth Guardians and Western Watersheds Project say the 10 to 15 year management plan for the 2.4 million acre forest decreases habitat protections for wildlife, including grizzly bears, Canada lynx and bull trout. “Such as increased potential for road building, Read More…
BILLINGS – The Montana Human Rights Bureau has ruled in favor of a former Yellowstone County employee who says she was discriminated against because she is transgender. Eleanor Andersen Maloney, a former deputy county prosecutor, was denied health-insurance benefits for medical costs related to her gender transition procedure, according to a Wednesday release from the Read More…
GREAT FALLS – A retired Great Falls priest intends to plead guilty to a receipt of child pornography charge. Court documents indicate that Lothar Konrad Krauth, a retired Catholic priest, plans to change his plea to guilty at a hearing next week. Court documents state Homeland Security agents received a cyber report from the National Read More…