News you can use
News you can use
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Republicans tout their workers' compensation plan HELENA, Mont. (AP) — Republicans running the Legislature say their proposal for fixing the state's expensive workers' compensation insurance system will decrease rates up to 44 percent. The GOP touted their legislative fix Monday amid concern from both parties over the cost of the insurance in Montana. The new GOP proposal will be competing with a compromise bill that was four years in the making. That bill aims to reduce costs in several ways, but has run into opposition f...
HELENA — Doctors and insurance companies say they are still opposed to a workers' compensation reform proposal because it cuts their rates to benefit the business owners and workers who helped craft it. A House committee started looking over the compromise crafted first by a panel appointed by the governor, and then an interim legislative committee. All sides agree workers' compensation premiums are too high in Montana and that something needs to be done about it. But doctors and insurance companies are turning to R...
Reality TV show didn't have federal filming permit The Associated Press BUTTE — The U.S. Forest Service is investigating the filming of a reality television series featuring Montana game wardens because it appears at least one segment was filmed in the Bitterroot National Forest without a permit, Northern Region spokesman Brandan Schulze said. The issue was raised after a Whitehall man who had been acquitted of state charges, including outfitting without a license, was charged last month with two federal counts of filming big...
HELENA — The state Senate decided more work is needed on one piece of proposed DUI reform after some lawmakers argued it went too far in punishing minors issued tickets for possession of alcohol. A measure to ban those under 18 from holding a driver's license if they are caught with alcohol quickly ran into trouble Friday as sponsors sought approval from the full Senate. Sen. Jonathan Windy Boy says the punishment is far too severe and argued the package of proposed DUI reform puts the Legislature on "the path of c...
HELENA — Montana Republicans focused on undermining the federal health care law advanced a bill that orders the attorney general to join other states in suing the federal government. The Senate Judiciary Committee voted 6-5 on Friday to send the proposal to the full Senate. But Republicans who are arguing the federal health care reform law is unconstitutional may be running up against the state Constitution by trying to give an order to the attorney general. A staff attorney says the move could "pose a significant risk" of v...
Former State Sen. Greg Barkus listens to District Judge John McKeon speak in Flathead District Court on Thursday in Katispell, Mont. Barkus accepted a sentence that will allow him to avoid jail and eventually expunge his record for a 2009 boat crash that injured U.S. Rep. Denny Rehberg and four other people. Barkus was given a four-year deferred prison sentence, $29,000 in fines and supervised probation, The Daily Inter Lake newspaper reported. AP Photo/The Daily Inter Lake, Nate Chute Former Mont. state senator sentenced in...
House votes to repeal year-old health care law WASHINGTON (AP) — The Republican-controlled House has voted to repeal the health care law President Barack Obama signed last year. The 245-189 vote marks the fulfillment of a promise many Republicans made in last fall's political campaigns. The measure has little or no chance of passing the Senate, where Democratic supporters of the law have a majority. And Obama has vowed to veto it if it reaches his desk. Republicans said repeal was necessary because the law provides for a g...
Republicans tout anti-abortion bills The Associated Press HELENA — Republicans running the Legislature made it clear that their opposition to abortion won't get lost amid the push on leading platform issues. About two dozen Republicans appeared at an anti-abortion rally at the state Capitol on Monday. They touted several pieces of GOP-backed legislation that are likely to get support from most of the caucus. GOP leadership has put its focus on such issues as making it easier for natural resource industries to do business i...
Senators back crackdown on drunken driving HELENA (AP) — Senators have endorsed a plan to create a new criminal charge for heavily intoxicated and repeat drunk drivers The proposal would impose stricter punishments through a new category of driving under the influence called "aggravated DUI." Repeat offenders or those with a high blood alcohol well above the legal limit could be charged with aggravated DUI. The offense includes a fine of up to $5,000 and up to one year in jail. Senate Bill 15 supporters say the measure h...
Montana earthquake rattles homes in Helena The Associated Press HELENA — Dozens of residents in Helena were awakened by an earthquake overnight. The National Earthquake Information Center says on its website that a magnitude 3.8 earthquake happened around 12:52 a.m. Sunday. The epicenter was about 20 miles northwest of Helena. Thirty-five-year-old Jen Tomaskie was at the home of a woman in her care in Helena and felt the quake. She says the whole house rattled, and she and the woman both woke up. Tomaskie says, "It really f...
Obama: Cut spending, raise taxes on the wealthy DAVID ESPO, AP Special Correspondent WASHINGTON — President Barack Obama coupled a call for $4 trillion in long-term deficit reductions with a blistering attack on Republican plans on taxes, Medicare and Medicaid on Wednesday, laying down markers for a roiling debate in Congress and the 2012 presidential campaign to come. Obama said spending cuts and higher taxes alike must be part of any deficit-reduction plan, including an end to Bush-era tax cuts for the wealthy. He p...
MSU president wants more input on tobacco ban BOZEMAN — Montana State University President Waded Cruzado says she wants to give school employees a chance to voice their opinions before deciding on whether to make the Bozeman campus tobacco free. Cruzado's decision follows a vote by students on Wednesday who 61 to 39 percent recommended making MSU tobacco-free within two years. Cruzado tells the Bozeman Daily Chronicle that she has asked students to present more information about the vote to the Faculty Senate, Staff Senate a...
Economic experts predict growth in Montana cities KALISPELL (AP) — Participants at a half-day seminar concerning Montana's future economy say growth is likely in cities across Montana. The seminar on Friday called "Paying for the Recession — Rebalancing Montana's Economy" held in Kalispell attracted experts and researchers from the state's universities as well as business leaders. Pat Barkey is an economist at the University of Montana. He tells the Missoulian that the climate for growth has improved significantly in the las...
