BISMARCK, N.D. — Gov. Kelly Armstrong announced that North Dakota Health and Human Services launched a new two-year strategy to strengthen oversight, prevent fraud, and ensure the integrity of the state’s Medicaid program, with enhanced scrutiny of three high-risk provider categories set to begin July 1. The strategy was developed in response to an April Read More…
WASHINGTON — A new analysis from the U.S. Treasury Department found that American families and workers claimed $82 billion in individual relief from the Working Families Tax Cuts, with the overwhelming majority of benefits flowing to households earning less than $200,000 annually. The analysis, released as the tax filing season drew to a close, showed Read More…
HELENA, Mont. — The Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals affirmed a federal district court’s dismissal of Lighthiser v. Trump, a climate-related lawsuit that Montana Attorney General Austin Knudsen had intervened in last year to help defend the Trump administration’s energy policies. The ruling marked the second court to side against the plaintiffs in the case, Read More…
WASHINGTON — The U.S. Senate confirmed Katie Lane to a lifetime appointment as a federal district court judge for the District of Montana on Tuesday in a 52-46 party-line vote, with all Republicans in support and all Democrats opposed. Lane, 34, a Bozeman native who most recently served as an attorney for the Republican National Read More…
(The Center Square) – An alleged attempt by a U.S. Army Special Forces soldier to profit from classified military intelligence on a prediction market platform has resulted in the first-ever insider trading case involving event contracts – a legal milestone that comes at a critical juncture for Polymarket and the broader prediction market industry. Federal Read More…
(The Center Square) – U.S. Attorney for D.C. Jeanine Pirro said Friday she is closing the Justice Department’s criminal investigation into Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell, days after a key hearing for his replacement. Pirro said she is referring the matter to the Fed’s own inspector general, the same watchdog Powell had formally asked to Read More…
Montana residents living in South Korea and Korean residents living in Montana will soon have an easier path to obtaining local driver’s licenses after state officials signed a new reciprocity agreement this week. Montana Attorney General Austin Knudsen, who oversees the Montana Motor Vehicle Division, signed a memorandum of understanding with the National Police Agency Read More…
A regional anti-human trafficking conference wrapped up in Billings after bringing together law enforcement officers, prosecutors, educators and victim-service advocates from across the Rocky Mountain region for specialized training on combating trafficking and exploitation. The 2026 Greater Rockies Immersive Training Conference, known as GRIT, concluded Wednesday after a multi-day program focused on the unique challenges Read More…
The U.S. Department of the Treasury said Friday it plans to overhaul disclosure requirements for tax-exempt organizations, aiming to shed more light on how nonprofits receive and spend public money. Treasury announced that the Internal Revenue Service intends to revise Form 990, the annual information return filed by many nonprofits, to require clearer reporting on Read More…
Sixty-three new law enforcement officers graduated last week from the Montana Law Enforcement Academy and will now begin service with 32 agencies across the state. The academy, which operates under the Montana Department of Justice, provides basic and advanced training for state, county, city and tribal law enforcement officers. The new graduates are expected to Read More…
President Donald Trump and First Lady Melania Trump will welcome King Charles III and Queen Camilla to Washington next week for a four-day state visit, marking the first official state visit of Trump’s second term. The April 27-30 visit is expected to highlight the longstanding alliance between the United States and the United Kingdom as Read More…
The University of Montana will hold an on-campus listening session Wednesday, May 6, to gather public comment on the proposal to rename the Adams Center auxiliary gyms after Steve and Shirley Nelson. The proposed name of the facility will be the Steve and Shirley Nelson Training Center. “Steve and Shirley Nelson are amongst the strongest Read More…
(The Center Square) — The Trump administration is investigating claims that New York City schools violated the civil rights of Jewish students by hosting seminars on Palestinian resistance. The U.S. Department of Education’s Office for Civil Rights announced Thursday that it has opened an investigation into the New York City Department of Education to determine Read More…
After a nationwide search, retired Vice Admiral Darse E. “Del” Crandall, Jr. has been appointed to the position of dean of the School of Law at the University of North Dakota. The appointment was made by Eric Link, UND provost and vice president for Academic Affairs. Crandall is expected to begin his new role on Read More…
