CHEYENNE, Wyo.—Gov. Mark Gordon has appointed Nancy Vehr as interim director of the Wyoming Department of Environmental Quality following the retirement of longtime director Todd Parfitt. Vehr, who has been serving as the department’s deputy director, took over the role effective Oct. 2. She previously led DEQ’s Air Quality Division for nearly a decade and Read More…
BOZEMAN—Gov. Greg Gianforte and the Montana Chamber of Commerce will host the third annual Big Sky, Bright Future Economic Summit on Oct. 15 in Bozeman, with this year’s event focused on technology and innovation in Montana. The summit will bring together business leaders, policymakers and technology executives to discuss artificial intelligence, national security, precision agriculture, Read More…
WASHINGTON—The Justice Department said UCLA School of Law discriminated against white and Asian applicants in admissions for its 2023, 2024 and 2025 incoming classes, finding that the school continued to consider race after the Supreme Court restricted race-conscious college admissions. The department’s Civil Rights Division said its investigation found UCLA Law violated Title VI of Read More…
(The Center Square) – Fraud could cost federal taxpayers as much as $521 billion annually, according to a Foundation for Government Accountability report citing a federal estimate. The report estimates that improper payments by the federal government have totaled about $3 trillion since 2003. Liesel Crocker, the report’s author and senior research fellow at FGA, spoke with Read More…
A Bigfork man with a lengthy criminal record for felony theft and fraud was recently found guilty in U.S. District Court in Billings of 21 counts for running a Ponzi scheme. A jury found John Kevin Moore guilty Aug. 3 of 11 counts of wire fraud, nine additional counts of money laundering and one count Read More…
A small fire has been discovered in Yellowstone National Park. The Folsom fire was spotted near the headwaters of Blacktail Deer Creek on the Blacktail Deer Plateau on Saturday during a reconnaissance flight. It was caused by lightning. READ THE FULL STORY.
UPDATE KALISPELL – The Northern Rockies Coordination Group announced on Tuesday that the fire danger in Northwest Montana had been hiked to “extreme” with the exception of Glacier National Park — which remains at “very high.” Ali Ulwelling with the Montana Department of Natural Resources and Conservation says that as this week may be the Read More…
CHEYENNE — Wyoming is once again at the bottom of the pack for children’s health in a Kids Count report released last week by the Annie E. Casey Foundation. Among the findings of the report, Wyoming still lags behind the national average for the number of children with health care coverage and suffers from a Read More…
Barnes & Noble is cashing in on anxiety. The bookstore chain said in a press release on Wednesday that sales of books related to anxiety are up 26% year-over-year compared to last June. The bestselling books in the category include workbooks, toolkits, and self-help books about managing anxiety. “The Anxiety category has really popped in Read More…
HELENA – Data is driving new ways to market Montana as a tourist destination and is helping to convince visitors to find new adventures outside of Glacier and Yellowstone national parks. The main challenge of tourism marketing in Montana in the past was to get people to drive all the way to Big Sky Country Read More…
The competition had been fierce most of the day under the watchful eye of Cindy Ostrem-Johnston. Inside Libby High School, the health and physical education teacher had brought her son to school that day, and he had been entertaining himself by challenging Ostrem-Johnston’s teenage students at the ping-pong table, dispatching eager challengers one-by-one. He made Read More…
A nature photographer in Wyoming has snagged one of only 10 new hunting licenses issued by the state’s Game and Fish Department following the state’s decision to allow the hunting of grizzly bears, but he isn’t planning on shooting any. Not with a gun, at least. Tom Mangelsen, a critic of Wyoming’s new hunting initiative, Read More…
Rep. Greg Gianforte, R-Montana, recognized 11-year-old Emma Anderson of Kalispell with his Spirit of Montana commendation for her compassion, generosity, and willingness to reach out to those in need. Anderson is the creator of Emma’s Cuddle Bears. Launching the project with her allowance money and 20 teddy bears six years ago, she has sent over Read More…
In the age of social media and the internet, instant digital connectivity can paradoxically make us feel very isolated. “People are a lot lonelier than we realize,” said Alison Darcy, the founder and CEO of Woebot, a virtual therapist that will talk you through a panic attack at 3 a.m. Woebot is among multiple new Read More…
MGM Resorts International has filed federal lawsuits against more than 1,000 Las Vegas mass shooting victims in an effort to avoid liability. The company, which owns Mandalay Bay and the Route 91 Harvest festival venue, argues that it cannot be held liable for Oct. 1 deaths, injuries or other damages, adding that any claims against Read More…
