Montana Attorney General Austin Knudsen is leading a 24-state coalition urging the Trump administration to investigate the National Academy of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine and the National Science Foundation, and to cut off federal grant funding tied to a climate science chapter used in a judicial reference manual. In a letter sent this month to Read More…
First Interstate and the Federal Home Loan Bank of Des Moines are providing $700,000 in combined support to 34 nonprofit organizations across South Dakota, expanding funding for groups working on some of the state’s most pressing community needs. The total includes a $200,000 contribution from First Interstate, matched up to three times through FHLB Des Read More…
Montana’s Land Board approved a series of revenue-generating actions at its March meeting expected to produce more than $1.63 million for the state’s trust beneficiaries, including support for public education. The actions approved by the board included an estimated $1,093,308 from timber sales and $532,944 from an oil and gas lease sale. Combined, the measures Read More…
The Wyoming Department of Environmental Quality has released its 2025 State of the Environment Report, highlighting the agency’s work over the past year in air monitoring, water management, land reclamation and regulatory compliance. According to the agency, the report focuses on DEQ’s core responsibilities across air, land, waste and water, while also pointing to ongoing Read More…
The Wyoming Cowboy Hall of Fame will have 41 new members in its next class, including two men from Campbell County. Butch Reynolds and his cousin Aldin Reynolds are a part of the class of 2020 that will be inducted Sept. 19-20 at the Little America in Cheyenne. READ FULL STORY
CHEYENNE, Wyo. – Cleo counts out crumpled dollars, straightening the bills as she stacks them neatly on her bare leg. “Twenty-two dollars,” the 23-year-old exclaims. “Not too bad!” All around her, more than a dozen nearly naked women are dancing on the stage and swinging from a brass pole as music thumps and customers shower the Read More…
MISSOULA – Montana movie theaters are thinking outside the box office, literally, to bring entertainment to people while also providing social distance. Outdoor theaters and drive-ins are popping up across the treasure state. One outdoor theater in the works will be behind Missoula’s iconic Roxy Theater in the alley. Right now construction is underway to Read More…
A University of Montana economist says since mid-February and COVID-19 Montana’s economy has declined too quickly to adequately measure, but one analysis shows a two-year recovery. “The downturn that is all around us right now in the economy as we sit here in the month of May will easily eclipse the largest downturn that we’ve Read More…
WASHINGTON, D.C. – The Food and Drug Administration announced Saturday that it has authorized an at-home sample collection kit that can then be sent to specified laboratories for COVID-19 diagnostic testing. Specifically, the FDA issued an emergency use authorization (EUA) to Everlywell, Inc. for the Everlywell COVID-19 Test Home Collection Kit. Everlywell’s kit is authorized to be Read More…
The coronavirus pandemic will cost states hundreds of billions of dollars in revenue in the upcoming fiscal year, according to an NBC News survey of 33 states and Washington, D.C. With most states starting their new fiscal year early this summer, the projections in many cases will serve as the basis for severe budget cuts states may have Read More…
MISSOULA, Mont. — Montana State University officials say a Kenny Chesney concert scheduled for July 5 at Bobcat Stadium has been postponed. Chesney postponed his entire tour, with plans to reschedule for 2021 due to the coronavirus pandemic. Tickets will be valid for the rescheduled show date. Officials will also offer refunds for 30 days after Read More…
A California man pleaded guilty to a single count of blackmail in U.S. District Court in Missoula on May 7, four days before he was set to stand trial on a host of additional criminal charges alleging a years-long extortion and harassment campaign targeting wealthy Whitefish philanthropist Michael Goguen and his family. The defendant, Bryan Read More…
Local governments across Wisconsin moved to implement new public health guidelines Thursday after the state’s highest court overturned a statewide stay-at-home order, prompting the governor to warn of “massive confusion.” Some businesses began reopening Thursday, but it wasn’t clear whether they would do so on a broad scale. Some that did reopen closed again within Read More…
New York is poised to reopen parts of the state on Friday, 75 days after the state reported its first coronavirus case. Governor Andrew Cuomo urged people to remain cautious as some businesses are allowed to open their doors for the first time in two months. “Phased reopening does not mean the problem has gone away,” Read More…
North Dakota’s eight commercial service airports during April had their lowest monthly passenger count since record keeping began 40 years ago, the state Aeronautics Commission reported Thursday. About 5,000 passengers — or 5% of the normal expected traffic — flew out of North Dakota’s airports during the month. The commission attributed the drop to the Read More…