More than 8,000 kids showed up at the Pentagon today, with their parents in tow, to learn just exactly what their moms and dads do when they go to work every day. At the Pentagon, the event was billed as “Bring Your Child to Work Day,” and it’s the fourth time the War Department has Read More…
FORT BELVOIR, Va. – Two and a half centuries after the first shots of the American revolution were fired, the Army Reserve continues to embody the spirit of those original minutemen. Like their predecessors, Citizen Soldiers stand ready to answer the nation’s call — not as a force in reserve, but as a critical, integrated Read More…
Montana State University’s student government, the Associated Students of MSU, held its general election this week to choose student leaders for the 2026-27 academic year. A total of 963 students cast ballots for a voter turnout of 6.34%. The results are as follows, with winners marked in bold type. President and vice president Benjamin Wilson Read More…
The South Dakota Department of Labor and Regulation is inviting employers, educators and workforce partners to a free virtual session next week aimed at promoting registered apprenticeship programs as a tool for addressing persistent talent pipeline challenges. The online event, part of a broader Apprenticeship Knowledge Series timed to coincide with National Apprenticeship Week, is Read More…
Ten local safety agencies across Montana will share $500,000 in state grant funding to upgrade emergency equipment and vehicles, the Montana Department of Commerce announced Thursday. The awards come through the Montana Emergency Tourism Assistance Grant Program, known as METAP, which is designed to help rural public safety agencies — including law enforcement, fire and Read More…
As an avid skier, Maya Haugan was thrilled to join the women’s ski club at the University of Montana. The junior finance major from Bozeman found community with other female students who all enjoy downhill skiing across the region. On a ski trip last year, Haugan thought about how she could find similar female support Read More…
The White House Office of National Drug Control Policy recognized personnel assigned to National Guard counterdrug programs for their support to 10 award-winning law enforcement investigations during a ceremony in Washington, April 2. The investigations were part of the High Intensity Drug Trafficking Area program, a White House-led effort that brings together federal, state, local Read More…
A bail bondsman in Billings pleaded guilty in federal court to using his position to coerce a jailed woman into a sexual encounter in exchange for posting her bond, the latest in a series of legal troubles to roil the local bail-bonding industry. Louis Christopher Ikeda, 46, entered a guilty plea to one count of Read More…
Montana State University students, faculty, staff, and community members filled the Strand Union Building’s Procrastinator Theater on April 7 for a fireside-style conversation with Leonardo Marra, this year’s spring Orser Lecturer, whose career in global event planning has spanned the Vatican, international diplomacy and now MSU. Hosted by the Jake Jabs College of Business and Read More…
The North Dakota Department of Commerce has awarded $916,939 to seven organizations under its Regional Workforce Impact Program, directing funds toward workforce pipeline challenges ranging from rural housing shortages to educator retention and the development of career pathways in emerging industries. The grants, distributed through a competitive application process, are designed to help regional partners Read More…
Montana Attorney General Austin Knudsen has launched a consumer protection investigation into Ford Motor Co. and Stellantis N.V., alleging that both automakers have been collecting and selling drivers’ personal data to third-party companies — including insurance data brokers — without vehicle owners’ knowledge or consent. Mr. Knudsen issued Civil Investigative Demands to both companies, giving Read More…
Gov. Greg Gianforte made a stop at Billings’ Park High School this week, touring woodshops, auto bays and a greenhouse as part of a broader push to position career and technical education as a cornerstone of the state’s economic strategy. The visit underscored a governance philosophy Gianforte has pursued since taking office: that closing Montana’s Read More…
(The Center Square) – A new survey from the CQF Institute found 76% of finance professionals believe their academic training did not adequately prepare them for the artificial intelligence skills required in the workforce. The CQF Institute, a global quantitative finance membership organization based in London, reported 88% of quantitative finance professionals worldwide believe a Read More…
Gov. Greg Gianforte’s Energy Task Force will hold its final public open house in Colstrip on April 15, wrapping up a three-city listening tour that has taken the group to Butte and Miles City in recent months. The event runs from 5:30 to 7:30 p.m. at the Business Innovation Center at 6200 Main Street. There 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…
US. Senator Tim Sheehy was aboard a small plane that made an emergency landing in a rural Madison County field Friday after suffering a mechanical engine failure, according to his office. Neither of the two people on board was injured. The plane came down near Ennis, Mont., during what Mr. Sheehy’s chief of staff described Read More…