With the apex of cherry season just weeks away, cherry growers along Flathead Lake are taking stock of the fruit on their trees and picking the varieties that ripen early. “So far this year the weather has been cooperating,” said Bruce Johnson, president of the Flathead Lake Cherry Growers Association. “We’ve been pretty dry for Read More…
Environment Montana, based in Missoula, released a report on Wednesday claiming that Montana is lagging behind adjacent western states when it comes to solar and wind energy production. Skye Borden with the Environment Montana Research and Policy Center referred to a recently released report called ‘Renewables on the Rise’. “Despite the fact that Montana has Read More…
The Montana Healthcare Foundation and the state have launched a new program aimed at reducing drug and alcohol use in pregnant women, new mothers and families. The three step plan provides support and care throughout a women’s pregnancy, and includes screening, counseling or higher levels of care, if needed. Care coordinators can then address social Read More…
BUTTE – The Montana East-West Shrine Game is five days away from kickoff, and the West team is starting to jell. They are practicing at Montana Tech’s Bob Green Field in Butte all this week. It was a rain-filled Tuesday morning for the West squad, but these players couldn’t be happier for the opportunity to Read More…
Wyoming’s economy was healthy in the first three months of 2018, with employment strong and sales tax collections rising. The figures came from the Wyoming Department of Administration and Information. Taxable sales rose 17.9 percent statewide in January, February and March, hitting $3.9 billion. READ THE FULL STORY.
A former financial analyst at Kalispell Regional Healthcare said this week the whistleblower lawsuit filed against the hospital is a skewed and out-of-context snapshot of a complex business model that aimed to create the best possible health-care network for patients. Chris Hassler, the manager of financial analysis at Kalispell Regional for 16 years until she Read More…
An emergency descent by an Air China aircraft after cabin oxygen levels dropped has been linked to a co-pilot smoking an e-cigarette during the flight, state media said on Friday. The state-backed Air China Boeing 737 aircraft was flying to the Chinese city of Dalian from Hong Kong when it went down to 10,000 feet Read More…
Birmingham, Ala. • A year after a book on the brutal slaying of black teen Emmett Till revealed that a key figure in the case acknowledged lying, the federal government has reopened its investigation of the 1955 crime that helped build momentum for the civil rights movement. A federal report sent annually to lawmakers under Read More…
Natrona County businesses gained a boost thanks to the modification of the “free trade zone” at the Casper Natrona County Airport. A “free trade zone,” means business owners who import goods from overseas do not have to pay a tax and the zone has been expanded to include all of Natrona County. READ THE FULL Read More…
HELENA – Winning the lottery once was exciting for Cheyenne Long, but winning it twice in one day was unbelievable. Long, of Kalispell, won a total of $77,000 playing Power Play Gold Crossword, a Montana Lottery Scratch ticket. She bought another ticket the same day, and won again. “It was a super genuine and blissful Read More…
The National Weather Service (NWS) hasn’t confirmed whether or not an actual tornado struck down in Plentywood, Montana Monday night. Nonetheless, the storm wreaked havoc, flipping over airplanes and knocking out the beacon at the airport. Taylor Ordahl of Brooks Photography posted over a hundred pictures via Facebook, a couple are posted below also with Read More…
GREAT FALLS — The state trap shooting tournament begins Wednesday morning in Great Falls, but Tuesday at the range shooting range just south of Ulm, they let a few amateurs take their best shots. Members of the KRTV and KXLH news team were given guns and turned lose on some clay pigeons at media day Read More…
Last year, the Montana Highway Patrol created a drug interdiction team with hopes of slowing the trafficking of illegal drugs in the Treasure State. And the creation of that team has led to a record amount of drugs seized on the state’s roadways. “I never imagined the amount of drugs we would find,” Montana Highway Read More…
Smugglers are using video cameras and small drones to spot vulnerabilities along the U.S.-Mexico border, and the Department of Homeland Security is struggling to stop them. Reports of unmanned aircraft flying along the Southwest border have spiked in recent months, with more than three dozen sightings since October, when the current fiscal year began. That Read More…
Tax preparation company Avalara soared as much as 33 percent Thursday after a historic Supreme Court decision on collecting sales tax from e-commerce. The stock later pared its gains, but still ended the session 13 percent higher at $51.04. READ THE FULL STORY.
