(The Center Square) – The House Oversight Committee is investigating the rapid rise in value of two companies owned by Rep. Ilhan Omar’s husband, amid concerns over financial transparency and potential influence. House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform Chairman James Comer, R-Ky., said Omar’s husband, Timothy Mynett, has ownership stakes in two companies, eStCru Read More…
Governor Larry Rhoden has signed six bills into law, advancing legislation that addresses ballot transparency, administrative rulemaking, education policy, and state regulatory updates. The bills signed include: SB 5, which requires disclosure of whether a ballot question was proposed through a citizen initiative or by the Legislature; SB 56, which requires state agencies promulgating permanent Read More…
Senator Sheehy (R-MT) joined Senator Maria Cantwell (D-Wash.) in introducing the Carbon Resource Innovation Act, a bipartisan bill designed to expand the 45Q carbon capture tax credit to include innovative technologies that capture carbon in solid or liquid forms. Supporters say the legislation will incentivize responsible forest management, reduce wildfire risk, and create economic opportunities Read More…
Gov. Kelly Armstrong has rolled out a new statewide effort aimed at improving soil health and expanding wildlife habitat across North Dakota’s rural landscape, announcing the Governor’s Legacy Soil Health and Habitat Program at a Capitol press conference. The voluntary, working-lands program is designed to help farmers strengthen cropland productivity and resilience by establishing perennial Read More…
In clearing more than $1 million in campaign debt over the past year, Wisconsin Gov. Scott Walker got the majority of the money by selling his donor list to other candidates. The governor racked up the debt before he dropped out of the Republican presidential primary in September 2015. He announced last week that he had paid off or otherwise resolved Read More…
Multiple retail liquor licenses across the state could be freed under a liquor law revisions bill advanced from the Senate Corporations Committee on Tuesday. Senate File 14 would tighten the time frame retail liquor license holders have to begin operations and would require license holders to be operational year-round to keep their license, instead of Read More…
Helena – Republican Senator Pat Connell (R-Hamilton) introduced Senate Bill 74 last week which would allow the Montana Department of Fish, Wildlife, and Parks to ban the use of barbed fishing hooks on catch and release only designated waters. The bill was heard in the Montana Senate Fish and Game committee on January 12, but Read More…
Wyoming could become the 29th state to request a constitutional convention to create a federal balanced budget amendment, if a resolution moving through the House of Represen-tatives is ultimately passed by the full Legislature. House Joint Resolution 2 was advanced by the House Judiciary Committee on Monday afternoon and will go on to the full Read More…
Former Republican Party chairman and state Sen. Ken Miller of Laurel said Monday he’ll compete for the GOP nomination to succeed U.S. Rep. Ryan Zinke, who may resign as soon as next week. “I’m not running for Congress because I want a title; I’m running to stand up for life, liberty and property,” he said Read More…
State officials have been planning a $10 million effort over the next two years to prevent the spread of invasive mussels in waters throughout Montana, but they aren’t yet sure where all the money will come from. Officials from the Montana Department of Natural Resources and Conservation and Montana Fish Wildlife and Parks explained Read More…
President-elect Donald Trump’s choice to be labor secretary has voiced second thoughts in recent days, because of a relentless barrage of criticism from Democrats, labor unions and other liberal groups, a business ally and GOP sources tell CNN. Andy Puzder is the CEO of the company that owns the Hardees and Carl’s Jr. fast food Read More…
President Obama’s first inaugural festivities stretched over five days. Donald Trump is spending barely three on his. Bill Clinton hit 14 official balls on the day he was sworn in. Trump plans appearances at three. From The Washington Post
Former U.S. Sen. Max Baucus’ son, Zeno Baucus, is considering whether to compete for the Democratic nomination for Montana’s soon-to-be-vacant U.S. House seat, MTN News has learned. The younger Baucus is an assistant U.S. attorney in Billings. He’s one of five Democrats now either considering or running for the seat currently held by U.S. Rep. Read More…
Nearly 120 potential delegates that would choose the Republican Party’s nominee to succeed U.S. Rep. Ryan Zinke are behind Greg Gianforte, according to a letter distributed by his supporters – appearing to give him a near-lock on the nomination. The letter, signed by 117 local and state Montana Republican Party officials and officeholders, calls Gianforte Read More…
According to the Montana Department of Health and Human Services our state ranks No. 1 per capita in the country for suicide. Bills before the legislature are aiming to help decrease that statistic. Both measures are requesting $500,000. One measure is focused on helping prevent suicide among veterans. The other measure asks for extra funding Read More…