Political wrangling continues over legislative bjt HELENA — Minority Democrats in the state House opposed the bill that pays the Legislature's expenses as a protest to Republican moves to cut state spending elsewhere. Democrats argued Wednesday it is wrong for the controlling party to increase funding for legislative benefits after GOP moves a day earlier to start cutting state programs for the needy and elderly. Republicans said the Democrats are just trying to score political points by politicizing a normally routine b...
California court: Merchants can't ask patrons for ZIPs The Associated Press SAN FRANCISCO (AP) — The California Supreme Court ruled Thursday that merchants can no longer ask for the ZIP codes of customers who make purchases with credit cards because such requests violate a state consumer-protection law. The high court's unanimous decision, which says a ZIP code can be used as "personal identification information," overturned two lower court decisions tossing out the lawsuit. It delivered retailers in California a setback t...
WASHINGTON — Just how wide open is the Republican presidential field? Vast enough that Donald Trump may want you to hire him. The billionaire real estate mogul and host of television's "The Apprentice" got a raucous reception Thursday when he dangled a potential candidacy before thousands of conservatives who descended on the nation's capital eager to help a GOP challenger deny President Barack Obama a second term. "The United States is becoming the laughingstock of the world," Trump said, sounding every bit a candidate as h...
Montana House endorses gun silencer bill HELENA — The House has endorsed a bill that would allow Montana hunters to use silencers on their guns. House Bill 174 sponsored by Republican Rep. Krayton Kerns of Laurel would repeal a law that prohibits the use of silencers. Supporters said the bill is about preventing hearing loss and reducing the noise of guns slightly. Democratic Rep. Mike Menahan of Helena opposed the bill. He says silencers would negatively change the face of hunting in Montana and could be abused by p...
Deputy resigns, video shows teen grabbed by throat The Associated Press BOZEMAN — A sheriff's deputy in Montana is charged with mistreating a prisoner after authorities say he was caught on tape grabbing a handcuffed teenage girl by the throat and pushing her against a wall. Thomas L. Madsen resigned last Thursday, a day before the felony charge was filed in District Court in Gallatin County, the Bozeman Daily Chronicle reported Wednesday. Court records said the 17-year-old girl shut the lights off in an interrogation room b...
HELENA — Nineteen cars of a freight train have derailed near Glacier National Park in Montana, forcing Amtrak to bus passengers around the blocked track. BNSF Railway spokesman Gus Melonas says the derailment shortly before noon Wednesday started with the 33rd car of a 115-car train bound for Pasco, Wash. The train derailed near Essex, about 45 miles east of Whitefish, affecting cars carrying lumber, paper, plastics and boat products. No one was injured. Melonas says some cars will be re-railed and others will be pushed a...
Warning label for Montana medical marijuana rejected HELENA — Montana lawmakers in the House have rejected a bill requiring warning labels on medical marijuana. The bill sponsored by Democratic Rep. Pat Noonan of Ramsay fell on a 59-40 vote. The bill called for a label to read, "Warning: In some instances, marijuana may trigger acute psychosis or symptoms of schizophrenia and other mental illnesses." Noonan tells the Billings Gazette in a story published Friday that he was asked to introduce the bill by the Montana Chapter o...
President of Carroll College announces retirement HELENA (AP) — Carroll College President Tom Trebon says he will retire at the end of his contract term in the summer of 2012. The 67-year-old says "this decade has been the finest of my career in higher education, and this is another reason to be grateful and humble." Trebon's achievements as Carroll's 14th president include leading the centennial celebration effort and the Helena college's first comprehensive fundraising campaign, which raised $34 million. Trebon, who has b...
Tornado slams La. town, downed tree kills mother The Associated Press RAYNE, La. — A tornado slammed a southwestern Louisiana town Saturday, killing a young mother who was sheltering her child and injuring 11 other people. More than 100 homes and businesses were damaged, many of them destroyed, authorities said, and about 1,500 people were evacuated because of natural gas leaks. Maxine Trahan, a spokeswoman for the Acadia Parish Sheriff's Office, said 21-year-old Jalisa Granger was killed when a tree fell on her house. "...
Debris litters ground in Rayne, La., after a suspected tornado hit the area injuring at least nine people, leveling homes and causing natural gas leaks that prompted evacuations on Saturday.AP Photo/The Lafayette Daily Advertiser, P.C. Piazza Residents look at damage from a suspected tornado that injured at least nine people, leveling homes and causing natural gas leaks that prompted evacuations in Rayne, La., on Saturday, March 5, 2011. (AP Photo/The Lafayette Daily Advertiser, P.C. Piazza Tornado slams La. town, downed...
Proposal asks for lawsuit protection for referees HELENA (AP) — A proposal before House lawmakers says referees need better lawsuit protection when officiating athletic events in Montana. Senate Bill 4 heard in the House Judiciary Committee Wednesday would raise the bar for what is required to sue an official for injuries during a sporting event. Supporters say fear of lawsuits is driving people away from officiating and has created a serious shortage of referees. Those opposing the bill say there have been no serious lawsuit...
Senate Republicans lose vote on health law WASHINGTON (AP) — As expected, the Senate has rejected a Republican attempt to repeal the year-old health care law. The ultimate fate of the controversial law is expected to be determined by the Supreme Court. But congressional Republicans emboldened by gains in last fall's elections have made a priority of trying to wipe it off the books. All 47 members of the GOP rank and file voted for repeal. There were 51 votes to leave it in place, 50 Democrats and one independent. The House vo...
