The next chief of the U.S. Forest Service will be Tom Schultz a former state-level land and natural resource manager in Montana and Idaho and most recently a vice president at a logging company in that state. He’ll replace outgoing Chief Randy Moore who will retire Monday. The Forest Service is the second-largest land management agency by area in the U.S. behind the Bureau of Land Management. The head of the Forest Service is a career civil servant not a political appointee and does not require Senate confirmation.
House Bill 245 which continues the Medicaid expansion program currently covering 77,000 low-income Montanans cleared its final legislative hurdle Thursday advancing from the Senate and now heads to the governor’s desk. It eliminates the policy sunset but the legislature can fund the program or not every two years through the appropriations process. It also adds work requirements and premiums that up to now have not been approved by the federal government.
Senate Bill 307 introduced Thursday in the Senate Business Labor and Economic Affairs Committee would put marijuana tax revenue toward law enforcement substance abuse prevention and mental health treatment. The regulatory framework put in place in 2021 set much of it instead for conservation wildlife and state lands after 57% of Montana voters approved that idea in 2020.
A bill that could bar some college students from voting in Montana passed the House Thursday. Currently you must be a resident for at least 30 days but House Bill 413 says an individual may not become one if the person relocates for temporary purposes such an educational program without the intention of making that county or the state a permanent home.
Senate Bill 442 would reduce the percentage of THC in marijuana products from the current limits in marijuana flower of 30% to 15% but would not apply to medical marijuana. Dozens of people spoke out for and against the legislation Thursday in a Senate committee.
In 2021 lawmakers passed House Bill 599 that revised opencut mining laws and made applications for certain opencut operations less strict. One of the revisions changed the number of property owners requesting Montana Department of Environmental Quality to hold a public meeting on a proposed opencut operation from 30% to 51%. Senate Bill 391 now being considered could switch the rules back to the original percentage.
$2.8 million from the National Institutes of Health will allow a Montana State University research team to deepen explorations into Lyme disease that is posing an increasing threat in the U.S. Climate change has expanded the geographic range where infected ticks are found to include the Western States including Montana. In 2023 nearly 90,000 cases in the U.S. were reported by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
Malmstrom Air Force Base in Great Falls has announced the removal of DEI references from social media pages operated by the base. The content removed includes news feature articles photos and videos that promote Diversity Equity and Inclusion. Other DEI-related matters with respect to promotion and selection reform advisory boards councils and working groups have also been deleted.
A recent study conducted for the Montana Department of Environmental Quality says electric school buses are not only viable but also advantageous in Montana’s harsh winter conditions. There are 17 electric school buses currently operating across six Montana school districts.
Billings airport officials are urging Spring Break travelers to plan a ride to and from Logan International because its parking lots are filling up fast. Even with the airport’s more than 1,350 public parking spots available at peak demand using overflow lots finding a spot can be a challenge.
