Daines Announces Over $11 Million in Funding for Community Health Centers in Billings, Helena, Missoula, Havre and Hardin
U.S. SENATE — U.S. Senator Steve Daines today announced $11,822,536 in funding for Community Health Centers in Montana to provide improved continuity of care, mobile services to rural locations and increased access to affordable care. “Montana’s Community Health Centers provide reliable access to affordable healthcare close to home,” Daines stated. “I’m glad that Montanans from Hardin to Havre to Helena will continue to have quality care.” The Department of Health and Human Services awarded grants to: Billings: Yellowstone City & County Health Department: $2,876,414.00 Hardin: Bighorn Valley Health Center: $2,566,840.00 Havre: Bullhook Community Health Center, Inc.: $1,478,045.00 Helena: County of Lewis & Clark $1,459,658.00:
County to get $2.3 million in PILT funds
U.S. Senator Jon Tester announced last week that 55 Montana counties will receive a combined total of $31.8 million in Payment in Lieu of Taxes (PILT) for 2017. PILT payments are awarded to counties with federal lands that are not taxable by local governments, but the lands’ presence creates demands for local government services, such as law enforcement and infrastructure. As a senior member of the Senate Appropriations Committee, Tester worked with Republicans and Democrats to secure these resources in the federal budget earlier this year, it stated in his press release. “PILT payments help Montana counties provide critical
Celebrating Independence Day
Rodeos, barbecues, fireworks, parades — these are what often come to mind when we celebrate the Fourth of July in Montana. In fact, these activities have always come to mind when we think about Independence Day. On July 4, 1776, the Continental Congress officially adopted the Declaration of Independence. From the very beginning, people understood the significance of what they had just done. John Adams, our would-be second president, wrote to his wife about his vision for future celebrations of this historic occasion: “I am apt to believe that it will be celebrated, by succeeding Generations, as the great anniversary
Daines Calls For Cancellation Of August Recess
U.S. SENATE — U.S. Senator Steve Daines asked Majority Leader Mitch McConnell to cancel the Senate’s scheduled August state work period if meaningful progress has not been made on the following five priorities: fixing health care, funding the government, dealing with the debt ceiling, passing a budget resolution and improving the tax code. Daines outlined his request in a letter sent Leader McConnell, which included a countdown of the remaining scheduled work days until the end of the fiscal year, September 30. “Our current Senate calendar shows only 33 potential working days remaining before the end of the fiscal year,” Daines
Senate GOP pressures budget refs for better score on ObamaCare replacement
Senate Republicans are working the referee as they try to salvage their shot at repealing and replacing ObamaCare. They are specifically turning up the heat on the Congressional Budget Office (CBO), hoping to get a more favorable analysis on the next version of their healthcare bill. The CBO’s initial score of the GOP’s healthcare bill found that 22 million more people would be left without health insurance over the next decade compared to under present law. It was a terrible number for GOP leaders, dealing a blow to their hopes of winning over centrist Republicans. GOP senators wanted a better
County sees slight increase in PILT fund
Richland County will receive slightly more in Payment in Lieu of Taxes funds this year than the county did in the previous year. It was announced this week that Richland County will see $19,999 for its 54,206 eligible acres. Last year, the county received $$19,711. PILT are federal payments to local governments that help offset losses in property taxes due to non-taxable federal lands. The law recognizes the inability of local governments to collect property taxes on federally owned land can create a financial impact. The state will receive a total of $31.8 million in Payment in Lieu of Taxes
GOP senators to McConnell: Cancel August recess
A group of Republican senators are requesting August recess be canceled or shortened to give the party more time to make progress on its legislative agenda. The group, which includes Georgia’s David Perdue, Montana’s Steve Daines, Iowa’s Joni Ernst, Louisiana’s John Kennedy, Oklahoma’s James Lankford, Utah’s Mike Lee, South Dakota’s Mike Rounds, Alabama’s Luther Strange, Alaska’s Dan Sullivan and North Carolina’s Thom Tillis wrote Majority Leader Mitch McConnell Friday about the need to focus on five priorities: fixing health care, funding the government, dealing with the debt ceiling, passing a budget resolution, and improving the tax code. “Our current Senate
Daines, Tester Voice Their Thoughts On GOP Healthcare
Members of Congress are home for their 4th of July recess without voting on the Republican’s health care proposal. Senators Jon Tester, D-MT, and Steve Daines, R-MT, both held public forums over the past week to gather Montanans opinions on the issue. Tester says the current GOP bill is not the answer. So when asked if he is willing to work to fix this proposal or the current law, Tester says yes. If it’s the later, he suggests dropping the politically charged moniker Obamacare. “Let’s call it the current health care system we have or whatever we want to