News you can use
News you can use
Sorted by date Results 1983 - 2007 of 3210
Montana enjoys the longest hunting and trapping seasons in the West, providing incredible experiences for residents and visitors from around the world. Our coldwater and warmwater fisheries also provide world-class angling opportunities. It should be no surprise that a majority of Montanans hunt, fish, and trap – one of the highest participation rates in the country. And all Montanans know how important hunting, fishing and trapping are to our outdoor economy. Montana’s Constitution protects hunting, fishing and trapping when...
Who do you seek for advice when you have money to invest? Do you call up the local farmer, a teacher and a couple of lawyers? Most people use professionals who know markets and can give good advice on trends. I carried the bill of Rep. Virginia Court, D-Billings, House Bill 533, on the floor of the Senate last week. Virginia and I have both served on Legislative Audit Committee and agree that the changes in HB 533 will modernize the Board of Investments since the makeup of the nine members hasn’t changed in forty years. T...
Hill County Voters will be asked in the upcoming election to support the Hill County Weed mill levy. I have served on the Hill County Weed Board for several years and I can tell you this request is of an urgent matter. Hill County has been blessed with a weed coordinator who has received many awards and recognition for his innovative management of our district as well as weed control in our county. Hill County Weed Coordinator Terry Turner has managed to make every dollar count and be stretched as far as humanly possible for...
My days are never what I think they are going to be. No, that doesn’t quite express what I’m trying to say. Life is full of surprises. That’s an inane cliché. My tongue can’t find the right words. I’m not in charge. At times I think I am. The joke always turns on me. My life is like my bread baking. I glance at a recipe from time to time. But I know the basic ingredients and about how much flour, yeast, sweetening, salt and butter to mix. Then I might add dry or fresh herbs, potato, egg, chopped onion. It may contain a...
The Havre High Key Club would like to take a moment and share with the Havre community a summary of the past year of service. Our 27 members owe many thanks to a supportive Havre Public School administration and staff that encourage and support our service projects throughout the year. The Key Club also would like to thank our local Kiwanis Club who support our members by sharing in the participation of service projects, fund raisers, and their financial support. It is because of the backing of our administration, local...
One of the most important votes a U.S. senator casts is a vote for a U.S. Supreme Court nominee. An Associate Justice for the Supreme Court is a lifetime appointment. That’s why a decision on who to vote for, who to stand behind, and who to stand with is so important — not only to me but to our children and grandchildren. We want a Supreme Court justice who upholds the rule of law and follows the Constitution. We want a Supreme Court justice who doesn’t legislate from the bench. We want a Supreme Court justice with super...
Almost one year ago to the day, I held an energy summit in Billings with over 600 Montanans talking about the future of Montana energy. Last week, I stood with President Trump, Vice President Pence, Energy Secretary Perry, Interior Secretary Zinke, EPA Administrator Pruitt as well as 20 coal miners to mark the start of a new era in energy production and job creation. Last Tuesday, President Trump took decisive action directing the EPA to suspend, revise, or rescind the EPA Power Plan that is stifling jobs. Then on Wednesday,...
In 1981, North Dakota’s gambling industry experienced a sudden boom. The state began raking in gambling tax revenue, which was pledged to charities and non-profit organizations. And while the gamblers would of course get to keep their winnings, groups across the state and local communities benefited from the sudden increase in revenue. Montana is now in a position to pass similar legislation and bring in needed revenue to our state at a time when we are in desperate need of a boost. House Bill 578 gives establishments the o...
True health care reform will require more than partisan ideologies. Our state and federal leaders need to be reminded that polarized objectives will always fall short of collaborative solutions based on expert recommendations from those who work in the field. Montana health care workers know that increasing the number of individuals and families covered by health insurance is fundamental to addressing today’s health care challenges. Individuals with health insurance are more likely to access the care they need to be h...
This week we learned Montana leads the nation in job growth. Our unemployment rate is nearing historic lows while more Montanans are at work than ever. And we have a stable business climate that allows both our small and large businesses in communities across the state to grow, expand, and create more good paying jobs. In the last two legislative sessions, I worked with Republicans and Democrats to craft bipartisan, fiscally responsible budgets that set the foundation for our thriving economy. And as you can see, the results...
A common joke among horse people goes like this: If you want to keep your kids off drugs, get them hooked on horses, and they’ll never have money for anything else. Sure, we laugh — we laugh as hard as the average layperson about the exaggeration — but we know. Right? We know this is a truism disguised as a joke. You can hear it at the end of our laugh. There’s a catch in the voice, maybe a quiet sigh or a choked-off grunt. It’s the reality hitting home. And, yes, to be cle...
As home to some of our nation’s largest coal reserves, Montana plays a key role in the future of our nation’s energy economy. Unfortunately, Montana coal production has declined significantly in recent years — by as much as a third. This decline took a toll not only on jobs across the state but on essential state tax revenue too. On the campaign trail, President Trump guaranteed he would “bring the coal industry back 100 percent.” Montanans, and people across America who depend on the reliable and affordable energy produced...