(The Center Square) – At a speed astronauts haven’t experienced since Apollo, Artemis II re-entered Earth’s atmosphere and splashed down near San Diego Friday evening, concluding a historic mission that took humans farther than ever. There were cheers everywhere, from the amphibious dock ship USS John P. Murtha, ready to pick up the astronauts and Read More…
Montana Attorney General Austin Knudsen has awarded the Montana Highway Patrol’s highest honor to two troopers who tracked down a wanted Nebraska fugitive near Big Timber last year and shot and killed him after he opened fire on them. MHP Sergeant Barry Kilpela and Trooper Justin Knapp each received the Award of Valor at a Read More…
he University of Montana’s signature artificial intelligence initiative, the Future Project, landed a prestigious 2026 CIO 100 Award, recognizing excellence in enterprise-scale technology leadership and innovation. “This recognition underscores the University of Montana’s thoughtful and forward-looking approach to AI,” said Zach Rossmiller, UM’s chief information officer. “The Future Project is about more than adopting new Read More…
Montana Attorney General Austin Knudsen has filed two amicus briefs leading coalitions of state attorneys general in defense of American firearms manufacturers facing lawsuits in New York that seek to hold the companies liable for gun crimes committed in the state. Knudsen argues both cases circumvent federal protections established under the Protection of Lawful Commerce Read More…
A former Colstrip High School teacher was sentenced Thursday to 30 years in prison — with 15 years suspended — for sexually abusing a 15-year-old student, a case that unfolded largely on school grounds and through social media. William Schuman-Kline, 30, of Billings, was sentenced in Rosebud County District Court in Forsyth by Judge Rennie Read More…
Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth has signed a memorandum directing military installation commanders to permit service members to carry privately owned firearms while off duty on Department of War property within the United States, marking a significant shift in how the Pentagon approaches personal firearms on military bases. Hegseth announced the policy change in a social Read More…
Montana’s financial and professional services sector has emerged as the leading driver of state economic production, according to a new analysis from the Department of Labor and Industry released as part of the Gianforte administration’s 406 JOBS workforce initiative. The report shows more than 66,000 Montanans — roughly 13 percent of the state’s total workforce Read More…
(The Center Square) – A student at Torrey Pines High School in San Diego was suspended after posting a pro-Immigration and Customs Enforcement flyer reading, “We [heart] ICE – Real Americans,” following an anti-ICE walkout on campus, according to the Foundation for Individual Rights and Expression. Student-led anti-ICE walkouts have continued to rise nationwide. In Read More…
More than 150 faculty members and guests attended Montana State University’s Interdisciplinary Institute on Artificial Intelligence Faculty Symposium on March 26, an event designed to explore the possibilities and pitfalls of AI for higher education and research. John Paxton, director of MSU’s Gianforte School of Computing, presents during an afternoon session of the IIAI Artificial Read More…
The Montana Department of Environmental Quality has released a draft programmatic environmental assessment covering the construction and operation of subsurface wastewater treatment systems and is accepting public comment through May 1, 2026. Subsurface wastewater treatment systems include a range of water treatment infrastructure, from conventional septic systems to advanced systems capable of meeting or exceeding Read More…
Hi-Country Snack Foods, a nearly 50-year-old Montana jerky maker and one of the largest employers in the small mountain community of Lincoln, has paused production — a development that raises new concerns about the company’s future and the economic health of the town it has long anchored. The production halt comes less than a year Read More…
A lawsuit filed by the American Prairie, a liberal nonprofit,is setting up what state officials say could be a defining legal battle over the future of Montana’s public lands — and who gets to decide how they are used. American Prairie sued the Montana State Land Board and the Department of Natural Resources and Conservation Read More…
(The Center Square) – The White House proposes a dramatic increase in defense spending in fiscal 2027 while significantly reducing spending in other departments, according to its budget submission released Friday. The request comes as U.S. lawmakers still haven’t finished funding all federal agencies for the current fiscal year and are currently locked in a Read More…
A former Bureau of Indian Affairs police officer has admitted to sexually abusing a teenage girl while on duty on the Northern Cheyenne reservation in Montana, federal prosecutors announced Thursday. Murrell Deela, who was 29 at the time of the assault, pleaded guilty to sexual abuse of a minor, according to the U.S. Department of Read More…