CASPER, Wyo. – The Wyoming Machinery Company announced on Wednesday that it has laid off a number of employees. In a statement, the company laid blame on the recent downturn of the energy sector coupled with the economic effects of COVID-19 shutdowns. According to the statement, the company reduced its workforce by approximately 13 percent. Read More…
Starting Monday, Uber (UBER) will require its drivers and passengers to wear face coverings as the coronavirus crisis rages on around the world. Even as some countries and U.S. states debate relaxing lockdown orders, the ride-hailing giant is implementing new rules to protect both drivers and customers. The company plans to enforce the new policy using technology Read More…
Health officials and scientists across the world are racing to develop vaccines and discover effective treatments against the coronavirus, which has infected more than 4.2 million people worldwide in as little as four months, according to data compiled by Johns Hopkins University. There are no proven, knockout treatments and U.S. health officials say a vaccine could take Read More…
CHARLESTON, W.Va. (WCHS/WVAH) —A former doctor at the Veterans Affairs Medical Center in Beckley, West Virginia has been indicted on seven counts, including sexual abuse charges. Dr. Jonathan Yates, 52, was indicted by a federal grand jury in Charleston on Tuesday. He is charged with five counts of depriving veterans of their civil rights under Read More…
MISSOULA, Mont. — If it’s not enough that our state leaders and doctors are asking you to keep social distancing and wearing masks as Montana businesses reopen, they now have some celebrity manpower behind the cause. “The Dude” himself, Jeff Bridges, stars in a new public service announcement campaign launched by the Montana Hospital Association. Bridges Read More…
Visitors will be able to enter Yellowstone National Park from Wyoming beginning Monday, but the entrances on the Montana side of the border will remain closed until at least June 1. Yellowstone Superintendent Cam Sholly announced the park’s phased reopening plan Wednesday on a conference call with Grand Teton National Park Superintendent Gopaul Noojibail and Read More…
Myndi Holbrook is among the scientists working on the front lines for research regarding COVID-19 and those seeking a vaccine for the virus. Holbrook, who graduated from Whitefish High School in 2015 and earned a microbiology degree from Montana State University, is a post-baccalaureate fellow at Rocky Mountain Laboratories in Hamilton. “It’s a very unique Read More…
Pressure is intensifying on county officials to remove Dr. Annie Bukacek from the Flathead City-County Board of Health after she defied state and local policies surrounding the coronavirus outbreak and spread misinformation. According to a letter from city leaders in Whitefish, Bukacek’s recent actions “rise to the level of malfeasance, violate the public trust and cannot Read More…
A 1,151-megawatt (MW) coal power station in North Dakota is set to be retired after it was deemed to have “lost value compared to other alternatives in recent years.” Announcing the decision at the end of last week, electric power supplier Great River Energy said it planned to shut down the two units of Coal Read More…
Wyoming Medical Center’s first experience with a severe coronavirus patient came through a panicked phone call. The doctor on the line was from another hospital in Wyoming. They were frantic. A patient in their 20s had come in that day. On paper, in theory, such a young patient should’ve responded well to a respiratory Read More…
Montana, and Bozeman especially, is a tourist magnet. People flock here for a variety of reasons: the wide-open spaces, our proximity to the first national park, the world-class skiing, the small-town feel. But with COVID-19 shutdowns and quarantines still in effect, businesses that depend on nonresident travelers are feeling the pressure. “June, July, August, September, Read More…
Phase One of reopening in Montana allowed students to return to schools. In Musselshell County, Melstone Public Schools reopened on Thursday. The board voted on April 28 to give kindergarten through eighth-grade students an option to return. Melstone operates on a four-day week and has eight days left starting on Monday. “Just to give the Read More…
KULR- The national restaurant chain, Wendy’s, is facing some shortages of beef. However, they have not run out of beef here in the Treasure State. According to Jonna Jones, Director of Marketing for Wentana, the shortage is hitting Wendy’s first, because they serve fresh beef. READ FULL STORY
HELENA — The Montana Department of Labor & Industry has announced residents can now access an additional 13 weeks of unemployment insurance benefits due to the expanded passage of the recent stimulus package of the CARES Act. Pandemic Emergency Unemployment Compensation provides 13 weeks of additional benefits to individuals who have exhausted their regular unemployment insurance Read More…
