Former Montana utility regulator will lead the $4 billion federal power-marketing agency serving the Pacific Northwest U.S. Secretary of Energy Chris Wright announced Travis Kavulla as administrator and CEO of the Bonneville Power Administration, putting the former Montana utility regulator in charge of the agency that markets wholesale power across the Pacific Northwest. “Travis Kavulla’s Read More…
The Idaho Department of Health and Welfare has released its first round of funding opportunity overviews under the Rural Health Transformation Program, marking a significant step forward in the state’s effort to reshape healthcare delivery in underserved communities across Idaho. The funding opportunity overviews are designed to give stakeholders an early look at the expected Read More…
The Justice Department announced a final settlement with the state of North Dakota in the case of North Dakota v. United States, resolving litigation stemming from the violent and disruptive protests surrounding the Dakota Access Pipeline in 2016. While the federal government disputed the district court’s legal analysis of North Dakota’s claims and its own Read More…
(The Center Square) – In a reversal, Seattle Mayor Katie Wilson has ordered that surveillance cameras be turned on during the FIFA World Cup Tournament. Wilson said in a statement Friday that the decision to activate the cameras followed updated information from Seattle police and the FBI “on the current global and local threat environment.” Read More…
Craig Bjorland didn’t get to see his stepdaughter graduate from military basic training in 2017. “I flew to Texas to go to her graduation and I wasn’t allowed on base because of my marijuana charge,” he said. Instead, he drove around Dallas in a rental car to kill time. In 2010, Bjorland was pulled Read More…
BOISE, Idaho — The business manager and fundraising program developer for the Idaho Military Division faces eight felony counts of possessing child porn. Kenneth Coulter, 72, of Boise was booked into the Ada County Jail about 11 a.m. Tuesday, charged with possessing sexually exploitative materials. The military division is the umbrella agency for both the Read More…
BISMARCK — Tribal casinos in North Dakota are taking a hit. Since the 2017 state Legislature legalized electronic pull tabs — a casino-esque game where players touch a screen to reveal winnings — tribal nations have been losing money as charities are seeing the benefits. “It’s no small thing for us,” said Mark Fox, Chairman Read More…
DICKINSON, N.D. — Throughout the succession of failed bond referendums for a new high school with a career and technical education facility, community members in Dickinson have asked, “What about the Legacy Fund?” Dickinson got an answer sooner rather than later — and straight from the top. During a meeting with The Dickinson Press, Read More…
CHEYENNE — Imagine you’re a cattle rancher in rural Niobrara County, where only 4.3% of the population has access to broadband internet speeds of 25 megabits per second (Mbps) or faster. You want to trade your cattle online, but you have to go to the public library in Lusk to access internet fast enough, leaving Read More…
Gillette, Wyo. once produced 40% of all U.S. coal, but is now losing half its jobs as coal demand plummets. A nearby town survived a bust in the 1950s and offers lessons. ARI SHAPIRO, HOST: The state that produces 40% of America’s coal is trying to figure out a new future for itself. Gillette, Wyo., Read More…
JACKSON — A new type of industrial activity is rising from the sagebrush and pastureland in western Wyoming: utility- scale solar farms. Three such developments have already been constructed or will soon be built in the Green and Bear river basins. The introduction of photovoltaic renewable energy technology figures to help replenish county coffers and Read More…
Wyoming Medical Center has signed a letter of intent with Banner Health, the first step in a potential future affiliation deal between Wyoming’s largest hospital and one of the most significant health care organizations in the region. The agreement is nonbinding, according to an announcement sent Tuesday by WMC, and allows both organizations to “conduct Read More…
FARGO, N.D. – Officials in North Dakota say it’s time for property owners in flood-prone areas of the Red River Valley to think about buying flood insurance. Flood preparation meetings with state and federal officials are scheduled this week in Fargo, Grand Forks and Jamestown. Those sessions will focus on insuring homes and other structures. Read More…
PIERRE, S.D. (KELO) — If a South Dakota Senator has his way, the Board of Regents will combine the administration of Spearfish-based Black Hills State University and Rapid City-based South Dakota School of Mines and Technology. A bill introduced Tuesday by Sen. Ryan Maher (R-Isabel) would require the Board of Regents to develop a plan Read More…
Training sessions on new electronic pollbooks are planned throughout the next week and a half for North Dakota election officials. The new devices — 990 of them — will be distributed to North Dakota’s 53 counties for use at polling locations after being delivered to the state in February. Pollbooks are records of voters Read More…
