Tester receives award in Havre

Sen. Jon Tester visited Havre Saturday in one of his tours around Montana to speak to the U.S. Border Patrol agents and the owners of the Triple Dog Brewery.

Paul Tuss, on behalf of Bear Paw Development, used the opportunity to present to Tester an award for his work in helping the economy and business world of Montana.

Tester said that Bear Paw has been helping the area for decades.

"Bear Paw is such a diamond in the business community, especially with our entrepreneurs," Tester said, referencing Michael Garrity, the brewmaster and part-owner of Triple Dog Brewery.

Tester said that his visit with Border Patrol agents was to find out what was going on with the local office. The meeting was closed to the public.

"It's important that we know what they're doing, what sort of challenges they're facing," Tester said.

He said he was visiting Triple Dog as an opportunity to look at Havre's new small business and how it adds to the economy of Havre and north-central Montana.

"I think it's a great little business," Tester said. "It helps the community."

Tester is also pushing for a bill that would relieve some of the tax burdens on small breweries. It would cut the taxes per barrel in half for the first 60,000 barrels, which would benefit Triple Dog, as they are gearing up to distribute kegs. Currently, there are zero breweries in Montana that distribute more than 60,000 barrels.