37 year-old Samuel Fawcett, a former school resource officer in Stevensville, was arrested on Wednesday and charged with sex crimes involving a minor child. Ravalli County Attorney Bill Fulbright said the investigation began in April. The charges came to light when the minor child was interviewed by First Step in Missoula, where it was revealed Read More…
DODSON – UPDATE: Sources now indicate that the animal may actually have been an escaped wallaby from a petting zoo on the Fort Belknap Reservation. Two people were injured in Montana Wednesday morning after swerving to avoid a kangaroo on the road. Trooper Matt Finley with the Montana Highway Patrol said he thought it was Read More…
Weather conditions caused a highway near Ethete to flood and may lead to future road closures. News 13 spoke with a few residents in the area about how this could impact their daily routine. Walter Tidzump says he was just following his regular morning routine when, “I usually get up about five to let my Read More…
Bozeman’s second high school hit another milestone Wednesday when the School Board approved $37 million worth of bids for the project’s interior, bringing the final cost of construction to $78.7 million. School trustees voted 8-0 at a special meeting to approve three dozen bids, for everything from carpentry and cabinets to paint and plumbing, gym Read More…
Montana Army National Guard soldiers based in Kalispell are one step closer to setting foot in Afghanistan. Sixty-eight members of the 495th Combat Sustainment Support Battalion deployed in mid-May, bound for a mobilization station at Fort Hood, Texas. According to Maj. Christopher Lende, chief of public affairs for the Montana National Guard, they are expected Read More…
HELENA – The Montana Department of Justice announced Tuesday they have developed a new website and hotline for survivors of sexual assault. The site features a video message from Montana Attorney General Tim Fox and is at www.dojmt.gov/SAKI. It includes: Links to survivor resources, including an interactive map to locate nearby services Crisis phone numbers Read More…
(CNN)Cardinal Theodore McCarrick, who led the Archdiocese of Washington and was a political force in the nation’s capital, said on Wednesday that he has been removed from public ministry by the Vatican because of a decades-old allegation of sexual abuse. The Vatican secretary of state, Cardinal Pietro Parolin, “at the direction of Pope Francis,” told Read More…
The White House on Wednesday notified the Secret Service of a threat after the actor Peter Fonda tweeted that President Donald Trump’s preteen son should be torn from his mother’s arms and caged. Stephanie Grisham, a spokeswoman for first lady Melania Trump told POLITICO that the notification came in response to Fonda’s tweet, which suggested Read More…
The Substance Abuse Prevention Alliance in Great Falls and the Lincoln County Unite for Youth Coalition will each get $50,000 for communities’ efforts to combat local drug use, especially among youth. “Montana’s meth and drug epidemic has taken lives and destroyed families,” Daines, R-Mont., said. “These critical funds will help Montana combat drug use and Read More…
Hulu CEO Randy Freer weighed in on Tuesday on consolidation in the media industry — and subtly heckled rival Netflix for its content spending. “I think money is a relative term. I think it’s how you spend that is really important. We are not going to make 800 shows next year, we’ll probably make 20 Read More…
HELENA – Gov. Steve Bullock on Monday requested a major disaster declaration from the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) to provide more resources to the state from the federal government for cleanup and recovery from widespread spring flooding. “Montanans have come together to help our friends, neighbors and communities respond to the devastating impacts of Read More…
Despite recent rains, fire season is coming soon and is predicted to be worse than average. Montana Insurance commissioner Matt Rosendale is pleading with Montanans to prepare for the worst by cataloging valuable possessions, a process that is especially important for those that live in the Wildland Urban interface. “Thorough inventories should include photos and/or Read More…
MILES CITY – A former Custer County High School science teacher was booked into jail Tuesday on suspicion of multiple sexual encounters with a 15-year-old female student over a month’s time in December 2016 and attempting to conceal evidence. Morgan Pett, 38, was charged with six counts of sexual intercourse without consent, one count of Read More…
According to police, cocaine was found in a wallet that McGowan left behind on a plane last year on a United flight arriving at the Washington Dulles International Airport in January 2017 on her way to the Women’s March in Washington, D.C., according to The New Yorker. A felony warrant was issued for her arrest. Read More…