News
Transgender sports bill sees big opposition in first Senate hearing
In addition to a letter signed by more than 100 female athletes in Montana, dozens of students showed up in person to testify Wednesday against House Bill 112, which would limit transgender women’s ability to participate in sports. “I know the joys of women’s sports. Teams that are family, finding confidence, building strength, and feeling […]
Attorneys general: Tax-cut rule is ‘unprecedented and unconstitutional’
WASHINGTON — Republican attorneys general from 21 states are attacking the $1.9 trillion pandemic relief law as an “unprecedented and unconstitutional infringement” on state sovereignty because it restricts tax cuts by states. The attorneys general in a letter to the Treasury Department threatened to take action against the Biden administration over the law’s tax cut provision. The group […]
Group files suit against governor, state over judicial appointments
Montana Gov. Greg Gianforte signed Senate Bill 140 into law on Tuesday afternoon. The newly minted law eliminated the Judicial Nominating Commission and gave the state’s chief executive the power to appoint judges. On Wednesday morning, a group of plaintiffs filed a lawsuit with the Montana Supreme Court to stop the law, possibly setting a […]
U.S. panel advance HHS nominee to full Senate
WASHINGTON — Pennsylvania’s former top health official, Dr. Rachel Levine, moved one step closer on Wednesday to becoming the highest-ranking openly transgender official in the federal government. The Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committee voted 13-9 to advance Levine’s nomination to serve as assistant secretary of Health and Human Services for a vote by the […]
Unemployment backlog on menu for ARPA spending
The state Department of Labor and Industry is looking to use an estimated $5.2 million in the recent federal COVID-19 aid package to modernize and reform the administration of its unemployment insurance benefit system, improvements the agency says are needed after processing delays slowed down the disbursement of jobless benefits during the pandemic. That sum […]
Blackfeet Nation: Glacier entrances to open on east side
The eastern entrances in Glacier National Park will be open this summer, and travelers will be able to drive into the park on either end of Going-to-the-Sun Road, according to the Blackfeet Nation. Kwebb Galbreath, incident commander for the Blackfeet, said the council voted 9-0 Wednesday to open the eastern entrances of the park, which […]
New ‘Dreamers’ act runs into old obstacles
WASHINGTON — Legislation creating a path to citizenship for undocumented people brought to the U.S. as children faces a new border crisis and old partisan objections, diminishing the chances it will become law despite full Democratic control of Congress and the White House. On Thursday, the U.S. House is poised to pass the American Dream […]
Governor signs bill giving himself power to fill judicial vacancies
Gov. Greg Gianforte signed into a law Tuesday a bill that gives him mostly unfettered ability to fill supreme and district court vacancies. Senate Bill 140, sponsored by Sen. Keith Regier, R-Kalispell, eliminates the Judicial Nominating Commission and gives the governor power to fill judicial vacancies. However, the appointments have to be approved by the […]
Butte protesters say Rosendale yelled, made obscene gesture; Freshman Rep denies reports
When union members and supporters showed up in Butte to picket U.S. Rep. Matt Rosendale, Montana’s only member of the U.S. House of Representatives, they said they wanted answers about his lack of support for unions and the massive $1.9 trillion COVID-19 relief bill. They got answers, but not the ones they expected. At least […]
COVID-19 ranks No. 3 in cause of death for Montana in 2020
Maybe nowhere in Montana does COVID-19’s impact appear more profound than the annual report that compiles the leading causes of death in the state. According to that yearly report, COVID was the third-leading cause of death in Montana in 2020, accounting for nearly 10 percent of all deaths. Moreover, the mortality rate for all causes […]
Coming soon to Montana — vaccine passports to show you’re inoculated
WASHINGTON — More than 70 million Americans have received at least one dose of a COVID-19 vaccine — and along with that shot, a small paper card with the CDC’s label detailing the timing and manufacturer of the dose. Those paper cards at the moment are the only proof to Americans of their vaccination against […]
Montana to open vaccine eligibility to 16 and older starting April 1
Montana announced Tuesday that everyone 16 years and older will be eligible to receive a COVID-19 vaccine starting April 1, beating the federal deadline by one month. Gov. Greg Gianforte announced the expanded eligibility at a press conference Tuesday. You do not need a Montana state ID to receive the vaccine. On March 8, Montana […]