Helena – A newly released memo shows that Montana Department of Transportation(MDT) officials and Governor Bullock knew of shortfalls in the highway fund before Election Day but kept the information hidden from the public until after Governor Bullock had been re-elected. The memo was obtained by state legislators and released to the media on Thursday, Read More…
The 2017 legislative session kicks off at noon in Cheyenne and area lawmakers revealed their goals for this year, with all three looking at tackling the thorny issue of the state’s budget. “There are a lot of budget challenges to face and one of the biggest ones of course is to meet our constitutional obligations Read More…
Montana’s attorney general and Republican lawmakers say any rulings that Commissioner of Political Practices Jonathan Motl makes this year could be challenged in court because Motl’s term of office has expired. Democratic Gov. Steve Bullock appointed Motl in 2013 and the Senate confirmed him to a term ending Jan. 1. Late last month, a judge Read More…
As awareness of human trafficking increases, so do the number of victims who are being rescued in Montana. Human traffickers use force or fraud to coerce their victims into some type of labor or sex slavery. Montana Attorney General Tim Fox says next to the drug trade, it’s the fastest growing criminal enterprise in the Read More…
Senator John McCain passed documents to the FBI director, James Comey, last month alleging secret contacts between the Trump campaign and Moscow and that Russian intelligence had personally compromising material on the president-elect himself. The material, which has been seen by the Guardian, is a series of reports on Trump’s relationship with Moscow. They were Read More…
Donald Trump plans to keep his Manhattan-based campaign headquarters open as he assumes the presidency – a move that represents a sharp break from his predecessors, and one that positions him to begin running for reelection in 2020. According to three people briefed on the plans, Trump intends to retain a skeletal campaign staff of Read More…
President-elect Donald Trump announced on Monday that he is appointing his son-in-law, Jared Kushner, as a senior adviser in the White House. And funnily enough, Trump might have Hillary Clinton to thank for making the position possible. In 1967, then President Lyndon B. Johnson signed an anti-nepotism bill into law that was widely seen as Read More…
Lawmakers are scheduled to take up a bill that would require air ambulance providers and insurance companies to negotiate payments for air ambulance services, even if the provider is not in network with the patient’s insurance company. Senate Bill 44, scheduled for its first committee hearing on Tuesday, would hold patients responsible only for their Read More…
U.S. Senator John Barrasso (R-WY), chairman of the Senate Committee on Environment and Public Works (EPW), has announced staff hires for the committee’s majority side for the 115th Congress. Staff members are: Richard M. Russell will serve as staff director. He previously served as Republican staff director for the Senate Commerce, Science and Transportation Committee. Read More…
Bullock Hires Planned Parenthood Exec as Health Policy Advisor Helena – Governor Steve Bullock announced Friday that he has hired Jessica Rhoades as his health policy advisor. Ms. Rhoades has had a long career in Democrat political circles, including time with Planned Parenthood. Rhoades was the western regional field director for Planned Parenthood of America Read More…
Helena – In late December, with only a few days remaining in his term a group of Democrats stepped in to try and keep Jonathan Motl in the Commissioner of Political Practices office for another two years by filing a lawsuit in Lewis and Clark County district court. Just days later, the fifth lawsuit involving Read More…
Washington, D.C. – This week the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) withdrew its proposed rule that would have put new regulations on in-situ uranium recovery (ISR). In January 2015, the EPA issued a proposed rule requiring uranium recovery operators to conduct up to 30 years of groundwater monitoring following uranium production. On Jan. 4, 2017, EPA Read More…
Republican Sen. Bob Corker says he’s thrilled with the “unbelievable” access he’s getting to Donald Trump, noting that the president-elect will answer his phone calls even when he doesn’t know who’s calling. “The president [elect], as you know, still answers his cellphone number,” the chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee told a group of Read More…
In order to write law, legislators need to know law. That’s why the focus of the second day of the Montana Legislature on Tuesday was “Law School for Legislators.” President of the State Bar of Montana Bruce Spencer says the session introduces lawmakers to the different types of laws. From Bozeman Daily Chronicle