USDA says eight percent of corn and two percent of soybeans still need to be harvested in the country. The weather does not help and continues to be a focus in the Northern Plains. Farmers in North Dakota saw dangerously low temperatures over the weekend. It’s one problem after the next as the state’s farmers Read More…
JACKSON, Wyo. — Third quarter Wyoming economic summary report was released this week indicating growth is slowing worldwide and in the Cowboy State as well. Wyoming continues to rebound from the severe downturn in 2015-16 but the pace slowed somewhat in after the first quarter of 2019. Total employment grew by 1.2 percent (3,570 jobs) Read More…
North Dakota will again enlist the help of Hollywood actor Josh Duhamel to help promote tourism in his home state. North Dakota’s tourism department confirmed Tuesday to The Associated Press that the star of several “Transformers” movies will be paid $175,000 to be the face of the state’s tourism campaign for the next two years. The state Read More…
The 2010s brought dramatic changes to North Dakota’s energy landscape as “the Bakken” became a household name, wind turbines grew bigger and the coal industry doubled down on research efforts. The development of the Bakken shale play came just as the recession of 2008 left many Americans unemployed or in debt. The promise of high-wage Read More…
FARGO — North Dakota’s average annual economic growth rate of almost 5.8% led the nation during a decade that witnessed the beginning and end of the boom in the Oil Patch. The growth of North Dakota’s economy and population from 2010 through 2019, in fact, was so significant that the decade can be thought of Read More…
In a letter to the federal Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services, the CEOs of Wyoming’s two largest hospitals and the head of Children’s Hospital Colorado urged the government to reject an effort by the state Department of Health that seeks to lower the cost of air ambulance trips, lodging a complaint that a state Read More…
The plan would utilize hunters to remove the herd of about 20 sheep by offering more licenses and ewe tags that would require hunters to take female sheep in Unit B1 of the southern Badlands, said Jeb Williams, wildlife chief for the North Dakota Game and Fish Department in Bismarck. Details are a work in Read More…
PINEDALE, Wyo. — A Sublette County Sheriff’s deputy was driving through Pinedale on his way to training when he saw an unusual call to action. A deer had become stuck in a pond that was partially iced over. Deputy Justin Hays radioed to dispatch and was soon joined by Deputy Peterson, who activated his body Read More…
HOUSTON, TEXAS – A North Dakota soldier was honored in the NFL’s Salute to Service at the Houston Texans’ stadium and his son shared this video of the moment with us. Master Sgt. Al Herda Jr., of Devils Lake, and his 8-year-old grandson, Ben Herda, got to stand on the sidelines of Sunday night’s Texans – Read More…
FORT WASHAKIE – A Wyoming tribe is looking to hemp and medical marijuana as potential ways to bolster the Wind River Reservation economy and treat illnesses, an approach more and more tribes view as potentially lucrative. In late September, the Eastern Shoshone Tribe’s General Council voted to approve a resolution to have a group Read More…
Kanye West has been denied a permit to build an amphitheater on his ranch in Wyoming. The Park County Planning and Zoning Commission made the decision Tuesday after the rapper changed his plans for the structure near Cody. West told county officials he now wants to include residential space. READ FULL STORY
LARAMIE, Wyo. — The board of trustees at the University of Wyoming has voted unanimously in approval of several new educational programs. The Laramie Boomerang reports voting, which took place during the board’s November meeting, granted approval for a new computer science education certificate, a master’s in “environment and natural resources in society,” and go-ahead for a neuroscience and Read More…
In October of this year, the BLM released an environmental assessment for adding more wind turbines to Wyoming’s Chokecherry and Sierra Madre Wind Energy Project. BLM Rawlins Field Manager Dennis Carpenter, was quoted then in a BLM press release when he said, “The project fulfils many of the agency’s priorities, including sustainably developing energy resources, modernizing Read More…
FARGO — After a year of construction, the 18-story Block 9 building in downtown Fargo reached its full height of 235 feet when the roof was poured Thursday, Nov. 14. The structure that is changing the city’s skyline is now the second-tallest building in the state behind the state Capitol. A flag has been hung on the Read More…
CASPER – Gov. Mark Gordon said he “firmly supports” the state Health Department’s director amid allegations that a 2015 Medicaid fraud investigation was obstructed by various government officials, a charge that has been denied by those involved. “The Governor firmly supports Mike Ceballos, the Director of the Wyoming Department of Health and his ability to Read More…