It is not domestic, but rather foreign policy, which has consumed the days and nights of most American presidents. Since World War II, our leader has been watchmen on freedom’s wall and although most of those presidents were brilliant, experienced and surrounded by well-seasoned advisors they discovered, each in turn, the great difficulty of guiding our international affairs. As we learned during the past year, President Trump’s foreign policy experience is limited to the building of hotels and golf courses in far-away pla...
From the beginning of the 2017 session, House Republicans committed to supporting essential infrastructure which would not place an undue burden on Montana taxpayers. The Legislature is currently moving more than $1.1 billion worth of infrastructure projects directly to Montana communities. You read that right — billion. This is an important piece of the puzzle that some in Helena don’t want the public to hear about. The Helena crowd has an agenda based on their own self-interest, not the well-being of families across the...
I started the week spending a bit of time and sharing information with some of the Fort Benton junior and senior classes, along with their bus driver and teachers. I understand some students had to travel to D.C. and the rest got to come to Helena. It was a nice group that seemed to enjoy hearing about session and its bill-making processes. We did pass the Marijuana Bill, Senate Bill 333, out of Senate on Friday. This was after two more informational meetings held Monday and Wednesday. In all, both parties came up with 25...
Colstrip’s old coal-fired power units are losing money and that means their days are numbered. Units 1 and 2 are closing by 2022 at the latest and maybe sooner. We need to make sure Colstrip’s operators fulfill their responsibilities in helping the state deal with the economic loss to workers, the community, and the environment. But, we have another problem. Legislation has been proposed that doesn’t just hold Colstrip’s operators accountable — it punishes them. And, as good as retribution may feel, the problem is that it w...
Recently, it was discovered that Rob Quist had tax liens filed against him by the state of Montana and it was turned into political fodder. I am not going to condemn Mr. Quist. Like many working Montanan’s not everything has gone as planned in his life. Sometimes no matter how you plan, the world just doesn’t cooperate. Unexpected bills can happen at any time and expected payments usually are farther away than anticipated. Welcome to the real world, folks. This is where most working Montana families live all the time. It als...
I realized quickly after moving to Montana people here talked about the weather a lot. It was sort of strange, funny, and a little lame. History is not exactly replete with titans of their time known for their passion of cumulus clouds and chinook winds. Like air and fingerprints, weather just is. Aside from farmers, whose livelihood depends on the weather, I thought anyone else who loves to ramble on about the weather does so because their lives are so eventless, so uninteresting, that they entertain their sad selves by...
We interrupt our previously scheduled column to bring you the latest news on the possible defection of a high-ranking Republican to the Democratic Party. Several national and international news outlets reported this week that former chair of the Colorado Republican Party Steve Curtis appeared in Colorado’s Weld County District Court charged with misdemeanor voter fraud and forgery, a felony. Curtis is accused of filling out, signing and mailing in his ex-wife, Kelly C...
This morning at Qi Gong, a practice which requires focus, every bird in the tree, wisp of cloud, skittering lizard robbed my attention. Where’s my focus? I have a bad case, not fatal, of “I want it all.” Crin left this morning. We shared café con leche before she took off for the airport. Nancie left a couple days ago. As long as I’m wanting that which I cannot have, I want all my friends here with me all the time. When they are here, I want, please, just a few minutes...
Forty years ago, the Montana Legislature enshrined renter’s rights in the state code by passing the Residential Landlord and Tenant Act of 1977. Now, those rights are being threatened. A group of bills have been introduced in the Montana Legislature that, if passed, would erode renter’s rights and swing the carefully erected balance of power between renters and landlords towards the landlords. Taken separately, these bills have varying effects. Some are fairly innocuous — HB 350 allows for the use of electronic fund transfer...
The pace is picking up in the Montana Senate. Tax Committee is still wrestling with the medical cannabis (marijuana) issue. The committee had two extra fact-finding meetings trying to determine quality and safety standardized testing requirements needed to ensure best practice for the patients. Amendments will be coming in. I know there will be more work to get it right, but I am looking forward to the whole thing coming to a close. The other big tax bill is the Local Option Sales Tax, which would allow communities the option...
As the president of the Associated Students of the University of Montana, it is my privilege and responsibility to represent over 11,000 students of the University of Montana. Unfortunately, the fight for affordable, accessible higher education for Montana’s families is becoming more challenging. The Legislature has proposed an $11.8 million cut to the Montana University System that our students and our campuses simply cannot afford. Whether you attend UM or Dawson Community College, Montana State University or Montana T...
Montana agriculture provides abundance all year As the days get longer and the weather warms, many of us begin to plan and dream of the upcoming growing season. Warmer seasons for many mean connecting with the land and enjoying the fresh produce from our efforts. This connection to our food and how it is produced is a fundamental aspect of our nature. For those in Montana on the nearly 25,000 family farms and ranches, their connection is year-round. Whether they are feeding their livestock or protecting newly born calves...
It’s one thing to know something about yourself that is, let’s say, not a plus, like “I’m not awesome at geography,” but it’s another thing to have it demonstrated, repeatedly, to truly make you understand that you should be humiliated. I, in fact, am not perfectly awesome about where countries lay on the globe, but hey, I thought, I’m OK at it. Then I took a little online name-those-countries-in-15-minutes quiz on Sporcle.com and found out just how badly I have failed all th...