At the Capitol today, Democratic Leadership failed to convince Republicans to give them some so-called “silver bullets,” like they had last legislative session. In a Rules Committee meeting, Representative Jenny Eck asked Republicans for a tool that would allow them to move bills from a committee onto the House floor with a simple majority vote. Read More…
More nonviolent felons who have completed their entire sentence – including probation and parole – would have their voting rights automatically restored under a bill introduced in the Wyoming Legislature. Under the current system, nonviolent felons who completed their sentence before Jan. 1, 2016, were convicted under federal law or who were sentenced out of Read More…
After consolidating power in Washington, D.C., and state capitals under President-elect Donald Trump, Republicans are moving to prevent large cities dominated by Democrats from enacting sweeping liberal agendas. Republican state legislatures are planning so-called preemption laws, which prevent cities and counties from passing new measures governing everything from taxes to environmental regulations and social Read More…
Cut Bank musician Rob Quist said Wednesday he will seek the Democratic Party’s nomination for the anticipated special election to replace U.S. Rep. Ryan Zinke. Zinke is expected to join the Trump administration as the next Secretary of the Interior this spring, triggering a special election to fill Montana’s lone U.S. House seat. From Read More…
At least four Democrats and six Republicans are hoping to replace Montana’s Rep. Ryan Zinke when he leaves Congress to join the Trump administration. But so far, only Mark Wicks of Inverness is seeking the Libertarian Party’s nomination. Wicks, 46, was educated in aviation mechanics in Bozeman, but instead of fixing airplanes he became the Read More…
Just before the Montana Legislature gaveled in its 2017 session Monday, Democratic Gov. Steve Bullock looked to ease the tension building over a looming budget battle by calling on the two parties to work together for the state’s best interests. Bullock used his second inaugural address in the packed state Capitol’s rotunda to appeal Read More…
The Montana Legislature officially started its 65th session Monday, and the state’s next group of elected officials started their terms. Temperatures hovered near zero in Helena during the morning, forcing inauguration festivities to move indoors, to the State Capitol rotunda. From KXLH
State lawmakers filled the halls of Montana’s Capitol Monday for the first day of the 2017 legislative session. As they entered the legislative chambers for the first time, party leaders promised civil, bi-partisan work, despite upcoming fights over the direction of the state budget and policy. Republican leadership, which holds a majority in both the Read More…
President-elect Donald Trump tweeted Monday evening that North Korea won’t reach the final stages of developing a nuclear weapon that will be able to hit the United States. “North Korea just stated that it is in the final stages of developing a nuclear weapon capable of reaching parts of the U.S. It won’t happen!” the Read More…
Wyoming Secretary of State Ed Murray says there are seven principles to follow when it comes to improving the state’s economy. Speaking to residents during Wednesday’s Green River Lunch and Learn, he said they will lead to economic development and diversification. From Wyoming Business Report
Great Falls state representative Casey Schreiner Monday announced his intent to seek the Democratic party’s nomination for Montana’s at-large Congressional seat. Schreiner wants to replace Republican U.S. Congressman Ryan Zinke, who’s been nominated to become President-elect Donald Trump’s Interior Secretary. Schreiner is 34-years-old and heads the Montana State Workforce Innovation Board. The husband and father Read More…
With two of Montana’s biggest coal-fired power plants slated for closure, the future of Colstrip and energy policy will be another dominant issue at the 2017 Legislature, which opens next week. Lawmakers on both sides of the political aisle and Democratic Gov. Steve Bullock say they hope to take steps to assist coal-plant workers whose Read More…
While a tight state budget overshadows almost everything at the 2017 Montana Legislature, there’s one area where lawmakers want to spend more money: Infrastructure. The debate, however, will be over what combination of infrastructure projects can gain the needed support to pass a multimillion-dollar bill. From KTVH
Helena – A group of Democrats has filed a lawsuit in a last minute attempt to keep controversial Commissioner of Political Practices Jonathan Motl in office for two more years. Former Democrat State Senator Christine Kaufman; outgoing Democrat Secretary of State Linda McCulloch; A trial lawyer political action committee headed by Motl’s lawyer John Heenan Read More…
Republican Secretary of State-Elect Corey Stapleton announced several top staff appointments Tuesday. Stapleton, takes office Jan. 2, he was elected in November, handily defeating Democrat Monica Lindeen, who was the state auditor, with 56 percent of the vote. “There’s no more important function than picking good people,” he told a group in the Capitol. Stapleton Read More…