U.S. Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin encouraged Americans to focus on domestic travel this year as the international travel outlook for the rest of 2020 remains uncertain amid the coronavirus pandemic. In response to a question from Maria Bartiromo on Fox Business Network Monday about whether international travel will be opened up this year, he responded, “Too hard to tell at Read More…
When Anthony Nelson was a kid growing up in Minnesota, he already knew he wanted to retire in Northwest Montana near Glacier National Park. “I was one of those kids who always visited every summer,” Nelson said, and through those trips he fell in love with the Glacier Park and the surrounding area. On guided Read More…
When the Flathead City-County Health Department ordered bars and restaurants to close their doors to the public to prevent COVID-19’s spread on March 19, Cypress Yard General Manager Morgan Cawdrey began a takeout service in hopes of maintaining some business. But Cawdrey ended up halting takeout and delivery to allow his employees to shelter in Read More…
Montana gym owners started a petition in an attempt to have Gov. Steve Bullock allow gyms to reopen under Phase One. A gym owner from Billings created the petition and has close to 5,000 signatures, as of May 3rd, 2020. MTN news spoke with the general manager at Crossroads Fitness Center, a supporter of the Read More…
MISSOULA, Mont. — Gov. Steve Bullock gave Montana churches the green light to open back up under his phased plan to reopen the state, but there are strict guidelines. Now, churches are navigating how to reopen and also keep people safe. The team at Valley Assembly in Sheridan worked through new protocols before reopening. Even so, Read More…
More than one million people around the world have now recovered from the novel coronavirus, according to two trackers. As of Friday morning, Worldometer tracked 1,048,430 recoveries, while Johns Hopkins University recorded 1,1015,183. The two trackers use different sources and report at different times, which leads to a discrepancy in numbers. READ FULL STORY
(CNN)Texas Gov. Greg Abbott said Monday he will allow his stay-at-home order for the Lone Star State to expire on Thursday, commencing a phased exit from the social distancing measures meant to mitigate the novel coronavirus pandemic. The Republican’s new order, which supersedes local orders, will allow businesses like retail stores, malls, restaurants and theaters to reopen Friday Read More…
A top financial ratings service has listed western Wyoming gas drillers Ultra Resources and Jonah Energy among issuers of “top bonds of concern” whose securities could face “imminent” default. Fitch Ratings named the two companies that operate in the Pinedale Anticline, Jonah Field and Normally Pressured Lance, or NPL Field in an April 13 report Read More…
Appearing via video conference from the Sheridan County Detention Center, 55-year-old Dana Beartusk pleaded “not guility” to three counts of First Degree Murder. Beartusk was charged with the crimes for allegedly killing three family members in Big Horn during the evening hours of Sunday, March 29, reports Sheridan Media. District Court Judge John Fenn set the Read More…
Montana State University is planning to reopen the Bozeman campus to students this fall and is working on ways to protect students, faculty and employees from the threat of coronavirus. MSU President Waded Cruzado said in a statement Thursday that MSU wants to keep people safe while offering “a high-quality, on-campus educational experience.” “Thankfully, as Read More…
Although not needed right now, a training project has the Montana National Guard building a 90-bed surgical medical facility in Billings. If ever needed, the beds would be for non-acute and non-COVID patients for Montana and across the region. The guard has built similar projects in the state and around the world. It gives the Read More…
Commercial air service into Missoula International Airport has fallen to a trickle over the past month, and airport officials are bracing for a challenging future as airlines respond to the economic headwinds. Fewer than 125,000 passengers are passing through airport security nationally on a daily basis, leaving commercial air travel just 5% of what it Read More…
BOISE, Idaho — Even in a pandemic, entrance fees at Idaho state parks still apply. State parks have seen a major increase in visitors since the coronavirus outbreak spurred closures and event cancellations across Idaho. But officials with the parks department say many of those visitors are not paying the required fees to get in. Read More…
You can check out the full map by clicking here. Montana’s jobless claims numbers were worse than nearly every other state in the Rocky Mountain West and Great Plains Region stretching from Canada down to Mexico. This is also interesting news from another standpoint- why is Montana’s economic data so much worse than North and South Read More…
Researchers at the University of Montana and two Missoula-based biotech companies with ties to venture capitalist Mike Goguen are engaged in separate efforts to develop a COVID-19 vaccine and gain authorization for a mass-scalable viral test. Inimmune, a private company involved in UM’s vaccine work and founded by nationally reputed vaccine scientists, is also gearing Read More…