Living
Montana housing and prison infrastructure bills await governor’s consideration
Two of the biggest legislative priorities to start the 2023 session in Montana – addressing housing and prison space and upgrades – came down to a flurry of work done in the final days to try to find compromises, though leadership from both parties said they feel the body could have done more specifically to […]
We’re not kitten: States could move to ban declawing of cats
Lawmakers in more than a dozen states have filed legislation this year to outlaw the declawing of cats, which many animal advocates and some veterinarians say is a cruel deforming of felines’ bodies and impedes their natural instincts to climb and scratch. Maryland last year joined New York, which prohibited declawing in 2019, as the […]
Hard pressed: Billings letterpress studio breathes new life into old artform
People rarely sit down to write letters anymore. Even email seems laborious when compared to texting. So imagine how few people still set type by hand. Heck, how many folks even know what that means? For Erika Wilson of the Windy Mill Press, after her first attempt at a hand letterpress, she was hooked. “Immediately […]
Suspect captured in Atlanta medical facility shooting that killed one and injured four
One person was killed and four others injured in a mass shooting at a high-rise Midtown Atlanta medical facility that put Georgia’s capital city on edge and immediately sparked calls on all levels of government for more action on gun safety. The shooting happened around lunchtime in a waiting room at the Northside Hospital Midtown […]
Students learn about Space Force, then get letter from VP Harris
When Jennifer Huppert’s fifth-grade class at Boulder Elementary in Billings received a manila envelope in the mail, she thought it was probably another piece of junk mail sent in an official looking wrapper with a Washington, D.C., return address. Huppert is constantly getting all sorts of offers, gimmicks and programs that arrive on her desk […]
Converting office spaces is hard. These changes could make it easier
PORTLAND — Stroll around America’s vacant downtowns, and a seemingly obvious solution emerges to the housing shortages and homelessness problems in many states: Why not turn all those unoccupied offices into living spaces? Especially in cities such as Portland, where the office vacancy rate in the urban core peaked at an estimated 27% earlier this […]
Rise of the AR-15: How the rifle became a top pick for gun owners, source of fear for others
This story was originally published by Flatwater Free Press. When a gunman entered a west Omaha Super Target in late January, he carried 13 loaded rifle magazines and a weapon that has gained symbolic stature in the national debate over guns, the AR-15. Initially created for war, the AR-15’s popularity among firearm owners has skyrocketed […]
Best Beginnings child care scholarship expansion headed to Gianforte’s desk
Rep. Alice Buckley’s Best Beginnings Scholarship expansion to provide relief for lower-income Montanans seeking child care options is headed to the governor’s desk after a final bipartisan vote in the Senate on Friday. House Bill 648 from the Bozeman Democrat has been one of Democrats’ major priorities this session to get to the desk of […]
UPDATED: House Judiciary secretary quits, joins as staff to Zephyr; committee to meet Monday
House Judiciary Committee Clerk Jamie Van Valkenburg quit her job Friday morning to join Rep. Zooey Zephyr, D-Missoula, as her staffer, Van Valkenburg told the Daily Montanan. “Representatives Zephyr called me last night saying ‘Hey, I have this opportunity for you, I would love to have you specifically as part of my staff,’” said Van […]
Bill defining sex in Montana law sent to governor’s desk
The bill that aims to define the terms “male” and “female” in 41 sections of Montana code, which a fiscal analysis requested by Democrats earlier this session found could cost the state billions, is headed to the desk of Republican Gov. Greg Gianforte. The Senate voted 28-22 Thursday to concur with the House’s amendments to […]
Sources: Lee newspapers plans to reduce printing days
Lee Enterprises, the corporate owner of five Montana daily newspapers, plans to reduce the number of days it prints in most of its newspapers to three days per week. The decision to cut publication days has been an industry trend and something that Lee Enterprises has discussed on recent investor calls, but no specific details […]
Gun deaths drive historic spike in child mortality rates
After decades of steady improvement, the death rate of America’s children and teens shot up between 2019 and 2021 — and COVID-19 wasn’t the reason. Gun-related deaths represented the largest share of the increase — by far. According to an analysis of the most recent death certificate data from the federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, […]