The head of North Dakota’s Commerce Department has personally retained an attorney amid a criminal investigation into audit findings of potential state law violations. Commerce Commissioner Michelle Kommer appeared Wednesday before the Legislature’s Audit and Fiscal Review Committee to answer lawmakers’ questions related to audit findings that agency officials mishandled appropriations and also skirted public Read More…
MEXICO CITY — A Williston, N.D., woman and four of her children were among those killed during a series of brutal attacks in northern Mexico on Monday, Nov. 4, according to a family member’s Facebook post. The onslaught has sent shock waves through two countries and prompted impassioned responses from political leaders. Kenny LeBaron Read More…
KEMMERER, Wyoming. — The Lincoln County, Wyoming Sheriff’s Office is investigating the death of a couple in Star Valley. A news release from the sheriff’s office indicates deputies were doing a welfare check at a home on Alta Drive just before noon Monday. When deputies arrived, no one answered the door so they entered the Read More…
BOISE, Idaho — Governor Brad Little approved an Emergency Management Assistance Compact (EMAC) agreement with California to assist with recovery efforts following wildfires. “Idaho has an amazing depth of emergency management professionals that are willing to step up and help our fellow Americans during their times of need,” Governor Little said. “Their skills and expertise Read More…
CHEYENNE, Wyo. – Governor Mark Gordon announced today he has appointed Greg Lanning Wyoming State Engineer. Lanning takes over for Pat Tyrrell, who retired in January after serving as State Engineer for 18 years. The State Engineer is a position established by the Wyoming Constitution and has a term of six years. The State Engineer serves Read More…
In the summer of 2007, an independent energy company installed a meteorological tower to test the wind conditions on a ranch in Carbon County. The results revealed what most residents living in and around Rawlins already knew: The site boasted ferocious wind speeds, making it an ideal spot to build one of the country’s most Read More…
FARGO, N.D. — Microsoft Corp. on Thursday, Oct. 17, announced a $1.5 million, three-year investment into the Fargo-based tech firm Emerging Prairie to help build what Microsoft calls the farm of the future at Emerging Prairie’s Grand Farm project. Among the dignitaries attending the event at the Microsoft campus in Fargo were North Dakota Gov. Read More…
CHEYENNE, Wyo. (AP) – Wyoming officials say a Cheyenne man has grown a pumpkin that weighs in at 1,491 pounds, a new state record. The Wyoming Tribune Eagle reported Thursday Andy Corbin grew the gourd in his backyard. For perspective, scientists say newborn elephants weigh about 200 pounds on average. READ FULL STORY
North Dakota’s Commerce Department improperly contracted work for the state’s new logo last year, according to state Auditor Josh Gallion. Gallion’s regular, two-year audit of Commerce found that two temporary employment contracts, totaling about $87,160, should have been treated as one, which would have required soliciting informal bids or proposals through state procurement requirements. Read More…
FORT WASHAKIE — A Wyoming tribe said Monday that it is planning to start allowing its citizens to hunt off-reservation, months after a U.S. Supreme Court ruling affirmed a different tribe’s treaty right to hunt outside of its reservation. Pointing to rights guaranteed in an 1868 treaty, leaders of the Eastern Shoshone Tribe told the Read More…
The proposed sale of Blackjewel LLC mines in Wyoming includes a plan to pay all the company’s employees whose last checks bounced in early July. According to an Oct. 7 court filing, Blackjewel hoped to close the sale of the Wyoming properties yesterday. Last week, a West Virginia federal bankruptcy court tentatively approved the sale Read More…
FARGO — A Fargo mother has brought a lawsuit seeking damages from a truck driver and his company for a 2018 crash on Interstate 29 that killed her two young boys. The crash happened when Trista Curry and her three young children were making a trip from Fargo to Stephen, Minn., to visit family in Read More…
A federal grand jury has indicted three Powell men in connection with a yearslong Medicaid fraud scheme that prosecutors allege involved billing the government for $8.5 million worth of “therapy” that included taking patients to the gym and watching them play video games. The indictment is the latest in a series of court cases Read More…
CASPER, Wyo. (AP) – A federal bankruptcy judge in West Virginia has approved a new plan to sell two Wyoming coal mines. Under the deal approved Wednesday, Milton, West Virginia-based Blackjewel would sell the Eagle Butte and Belle Ayr mines to Eagle Specialty Materials, a subsidiary of Jasper, Alabama-based FM Coal. Blackjewel halted almost all Wyoming Read More…