Article Summary – Montana Governor Greg Gianforte’s first-quarter 2024 campaign finance filings reveal nearly $853,000 in primary election donations and another $395,600 for the general election, outdoing Democratic challenger Ryan Busse’s $417,500 in the same period. The funds do not include direct donations from the multimillionaire incumbent; however, his campaign
Article Summary – Elsie Arntzen, Montana’s State Superintendent, has come under bipartisan criticism for allegedly failing to properly implement new education laws. The criticisms center around state funding for early childhood literacy programs, the timeline for reporting spending on Indigenous culture instruction, the process for opening public charter schools, and
Article Summary – The Scott Street-Ravara housing development, built on a former contaminated lumber mill site in Missoula, is under construction and includes 89 homes and 200+ apartments. The project involves 46 income-qualified and 43 market-rate condos and townhouses, along with 220-225 apartments and 35,000 sq ft of commercial space
Article Summary – Montana Secretary of State Christi Jacobsen sent a poll, as ordered by a state district court, asking lawmakers whether they want to override Governor Greg Gianforte’s veto of Senate Bill 442, a marijuana tax reallocation measure. The bill, which initially passed the Legislature with broad bipartisan support,
Article Summary – The Montana Supreme Court has overruled the state attorney general’s claim that an initiative to protect abortion rights is legally insufficient. The court found that the proposal submitted by Planned Parenthood Advocates of Montana did not confuse voters nor conflict with other parts of the Constitution. However,
Article Summary – Three candidates are competing to replace retiring Montana Supreme Court Justice Dirk Sandefur: Flathead County District Court Judge Dan Wilson, 7th Judicial District Judge Katherine Bidegaray and former Republican lawmaker Jerry O’Neil. While the candidates are officially nonpartisan, the race is marked by the politics of constitutional
Article Summary – The Montana Supreme Court has ruled that New York’s broad protection of journalists to report on public affairs, known as the “fair report privilege,” supersedes Montana law in a lawsuit filed by Michael Goguen against the New York Post. Goguen, a Montana-based venture capitalist who was previously
TL/DR – U.S. lawmakers have passed a bill that would force Chinese company ByteDance to sell the popular app TikTok or face a ban in the United States. The move follows a failed attempt by former president Donald Trump in 2020 to force a sale of the app, which was
Article Summary – The race to replace retiring Montana Supreme Court Justice Dirk Sandefur features two district court judges and a former Republican legislator who is not a member of the bar. The two judges vying for the seat are Flathead County District Court Judge Dan Wilson and 7th Judicial
Article Summary – Officials from 49 of Montana’s 56 counties are having to send supplemental property tax bills to numerous property owners following a Supreme Court ruling. The ruling was related to a dispute over the state’s “95 mill” school equalization property tax with Gov. Greg Gianforte. The amount of
Article Summary – Montana lawmakers have criticised state Superintendent Elsie Arntzen’s refusal to attend a legislative committee meeting about new education laws. Arntzen was accused of not meeting her constitutional obligation, and the Office of Public Instruction (OPI) was criticised for delayed implementation of new laws and poor communication with
Article Summary – The Montana state health department has awarded Maximus Federal Services a $15 million contract to deliver employment assistance and training for some public assistance recipients until September 2025. The move, aimed at creating consistency, expanding access, and increasing efficiency in employment and training programs, sees the state
