The state Supreme Court denied former Republican and Democratic state officials’ motion Thursday to expand their legal challenge against Senate Bill 140 that granted the governor a broader selection to fill judicial vacancies after they motioned the court to include Senate Bill 402 the backup to the original legislation. The justices noted bil...
Gianforte Signs Two Tax-Reducing Bills Into Law
Governor Greg Gianforte signed two bills into law Thursday. Senate Bill 159 reduces Montana’s top income tax rate to 6.75% beginning next year. Senate Bill 399 reduces it to 6.5% in 2024 simplifies Montana’s tax code and reduces the number of tax rates from seven to two. Montana will stop supplemental unemployment insurance payment...
U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service Awards Grant For Wetland Restoration In Montana
Several people wearing red gathered on the steps of the Big Horn County Courthouse Wednesday with most of them carrying signs with the name of a young woman who had just turned 18 when she went missing. About 78,000 Indigenous people live in Montana, although they comprise less than 7% of the state’s population. According the data from the sta...
Yellowstone National Park To Resume Large Group Tours
Last year Yellowstone National Park wouldn’t allow bus traffic in the park to thwart the possibility of spreading COVID-19. This year Yellowstone and Grand Teton national parks have authorized the resumption of large group tours with a few stipulations. All passengers must either be vaccinated for COVID-19 or tested 72 hours before the t...
Senator Daines Comments On Recent Back-To-Work Initiative
Legislation recently signed into law allows any Montana voter to bring a petition placing a minor party on the ballot. It also sets out deadlines for petitions that seek to place a third party on the ballot for statewide elections. The law also requires opponents of a minority party petition drive must disclose spending on the effort similar t...
Bill That Would Aid Special Education Students Nearing Signing
In 2019, the Montana Legislature passed Hanna’s Act which created a statewide missing persons specialist in the Montana Department of Justice to help local jurisdictions with timely searches for missing people. In Helena Wednesday, tribal leaders families victims’ advocates representatives of Montana’s U.S. senators, state legislators and Gove...
Sheridan County Walk-In Hunting & Fishing areas closed
The Wyoming Game and Fish Department is notifying hunters and anglers that effective immediately, Sheridan County Walk-In Hunting Area #6 and Tongue River Walk-In Fishing Area #1 near Acme, north of Sheridan, are no longer available for public hunting and fishing access. Walk-In areas are part of the Game and Fish’s Access Yes program. They ar...
Montana Ranked As One Of The Best States For Nurses
With nurses working to administer the COVID-19 vaccine while facing continued PPE shortages and with National Nurses Week kicking off Thursday the personal-finance website, Wallet Hub today released its report on 2021’s best states for nurses. Montana ranks 6th across 22 key metrics. The data set ranges from monthly average starting salary for...
Montana To Start Return-To-Work Program With ARPA Funds
Governor Greg Gianforte says Montana will launch a return-to-work bonus program using federal funds authorized by the American Rescue Plan Act. Return-to-work bonuses will be paid to unemployed individuals who rejoin the labor force and accept and maintain steady employment for at least one month. The state will end its participation in federa...
Colstrip Bill Gets Taken To State Courts
A new law approved by Governor Greg Gianforte Monday was met by a lawsuit Tuesday with a majority of the owners of the Colstrip Power Plant calling it unconstitutional. It forces disputes among the power plant’s six owners to be settled through Montana courts instead of Washington as currently spelled out by the Colstrip Ownership and Operatio...